Kenema
Encyclopedia
Kenema is the third largest city
in Sierra Leone
(after the capital Freetown
and Bo
) and the largest city in the Eastern Province
with a population of 128,402 in the 2004 census and a more recent estimate of 169,937 http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gpro&lng=en&des=wg&srt=npan&col=adhoq&msz=1500&geo=352384881. The city is the capital and administrative center of Kenema District
and lies 200 miles east of Freetown
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/14/us-bioterror-africa-idUSTRE71D49820110214.
Kenema is a major trade and commercial center and serves as the economic and financial center of Eastern Sierra Leone, along with Koidu Town.
Kenema is an ethnically diverse city and is home to significant numbers of virtually all the country's ethnic groups, though the Mende people
make up the largest ethnic group. The city is the primary home of the Eastern Polytechnic College
, one of Sierra Leone's major colleges that offer degree and certificate. The Krio language
is the most widely spoken language in the city and is used as the primary language of communication among the residents.
The city grew along with a now-closed railway
, around the logging
and carpentry
industries, and recently with diamond
mines first discovered in 1931.
form of government, which is headed by a mayor
, in whom executive authority is vested. The mayor is responsible for the general management of the city and for seeing that all local and national laws are enforced. The mayor is elected directly by the residents of Kenema. The current mayor of Kenema is Chief Brima Kargbo, a member of the Sierra Leone People's Party
(SLPP), currently an opposition party and one of the three major political parties in Sierra Leone.
make up the largest ethnic group. Kenema has the second largest Sierra Leonean-Lebanese
population in the country and is also home to many Liberian
s.
and Gem Stars
play in the Sierra Leone National Premier League
, the top football league in country.
, and Kenema hospital is the centre of an international effort to combat the disease with support from the World Health Organization
(WHO) and UNAMSIL. New laboratories to improve rapid diagnosis are being installed at the hospital, which admits between 250 and 500 suspected cases per year.
, CNN International
, and several other international stations are on the air in Kenema on satellite
only.
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
(after the capital Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
and Bo
Bo, Sierra Leone
Bo is the second largest city in Sierra Leone and the largest city in the Southern Province. It lies about 164 miles south-east of Freetown and had a population 149,957 in the 2004 census, with a current estimate is 231,494 . The city serve as the capital and administrative center of Bo District...
) and the largest city in the Eastern Province
Eastern Province, Sierra Leone
Eastern Province is one of the four provinces of Sierra Leone. It covers an area of 15,553 km² and has a population of 1,187,532...
with a population of 128,402 in the 2004 census and a more recent estimate of 169,937 http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gpro&lng=en&des=wg&srt=npan&col=adhoq&msz=1500&geo=352384881. The city is the capital and administrative center of Kenema District
Kenema District
Kenema District is a district in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Kenema, which is also the third largest city in Sierra Leone. The other major towns in the district include Tongo and Blama. The district is the most populous district in the Eastern province with...
and lies 200 miles east of Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/14/us-bioterror-africa-idUSTRE71D49820110214.
Kenema is a major trade and commercial center and serves as the economic and financial center of Eastern Sierra Leone, along with Koidu Town.
Kenema is an ethnically diverse city and is home to significant numbers of virtually all the country's ethnic groups, though the Mende people
Mende people
The Mende people are one of the two largest and most dominant ethnic group in Sierra Leone, along with the Temne. The Mende make up 30% of Sierra Leone's total population or 1,932,015 members...
make up the largest ethnic group. The city is the primary home of the Eastern Polytechnic College
Eastern Polytechnic
Eastern Polytechnic is a major university located primarily in Kenema, the third largest city of Sierra Leone. along with the Kenema campus, Eastern Polytechnic was designed as a multi-campus institution with a campus at Bunumbu in the Kailahun District, another at Woama in the Kono District...
, one of Sierra Leone's major colleges that offer degree and certificate. The Krio language
Krio language
Sierra Leone Krio is the lingua franca and the de facto national language spoken throughout the West African nation of Sierra Leone. Krio is spoken by 97% of Sierra Leone's population and unites the different ethnic groups in the country, especially in their trade and social interaction with each...
is the most widely spoken language in the city and is used as the primary language of communication among the residents.
The city grew along with a now-closed railway
Sierra Leone Government Railway
The Sierra Leone Government Railway operated in the West African country of Sierra Leone from 1897 to 1974. It was unusual in that it formed a national railway system constructed solely to a rail gauge...
, around the logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
and carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
industries, and recently with diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
mines first discovered in 1931.
Government
The city of Kenema is governed with a city councilCity council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
form of government, which is headed by a mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
, in whom executive authority is vested. The mayor is responsible for the general management of the city and for seeing that all local and national laws are enforced. The mayor is elected directly by the residents of Kenema. The current mayor of Kenema is Chief Brima Kargbo, a member of the Sierra Leone People's Party
Sierra Leone People's Party
Sierra Leone People's Party is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, along with the All People's Congress .-Formation:...
(SLPP), currently an opposition party and one of the three major political parties in Sierra Leone.
Demographics
Kenema is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in Sierra Leone. The city is home to all of the country's ethnic groups, though the Mende peopleMende people
The Mende people are one of the two largest and most dominant ethnic group in Sierra Leone, along with the Temne. The Mende make up 30% of Sierra Leone's total population or 1,932,015 members...
make up the largest ethnic group. Kenema has the second largest Sierra Leonean-Lebanese
Sierra Leonean-Lebanese
-Migration history:Lebanese immigrants first came to West Africa in the mid-19th century when a silk-worm crisis struck their homeland, then part of the Ottoman Empire; the first Lebanese arrived in Sierra Leone in 1893. The first groups were Maronite Christians, but beginning in 1903, Shia Muslim...
population in the country and is also home to many Liberian
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
s.
Sport
As in the rest of the country, football is by far the most popular sport in Kenema. The city two popular football clubs, the Kamboi EaglesKamboi Eagles
The Kamboi Eagles of Kenema commonly known as Kamboi Eagles, is a Sierra Leonean football club based in Kenema, Sierra Leone, currently a member of the Sierra Leone National Premier League, the highest division of football league in Sierra Leone...
and Gem Stars
Gem Stars
The Gem Stars of Tongoma Football Club simply known as the Gem Stars is a Sierra Leonean football club based in the diamond rich town of Tongoma, Kenema District, Sierra Leone. The club plays in the Division One League in Sierra Leone, after being promoted from the First Division two seasons ago....
play in the Sierra Leone National Premier League
Sierra Leone National Premier League
Sierra Leone National Premier League is the top football league in Sierra Leone. It was founded in 1967. The league is sponsored by the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, one of the major Sierra Leonean banks. East End Lions and Mighty Blackpool are the two biggest and most successful clubs. The...
, the top football league in country.
Education
As in the rest of Sierra Leone, Kenema has an education system with six years of primary school (Class 1-6), and six years of secondary school (Form 1-6); secondary schools are further divided into Junior secondary school (Form 1-3) and Senior secondary school (Form 4-6). Primary schools usually start from ages 6 to 12, and secondary schools usually start from ages 13 to 18. Primary Education is free and compulsory in government-sponsored public schools.Health
Kenema and Bo are endemic areas for a highly contagious tropical hemorragic fever known as Lassa feverLassa fever
Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus and first described in 1969 in the town of Lassa, in Borno State, Nigeria, in the Yedseram river valley at the south end of Lake Chad. Clinical cases of the disease had been known for over a decade but had not been connected...
, and Kenema hospital is the centre of an international effort to combat the disease with support from the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
(WHO) and UNAMSIL. New laboratories to improve rapid diagnosis are being installed at the hospital, which admits between 250 and 500 suspected cases per year.
Media
The two main radio stations in Kenema are Eastern Radio 101.9 and Radio Nongowa - SPIN FM 101.3. Sierra Leone's national radio and television stations, SLBS TV, and SLBS Radio are on the air in Kenema. The BBC World ServiceBBC World Service
The BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster, broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays...
, CNN International
CNN International
CNN International is an international English language television network that carries news, current affairs, politics, opinions, and business programming worldwide. CNN is one of the world's largest news organizations. It is owned by Time Warner, and is affiliated with CNN, which is mainly...
, and several other international stations are on the air in Kenema on satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
only.
Notable people from Kenema
- Mohamed KallonMohamed KallonMohamed Kallon is a Sierra Leonean international footballer and considered the most famous footballer from Sierra Leone. He is currently playing for I-League club Viva Kerala FC-Personal life:...
, football star - EmersonEmerson (Sierra Leonean musician)Emerson Amidu Bockarie better known by his first name Emerson is an internationally recognised Sierra Leonean afropop musician and the biggest and most famous musician from Sierra Leone at present. He uses his music against political corruption in Sierra Leone, while addressing the struggle of...
, musician - Paul KpakaPaul KpakaPaul Kpaka is a Sierre Leonean footballer. He is a striker who last played for Germinal Beerschot in the Belgian first division. His contract with the club ran out on 1 July 2010.- Early life :...
, football star - Alpha LansanaAlpha LansanaAlpha Sumoi Lansana is a Sierra Leonean international footballer who currently plays as a defender for Ports Authority, one of the top clubs in the Sierra Leone National Premier League. Lansana is a regular member of the Sierra Leone national football team. He-External...
, football star - Kei KamaraKei KamaraKei Kamara is a Sierra Leonean footballer who currently plays for Sporting Kansas City in Major League Soccer.-Early life:Kamara was born and raised in Kenema, Sierra Leone's third largest city to Temne parents...
, football star - Brima SesayBrima SesayBrima Sesay nicknamed Small Attouga, was a Sierra Leonean international goalkeeper. Sesay played for Ports Authority F.C. in the Sierra Leone National Premier League and for the Sierra Leone national football team known as the Leone Stars...
, football star - Kemokai KallonKemokai KallonKemokai Kallon nickname Panbody is a Sierra Leonean footballer playing currently for Kallon F.C. where he is the captain of the team. He is the older-brother of Sierra Leonean international footballer Mohamed Kallon and the younger brother of former Sierra Leonean international footballer Musa...
, football star - Musa KallonMusa KallonMusa Kallon is a retired footballer and coach in Sierra Leone. He is the older brother of Sierra Leonean international footballers Mohammed Kallon, and Kemokai Kallon...
, football manager - Sandy Moijueh, Ahmadiyya Sec. School Principal and Chairman of Read Cross
- Joseph C. Kapuwa, Late Paramount Chief of the Nongowa Chiefdom
- J. B. DaudaJ. B. DaudaJoseph Bandabla Dauda widely known as J.B Dauda, is a Sierra Leonean politician and current Foreign minister of Sierra Leone.-Education:...
, a Sierra Leonean politician and current Foreign minister of Sierra Leone.