Time required to start a business in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Time required to start a business was 8 days in 2019. ▼ Falling
Time required to start a business in Sierra Leone, 2003–2019
Source: Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in days.
Analysis
In 2019, time required to start a business in Sierra Leone stood at 8 days. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 33.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, time required to start a business in Sierra Leone peaked at 26 days in 2003 and was at its lowest, 8 days, in 2016.
That places Sierra Leone 131st out of 188 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.
Time required to start a business in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | days | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 26 days | — |
| 2004 | 26 days | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 26 days | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 26 days | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 26 days | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 17 days | -34.6% |
| 2009 | 12 days | -29.4% |
| 2010 | 12 days | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 12 days | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 12 days | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 12 days | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 12 days | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 days | -16.7% |
| 2016 | 8 days | -20.0% |
| 2017 | 8 days | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 8 days | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 8 days | +0.0% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 8 days is below the median for low income countries, which is 14.25 days, 56% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 8 days is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.25 days, 56% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 22.71 days | 12 days | 26 days | 7 |
| 2010s | 10.2 days | 8 days | 12 days | 10 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More reference data data for Sierra Leone
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0238 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.4498 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.5935 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.12 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.5935 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0797 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.044 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.91 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.72 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.6534 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is time required to start a business in Sierra Leone?
- Time required to start a business in Sierra Leone was 8 days in 2019, according to Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest time required to start a business recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 26 days in 2003.
- What is the lowest time required to start a business recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 8 days in 2016.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for time required to start a business?
- Sierra Leone ranks 131st out of 188 countries with data for 2019.
- Is time required to start a business rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Time required to start a business. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of calendar days needed to complete the procedures to legally operate a business.