Sierra Rutile is the largest non- petroleum U.S. investment in West Africa. The company and the Government of Sierra Leone concluded a new agreement on the terms of the company's concession in Sierra Leone in 1990. Sierra Leone, since independence, has been traditionally a pro-business nation. The government encourages foreign investment, although the business climate has been hampered by a shortage of foreign exchange and uncertainty resulting from civil conflicts. Investors are protected by an agreement that allows for arbitration under the 1965 World Bank Convention.
Legislation provides for transfer of interest, dividends, and capital.
The MRU has so far been inactive, however, in part because of domestic problems and the civil war in Liberia. The future of the MRU depends on the ability of its members to deal with the Liberian civil war. Sierra Leone continues to rely on significant amounts of foreign assistance, principally from multilateral donors. After the United States, Italy is the largest bilateral donor, concentrating on electricity development, and it is followed by Germany, the United Kingdom and the European Union. It also maintains diplomatic relations with the republics of the former Soviet Union as well as with North Korea and Iran.