Sierra Leone does not have a framework on trade secret protection. Some trade secrets provisions can be found in the Right to Access Information Act, which restricts a public authority from communicating information obtained from a third party where the disclosure of the information would divulge a trade secret or could prejudice the commercial interests of that third party.

It is reported that there is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Sierra Leone to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practised in both the mobile and fixed sectors based on commercial agreements.

The fixed network operator, the incumbent "Sierratel", is a state-owned monopoly. It is the only provider in the fixed landline segment of the Industry. The infrastructure loss as a result of the civil war affected the operations of the operator. It has since launched mobile telecom services, with about 3% of the market share.
Although the telecommunications sector has been liberalised, it is reported that one of the major obstacles to affordable broadband internet in Sierra Leone is the de-facto monopoly and inefficient operation of the international gateway by the state-owned Sierra Leone Cable Limited (SALCAB). The Telecommunications Act was amended in 2015 with the aim of liberalising the international gateway through a repeal and replacement of Section (33) of the 2006 Telecommunications Act to curtail the monopoly of incumbent Sierratel over the international gateway. Still, there have been delays in the liberalisation of the gateway.

It is reported that Sierra Leone does not mandate functional or accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market.

Section 36 of the Public Procurement Act empowers the contracting entity to grant a margin of preference to enhance the advantage of domestic suppliers, contractors and goods. The margin of preference is to be calculated in accordance with the regulations and reflected in the record of the procurement processes and is subject to the authorisation of the National Public Procurement Authority. Regulation 75 of the Public Procurement Regulations clarifies that the percentage of preference in schemes issued by the Authority must be between 5% and 12%.

Art. 38 of the Sierra Leone Local Content Agency Act provides that, with regard to procurement for the Sierra Leone Local Content Development Fund, first consideration should be given to Sierra Leonean companies bidding for procuring materials, products and goods for ministries, departments and agencies, provided the companies comply with the requirements stipulated in the National Public Procurement Act 2004 (now repealed by the Public Procurement Act of 2016). Donor agencies, international and local non-governmental organisations, and other entities are also to give Sierra Leonean companies first consideration for the procurement of materials, products, and goods.

Sierra Leone is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), nor does it have observer status.

Full foreign ownership is allowed in Sierra Leone, and there are no known restrictions on foreign direct investment (FDI) in key sectors for digital trade. The Investment Promotion Act of 2004 is the main legal framework regulating foreign direct investment in the country. According to Section 4 of the Act, any investor, whether domestic or foreign, can invest in any legitimate form of business enterprise in the country. In addition, Sections 24-25 of the Telecommunications Law provide for the application and granting of licenses for telecommunications services, and there is no specific provision in the law restricting foreign equity ownership.

Although Section 247 of the Companies Act requires companies to keep a register of their directors, including their names, nationality, and usual residential address, it does not state whether any of the directors are required to reside in the country. However, Section 485 of the Act mandates foreign companies operating in Sierra Leone to submit some documents/information, which includes, among other things, the name, address and occupation of the person authorised to manage the company in Sierra Leone and the names and addresses of one or more persons resident in Sierra Leone authorised to accept on behalf of the company service of process and any notices required to be served on the company. The provisions of Section 485 suggest that an officer or a representative of the company is required to be resident in Sierra Leone.
In addition, Section 14 of the Companies Regulations of 2015 provides that foreign nationals may hold equity in any private business enterprise and undertake any business in Sierra Leone. Still, foreign nationals serving as executive directors shall submit to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) residence and work permit before undertaking, in part or whole, any business enterprise in Sierra Leone. The need to submit residence and work permits to the CAC suggests they are expected to be resident in the country.

According to Section 11.3 of the Patents and Industrial Act, applicants whose ordinary residence or principal place of business is outside Sierra Leone have to be represented by an agent based in Sierra Leone.

It is reported that there is minimal government enforcement of patents and other forms of Intellectual Property due to resource and capacity limitations. As a result, the administration of justice has primarily relied on the customary and usual claims founded on torts, contracts, petitions, admiralty and criminal offences to the exclusion of Laws specific to Intellectual Property.

Sierra Leone is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Sierra Leone has a clear regime of copyright exceptions that follows the fair dealing model, which enables the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission. The fair dealing provisions are contained in Sections 9 and 14 of the Copyright Act, while the provisions highlighting other instances of permitted use of copyrighted materials can be found in Sections 27-37. The exceptions encompass private reproduction for personal purposes, temporary reproduction, reproduction in the form of quotation, reproduction for teaching, libraries and archives, broadcasting and other public communication, publication of portraits in events of public interest, reproduction and adaptation of computer programmes, importation for personal purposes, display of works, and ephemeral recordings, among others.

Although Sections 72-73 of the Copyrights Act provide for civil remedies and criminal sanctions for unauthorised use of copyrighted materials, there are still cases of piracy of protected works in the country. It is reported that legal protection is weak and inadequate, and there is limited enforcement of intellectual property laws due to resource and capacity limitations.

Sierra Leone has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.