The Guinea–Sierra Leone border is 794 km (493 m) in length and runs from the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

in the west to the tripoint with

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

in the east.

Description

The border starts in the west at the Atlantic coast, and then proceeds overland in a north-easterly direction via various irregular and some straight lines, as well as the Great Scarcies River, before reaching the

10th parallel north Following are circles of latitude between the 15th parallel north and the 20th parallel north: 6th parallel north The 6th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 6 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Africa, the Ind ...

. The boundary then follows this parallel eastwards for circa 75 km (47 m), before proceeding in a south-westerly direction, cutting across the Loma and Tingi Mountains, down to the Meli river. The border follows the Meli down to the confluence with the Moa/Makona, and then follows the Makona eastwards to the Liberian tripoint.

History

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

was founded by the British in the 1780s as haven for rescued and freed slaves; the area around

Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...

was made a crown colony in 1808 and British rule gradually extended over the interior over the following decades.

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

had also taken an interest in the West African coast, settling in the region of modern

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

in the 17th century and later annexing the coast of what is now Guinea in the late 19th century as the

Rivières du Sud Rivières du Sud (English: ''Southern Rivers'') was a French colonial division in West Africa, roughly corresponding to modern coastal sections of Guinea. While the designation was used from the 18th to 20th century, the administrative division on ...

colony.Jean Suret-Canele (1971) ''French Colonialism in Tropical Africa 1900-1945'' Trans. Pica Press, pp 87-88. The area was renamed

French Guinea French Guinea () was a French colonial possession in West Africa. Its borders, while changed over time, were in 1958 those of the current independent nation of Guinea. French Guinea was established by France in 1891, within the same borders as ...

1893, and was later included within the

French West Africa French West Africa (, ) was a federation of eight French colonial empires#Second French colonial empire, French colonial territories in West Africa: Colonial Mauritania, Mauritania, French Senegal, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guin ...

colony. The 1880s saw an intense competition between the European powers for territories in Africa, a process known as the

Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa was the invasion, conquest, and colonialism, colonisation of most of Africa by seven Western European powers driven by the Second Industrial Revolution during the late 19th century and early 20th century in the era of ...

. The process culminated in the

Berlin Conference The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 was a meeting of colonial powers that concluded with the signing of the General Act of Berlin,

of 1884, in which the European nations concerned agreed upon their respective territorial claims and the rules of engagements going forward. As a result, France and Britain signed a treaty on 28 June 1882 delimiting a boundary between Sierra Leone and Guinea, terminating inland at an undetermined point; another treaty of 10 August 1889 extended the boundary further to the east. This boundary was extended again by a treaty of 21 January 1895 down to the vicinity of Timbekundu, and was then demarcated on the ground from December 1895-May 1896; this demarcation was approved by an exchange of notes in June 1898. Meanwhile, the French Guinea–Liberia border was modified in September 1907–11, as was the

Liberia–Sierra Leone border The Liberia–Sierra Leone border is 299 km (185 mi) in length and runs from the tripoint with Guinea in the north-east to the Atlantic Ocean in the south-west. Description The border starts in the north at the tripoint with Guinea in the Mo ...

in January 1911, thereby extending the French Guinea-Sierra Leone boundary further south. Britain and France confirmed the new French-Guinea-Sierra Leone boundary line in June 1911 and signed a treaty to this effect on 4 September 1913. French Guinea gained independence in 1958, followed by Sierra Leone in 1961, and the boundary then became one between two sovereign states. During the Sierra Leone Civil War (1991-2001) some trouble occurred at the border town of Yenga, prompting Guinea to cross the border and occupy the town. The dispute was settled in 2013 and the town returned to Sierra Leonean control.

Settlements near the border

Guinea

* Pamela * Farmoriah * Degui * Moungata * Koundou

Sierra Leone

* Kambia * Bramaia * Kukuna * Koliba * Gberia Fotombu * Bendugu * Faragbema * Saiama * Kainkordu * Dia * Yenga

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guinea-Sierra Leone border Borders of Guinea Borders of Sierra Leone International borders