Share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Share of the population with access to electricity was 39.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone, 2000–2024
Source: Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of population.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 39.2% for share of the population with access to electricity in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 10.4% on the previous year and up 108.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone peaked at 39.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 7.7%, in 2000.
Sierra Leone ranks 204th of 214 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7.7% | — |
| 2001 | 8.5% | +10.4% |
| 2002 | 9.2% | +8.2% |
| 2003 | 9.9% | +7.6% |
| 2004 | 16.8% | +69.7% |
| 2005 | 11.3% | -32.7% |
| 2006 | 12.2% | +8.0% |
| 2007 | 13.0% | +6.6% |
| 2008 | 12.1% | -6.9% |
| 2009 | 14.6% | +20.7% |
| 2010 | 11.5% | -21.2% |
| 2011 | 14.2% | +23.5% |
| 2012 | 17.2% | +21.1% |
| 2013 | 13.5% | -21.5% |
| 2014 | 18.8% | +39.3% |
| 2015 | 19.7% | +4.8% |
| 2016 | 20.3% | +3.0% |
| 2017 | 23.4% | +15.3% |
| 2018 | 26.1% | +11.5% |
| 2019 | 22.7% | -13.0% |
| 2020 | 26.3% | +15.9% |
| 2021 | 27.5% | +4.6% |
| 2022 | 29.4% | +6.9% |
| 2023 | 35.5% | +20.7% |
| 2024 | 39.2% | +10.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 11.5% | 7.7% | 16.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.6% | 26.3% | 39.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
- 201 Guinea-Bissau 43.7% compare
- 202 Papua New Guinea 43.3% compare
- 203 Madagascar 42.5% compare
- 205 Mozambique 36.9% compare
- 206 Liberia 34.9% compare
- 207 Burkina Faso 34.0% compare
More energy & mining data for Sierra Leone
- Fuel imports 1.1% (2018)
- Ores and metals imports 1.0% (2018)
- Ores and metals exports 19.7% (2018)
- Gas production 0 terawatt-hours (2024)
- Fossil fuel production per person, by fuel 0 kilowatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fossil fuel production by fuel 0 terawatt-hours (2024)
- Gas production per person 0 kilowatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fossil fuel production by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fossil fuel production by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Gas production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone?
- Share of the population with access to electricity in Sierra Leone was 39.2% in 2024, according to Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population with access to electricity recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 39.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of the population with access to electricity recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.7% in 2000.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for share of the population with access to electricity?
- Sierra Leone ranks 204th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of the population with access to electricity rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 108.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population with access to electricity. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Access to electricity means having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.