Bombali is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

in the Northern Province of

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 ...

. Its capital and largest city is

Makeni Makeni is the largest city in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The city is the capital of Bombali District, and is the economic center of the Northern Province. Makeni is the fifth largest city in Sierra Leone by population. The city of ...

, which is also the largest city in the north. The Bombali district is one of the sixteen districts of Sierra Leone. Bombali is one of the largest districts in Sierra Leone by

geographical area In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), ...

, after Koinadugu District, and is the second most populous district in the Northern part of Sierra Leone, after Port Loko district. In the 2015 Sierra Leone national census, the population of Bombali District was 387,236. Other major towns in Bombali District include

Kamabai Kamabai is a small town in Bombali District in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone, with a population of about 4000 within a 7-kilometre (4.3 mi) radius (including the villages of Kagbumbo, Bonaia, Manlokoko, Kawere, Masasa, Makombon, Mat ...

, Karina and

Binkolo Binkolo is a rural town in Bombali District in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Binkolo is home to an estimated 13,867 residents (2004 census). The majority of the population are from the Limba ethnic group. The town is the birthplace ...

. The District of Bombali occupies a total area of and comprises thirteen

chiefdoms A chiefdom is a political organization of people represented or governed by a chief. Chiefdoms have been discussed, depending on their scope, as a stateless, state analogue or early state system or institution. Usually a chief's position i ...

. The district borders

Karene District Karene District is a district in the North West Province, Sierra Leone. Karene is one of the sixteen districts that make up the Republic of Sierra Leone. The capital and largest city of Karene District is Kamakwie Karene along with Falaba District ...

to the north,

Port Loko District Port Loko District is a district in the North West Province of Sierra Leone. It is the most populous district in the North and the second most populous district in Sierra Leone, after Western Area Urban District. As of the 2015 census, Port Loko ...

Tonkolili District Tonkolili District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Magburaka. The other major towns include Masingbi, Yele, Mile 91, Bumbuna, Yonibana, Matotoka. Mathora, Magbass and Masanga. T ...

to the south, and

Koinadugu District Koinadugu District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is the largest districts in Sierra Leone in geographical area, and one of the least densely populated. Its capital and largest city is Kabala, which is also one of the ...

to the east. The population of Bombali District is ethnically diverse, although the Temne and Limba form the largest ethnic groups. The population of Bombali District is predominantly

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

, though with a large

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

minority. Bombali District is the

birthplace The place of birth (POB) or birthplace is the place where a person was born. This place is often used in legal documents, together with name and date of birth, to uniquely identify a person. Practice regarding whether this place should be a cou ...

and home district of the former president of Sierra Leone,

Ernest Bai Koroma Ernest Bai Koroma (born 2 October 1953) is a Sierra Leonean politician who served as the fourth President of Sierra Leone from 17 September 2007 to 4 April 2018. Born and raised in Makeni in northern Sierra Leone, Koroma spent more than 24 y ...

, who was born and raised in the city of

. The district is also the birthplace and home district of former president of Sierra Leone Joseph Saidu Momoh, who was born in the town of

. The

University of Makeni University of Makeni (formerly known as the Fatima Institute and often known as UNIMAK) is the first private university, private, Catholic, university located in Makeni, Sierra Leone. History It was founded as the Fatima Institute on October 8, ...

and St. Francis Secondary school are based in Bombali District's largest city,

Government and politics

Bombali district is governed with a directly elected district council form of government, which is headed by a district council chairman, who is the highest local government official in the district. The chairman is responsible for the general management of the district. The current chairman is John Shangai Koruna of the

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Ap ...

(APC), following his victory in the 2018 Sierra Leone general elections. Bombali District is a

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

stronghold of the APC, the current ruling party in Sierra Leone; and one of the two major political parties in the country. Currently the APC holds all elected seats from Bombali District to the

Parliament of Sierra Leone Parliament of Sierra Leone is the legislative branch of the government of Sierra Leone. It is principally responsible for making laws. The Sierra Leone parliament consists of 149 members, of which 135 members are directly elected from across S ...

. The APC also controls the Bombali District Council

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

and the

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

. Two of the three Sierra Leone presidents from the APC party Joseph Saidu Momoh and

are natives of Bombali District. The APC has always been overwhelmingly popular in almost all parts of Bombali District since the party was founded; with the exception of the predominantly

ethnic An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

Mandingo town of Karina and its surrounding villages, located in part of Biriwa Chiefdom, which have traditionally supported the

Sierra Leone People's Party The Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, along with its main political rival the All People's Congress (APC). It has been the ruling party in Sierra Leone since 4 April 2018. The SLPP d ...

(SLPP), particularly under the government of president

Ahmad Tejan Kabbah Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah (16 February 1932 – 13 March 2014) was a Sierra Leonean politician who served twice as the 3rd President of Sierra Leone, from 1996 to 1997 and again from 1998 to 2007. An economist and attorney by profession, Kab ...

, who was overwhelmingly popular in Karina and its surrounding villages during his presidency.

Members of Parliament

The District of Bombali has eight Representatives in the Sierra Leonean Parliament, of which seven members were elected for a five-year term. The district is a stronghold of the former ruling government of the APC party. In the second round of the 2007 Sierra Leone presidential election, the

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election. There may or may not be ...

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of Sierra Leone

Solomon Berewa Solomon Ekuma Dominic Berewa (6 August 1938 – 5 March 2020) was Vice-president of Sierra Leone from May 2002 to September 2007. Standing as the candidate of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), he was defeated in the second round of the 20 ...

and candidate of the then ruling SLPP got 11 percent of the vote in Bombali District, while the leader of the main opposition party and current president of Sierra Leone

of the

(APC) got 89 percent in the second round in the district.

Administrative divisions

Chiefdoms

Pre-2017

Prior to the 2017 local administrative reorganization, Bombali District was made up of thirteen

as the third level of administrative subdivision. #

Biriwa Biriwa is a town of Mfantsiman Municipal District in the Central Region of Ghana. According to the Ghana Statistical Service's 2010 Population and Housing Census, the population of Biriwa was 7,086. The main occupation is fishing, with a few p ...

–

Bombali Shebora Bombali Shebora is a chiefdom of Bombali District in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The principal town lies at Makeni Makeni is the largest city in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The city is the capital of Bombali District, a ...

–

# Gbanti Kamaranka – Kamaranka # Gbendembu Ngowahun –

Kalangba Kalangba (; ) is a rural village in Bombali District, Northern Province, Sierra Leone."Kalangba, now a small village in central Sierra Leone of approximately 3,000 inhabitants." It is the headquarters for Ngowahun Chiefdom. It is situated about ...

# Libeisaygahun –

Batkanu Batkanu is a village and seat of the chiefdom of Libeisaygahun in Bombali District in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Geographic facts Latitude: 9.0833, Longitude: -12.4167, Elevation: . Climate Like almost all of Sierra Leone, Batkanu ...

# Magbaiamba Ndowahun – Hunduwa # Makari Gbanti – Masongbon # Paki Massabong – Mapaki # Safroko Limba –

# Sanda Loko – Kamalo # Sanda Tenraren – Mateboi # Sella Limba –

Kamakwie Kamakwie is a town in the North West Province, Sierra Leone, North West Province of Sierra Leone. Since 2017 Kamakwie is the Capital of the Karene District in Chiefdom Sella Limba. The population of the town as estimated in late 2010, is 8,09 The ...

# Tambakha – Fintonia

Post-2017

After the 2017 local administrative reorganization, Bombali District has made up of thirteen

as the third level of administrative subdivision. #

–

– ? # Bombali Siari – ? # Gbanti – ? #

Gbendembu Gbendembu is the chiefdom seat town in the Gbendembu Ngowahun Chiefdom (an amalgamated Chiefdom), in the Bombali District, Northern Province, Sierra Leone, Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is located about 30 miles north west of Makeni, Sier ...

– ? # Kamaranka – Kamaranka # Magbaiamba Ndowahun – Hunduwa # Makari – Masongbon #

Mara Mara or MARA may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Mara (''Doctor Who''), an evil being in two ''Doctor Who'' serials * Mara (She-Ra), fictional characters from the ''She-Ra and the Princesses of Power'' and ''The New Advent ...

– ? # Ngowahun –

# Paki Massabong – Mapaki # Safroko Limba –

# Makeni City –

;Notes:

Major towns

, largest city *

* Karina *

Towns and villages

* Masongbon * Kagber *

* Kangbori * Fintonia * Lowoma * Hunduwa * Kamaranka *

* Mateboi *

Tambiama Tambiama is a town in Sierra Leone. References Populated places in Sierra Leone Northern Province, Sierra Leone {{SierraLeone-geo-stub ...

* Masingbi * Mapaki * Moriba * Rokulan * Kamalo * Sanda * Tonko

Effects of the civil war

Bombali was a principal former rebel stronghold and experienced considerable displacement, destruction and trauma as a result of the conflict. While progress has been made since the conflict, particularly in restoration of state authority, the level of social services and economic recovery remains unsatisfactory throughout the district. The provincial importance of

is in contrast with the current lack of water and power supply in the township, and the bad road network and large distances in the district have meant that limited intervention has been made in chiefdoms outside of the Makeni area, particularly in the far north.

Health

Medical services are provided by a mix of government, private and

non-governmental organizations A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

(NGOs). The Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MOHS) shifted to a decentralized health system structure after the end of the civil in war in 2002, in an effort to increase coverage. Bombali has 16 community health centers (CHC), 18 community health posts (CHP), 48 maternal child health posts (MCHP), 1 government hospital, 1 military hospital, 1 community hospital, 3 mission Clinics, 3 mission hospitals and 3 private clinics. Traditional medicine forms part of the primary health care system in Sierra Leone. Diseases endemic to Bombali are Yellow Fever and

Malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

. Holy Spirit Hospital (Makeni), largest private hospital in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone, is located in Bombali District in the town of

. In 2019, the First Responder Coalition of Sierra Leone (FRCSL) was created in Makeni, the largest city of Bombali District. The five founding members included the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society, LFR International, the

, Agency for Rural Community Transformation, and Holy Spirit Hospital. 1,000 community members from Bombali were trained to be first responders by the Coalition and equipped with first aid kits between June and July 2019.

Religion

Notable people

, President of Sierra Leone from 2007 to 2018 * Joseph Saidu Momoh, President of Sierra Leone from 1985 to 1992 * Almamy Suluku, was a powerful Limba ruler who maintained his independence as long as possible through brilliant political strategy during colonial era. * Edward Turay, Politician * Brima Koroma, football star

Notes

Sources

* Parts of this article reproduced with permission fro

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070121122533/http://www.statehouse-sl.org/member-parliament.html {{Districts of Sierra Leone Districts of Sierra Leone Northern Province, Sierra Leone