Map of Liberia | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: Seven years of civil strife were brought to a close in 1996 when free and open presidential and legislative elections were held. President TAYLOR now holds strong executive power with no real political opposition. The years of fighting coupled with the flight of most businesses has disrupted formal economic activity. A still unsettled domestic security situation has slowed the process of rebuilding the social and economic structure of this war-torn country.


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Location: Western Africa bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone

Geographic coordinates: 6 30 N 9 30 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Comparative: slightly larger than Tennessee

Land boundaries

Coastline: 579 km

Maritime claims

Climate: tropical; hot humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers

Terrain: mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast

Elevation

Natural resources: iron ore timber diamonds gold hydropower

Land use

Irrigated land: 20 km² (1993 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: dust-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to March)

Geography


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Population: 3,164,156 (July 2000 est.)
Growth rate: 1.94% (2000 est.)
Below poverty line: 80%

Nationality

Ethnic groups: indigenous African tribes 95% (including Kpelle Bassa Gio Kru Grebo Mano Krahn Gola Gbandi Loma Kissi Vai and Bella) Americo-Liberians 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the US who had been slaves) Congo People 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean who had been slaves)

Languages: English 20% (official) some 20 ethnic group languages of which a few can be written and are used in correspondence

Religions: indigenous beliefs 40% Christian 40% Muslim 20%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 1.94% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 47.22 births/1000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 16.58 deaths/1000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -11.22 migrant(s)/1000 population (2000 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: tropical rain forest subject to deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity; pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw sewage

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 134.63 deaths/1000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate: 6.43 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name

Government type: republic

Capital: Monrovia

Administrative divisions: 13 counties; Bomi Bong Grand Bassa Grand Cape Mount Grand Gedeh Grand Kru Lofa Margibi Maryland Montserrado Nimba River Cess Sinoe

Dependent areas

Independence: 26 July 1847

National holiday: Independence Day 26 July (1847)

Constitution: 6 January 1986

Legal system: dual system of statutory law based on Anglo-American common law for the modern sector and customary law based on unwritten tribal practices for indigenous sector

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (26 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve nine-year terms) and the House of Representatives (64 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: All Liberia Coalition Party or ALCOP [Lusinee KAMARA]; Liberian Action Party or LAP [Cletus WOTORSON]; Liberian National Union or LINU [Henry MONIBA chairman]; Liberian People's Party or LPP [Togba-Nah TIPOTEH chairman]; National Democratic Party of Liberia or NDPL [Isaac DAKINAH]; National Patriotic Party or NPP [Charles Ghankay TAYLOR] - governing party; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Chea CHEAPOO chairman]; Reformation Alliance Party or RAP [Henry Boimah FAHNBULLEH chairman]; True Whig Party or TWP [Rudolph SHERMAN chairman]; United People's Party or UPP [Gabriel Baccus MATTHEWS chairman]; Unity Party or UP [Charles Clarke]

International organization participation: ACP AfDB CCC ECA ECOWAS FAO G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICFTU ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Inmarsat Intelsat (nonsignatory user) Interpol IOC IOM ITU NAM OAU OPCW UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WCL WFTU WHO WIPO WMO

Diplomatic representation

Flag description: 11 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a white five-pointed star on a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner; the design was based on the US flag

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: A civil war in 1989-96 destroyed much of Liberia's economy especially the infrastructure in and around Monrovia. Many businessmen fled the country taking capital and expertise with them. Some returned during 1997. Many will not return. Richly endowed with water mineral resources forests and a climate favorable to agriculture Liberia had been a producer and exporter of basic products while local manufacturing mainly foreign owned had been small in scope. The democratically elected government installed in August 1997 inherited massive international debts and currently relies on revenues from its maritime registry to provide the bulk of its foreign exchange earnings. The restoration of the infrastructure and the raising of incomes in this ravaged economy depend on the implementation of sound macro- and micro-economic policies of the new government including the encouragement of foreign investment.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 0.5% (1999 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1000 (1999 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: rubber coffee cocoa rice cassava (tapioca) palm oil sugarcane bananas; sheep goats; timber

Industries: rubber processing palm oil processing diamonds

Industrial production growth rate: 0%

Labor force
By occupation agriculture: 70%
By occupation industry: 8%
By occupation services: 22% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 70%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 80%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 3% (1998 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $39 million (f.o.b. 1998 est.)
Commodities: diamonds iron ore rubber timber coffee cocoa
Partners: Benelux 36% Norway 18% Ukraine 15% Singapore 9% (1997)

Imports: $142 million (f.o.b. 1998 est.)
Commodities: fuels chemicals machinery transportation equipment manufactured goods; rice and other foodstuffs
Partners: South Korea 38% Japan 14% Italy 11% Singapore 9% (1997)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $3 billion (1999 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Liberian dollars (L$) per US$1 - 1.0000 (officially fixed rate since 1940); market exchange rate: Liberian dollars (L$) per US$1 - 40 (December 1998) 50 (October 1995); market rate floats against the US dollar


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Electricity
Production: 490 million kWh (1998)
Consumption: 456 million kWh (1998)
Exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Imports: 0 kWh (1998)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 5,000 (1995)
Mobile cellular: 0 (1995)

Telephone system: telephone and telegraph service via microwave radio relay network; main center is Monrovia

Broadcast media

Internet
Service providers isps: NA

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $1 million (FY98)
Percent of gdp: 2% (FY98)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 45 (1999 est.)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: increasingly a transshipment point for Southeast and Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine for the European and US markets