Sierra Leone Analysis Matrix

Country Analysis Matrix
Economic Metric United States Sierra Leone
Per Capita GDP $59, 501 $522
Misery Index 6.46 26
GINI Index 41.5 34
Economic Freedom Index Overall Ranking 18 151
Human Development Index
Overall Ranking 10 179
Current Account Balance $-128.2B $-1102.09M
Budget Balance as % of GDP -4.9% -4.2%

Summary
Sierra Leone’s economy grew at a rate of 7.8% between 2003 and 2014 (World Bank Group, 2018). This impressive growth was due to mining, construction activities, and the agricultural sector. The rate, however, dropped to 6.3% (2016) and further down to 4.3% in 2017 (World Bank Group, 2018). This inflation was due to a slow recovery in the mineral industry. It, therefore, highlighted one of Sierra Leone’s economic weaknesses in that it is highly dependent on prices of commodities. Another weakness of Sierra Leone is the fact that it is greatly affected by health issues and inadequate infrastructure. The break out of Ebola held back the momentum of the economic growth rate. Sierra Leone lacked a well-developed infrastructure to help it curb the spread of the disease, which in turn lead to deterioration of the economic sector (World Bank Group, 2018). The significant mineral resources in Sierra Leone are a huge boost to the economy. It contributes to a huge percentage of the overall country revenues. The export of coffee and tea is another observable strength of this country’s economy. Like many other African countries, Sierra Leone is dependent on the foreign market.

The big difference that can be noted between Sierra Leone and the United States is the GDP per capita. At $522, Sierra Leone is among the poorest countries in the world while the US, at 59, 501, is one of the richest (The Data Team, 2018). The Misery Index is another significant contrast in the two economies. There is a huge margin in freedom of doing business in the United States and in Sierra Leone probably due to the development levels (The Economist Newspaper Limited, 2016). The Current Account Balance of the United States is almost hundred thousand times bigger than Sierra Leone’s, showing the levels of the two countries economically (The Economist Newspaper, 2018).
References
The Data Team. (2018). ‘The fastest-growing and shrinking economies in 2018’ economist.com. Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2018/01/daily-chart-3
The Economist Newspaper Limited. (2018) ‘America’s extraordinary economic gamble.’ economist.com Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21736513-fiscal-policy-adding-demand-even-economy-running-hot-americas-extraordinary
The Economist Newspaper Limited. (2016) ‘The Trouble with GDP.’ economist.com Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21697845-gross-domestic-product-gdp-increasingly-poor-measure-prosperity-it-not-even
World Bank Group. (2018). The World Bank in Sierra Leone. Worldbank.org Retrieved from http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/sierraleone/overview