Liberia

Located along Africa's North Atlantic coast between Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Côte d'Ivoire, the Republic of Liberia was founded in the nineteenth century as a colony for African Americans who had formerly been enslaved. It is a country of rich resources whose people are still trying to recover from a pair of brutal civil wars in the 1990s and early 2000s. The first civil war ended in 1997 and the second civil war ended with a 2003 peace agreement, and democratic elections were successfully held in 2005. The peace held, but the government struggled to rebuild the shattered country, which was further beset by the 2014–15 Ebola epidemic. United Nations peacekeepers withdrew from Liberia in 2018.

General Information

• Full name of country: Republic of Liberia
• Region: Africa
• Nationality: Liberian(s) (noun), Liberian (adjective)
• Official language: English
• Population: 5,506,280 (2023 est.)
• Population growth: 2.71% (2023 est.)
• Currency (money): Liberian dollar
• Land area: 96,320 sq km (37,189 sq miles)
• Water area: 15,049 sq km (5,810 sq miles)
• Time zone: UTC +0
• Capital: Monrovia
• Flag: The flag of Liberia is based upon the United States flag. It consists of eleven alternating and equal stripes of red and white, with a red stripe adorning both the top and bottom. In the upper hoist, or left side of the flag, a five-pointed white star is centered within a small blue canton, or square. The blue square is said to symbolize the African mainland, while the alternating stripes of red (six) and white (five) symbolize courage and moral excellence, respectively, and the white star symbolizes freedom.
• Motto: “The Love of Liberty Brought Us Here”
• Independence: July 26, 1847
• Government type: presidential republic
• Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
• Legal system: mixed legal system of common law (based on Anglo-American law) and customary law
• National anthem: "All Hail, Liberia Hail!", by Daniel Bashiel Warner/Olmstead Luca
• National holiday: Independence Day, July 26 (1847)

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: The vast majority of Liberia's people (95 percent) belong to one of the Indigenous African tribes that lived in the region when American settlement began. Those tribes include the Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, Dei, Bella, Mandingo, and Mende. A fraction of the remainder consider themselves to be Americo-Liberians (descendants of formerly enslaved people from the United States) or Congo people (descendants of West Indians freed from slave ships off the African coast).

Liberia's diversity is also reflected in its languages. Most of the Indigenous tribes still converse, read, and write in their own languages. Others are bilingual and polylingual, though only about 20 percent speak English, the country's official language. Approximately twenty other regional languages are spoken and written within the country.

Most Liberians are Christian, and the country also has a small Muslim population. Even smaller numbers of the population practice traditional Indigenous beliefs.

Liberia has a history of secret societies, going back to the eighteenth century. Those for men are called Poro, and those for women are Sande. Although these societies forbid information being passed on to outsiders, it is known that the societies remain powerful centers of influence.

Liberia's extended civil wars wreaked havoc on the quality of life of the Liberian people. Though the second civil war ended in 2003, the country still struggles to rebuild its infrastructure and economy. Thousands of Liberian refugees still live abroad in Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone, and Ghana. Additionally, many Liberians immigrated to the United States and other countries.

Life expectancy in Liberia is 63.52 years for men and 68.15 years for women, among the lowest in the world (2023 estimate). The fertility rate is still high, at an average of 4.73 children for every woman of childbearing age, among the highest in the world (2023 estimate). Liberia's infant mortality rate is also very high, at 43.2 deaths per 1,000 live births (2023 estimate). The country ranked 178th out of 191 countries on the 2021-2 United Nations Human Development Index.

About 1.1 percent of the population was living with HIV/AIDS in 2020; other virulent diseases including hepatitis A, typhoid, yellow fever, tuberculosis, and Lassa fever also take a toll on Liberia, and the country was one of those that suffered from the West African Ebola epidemic in 2014–15. The problem is made worse by the high rate of poverty and the lack of infrastructure. Roughly half of Liberians live below the poverty line.

Indigenous People: A complex network of ethnic groups was already living in the area that is now Liberia when the first Americo-Liberians arrived in 1822. Most of Liberia's tribes migrated to the area from the historic Sudan region in the thirteenth century, moving gradually from the hinterlands to the coast as populations grew.

The sixteen ethnic groups that make up the majority of Liberia's Indigenous population organize loosely into three language groups. The Mande tend to occupy most of northwest and central Liberia. This group includes the Kpelle (making up 20 percent of the entire population), the Ngbandi, Dan (Gio), Mano, Mende, Malinke, and the Vai, who are notable for having created their own distinct alphabet though they are also literate in English and Arabic.

The Kwa-speaking peoples include the Basa (Monrovia's largest ethnic group), the Kru, Grebo, De, Belleh (Belle), Krahn. The Kwa live primarily in the southern half of Liberia. The Kru and Grebo are some of the earliest African converts to Christianity.

The language group with the longest continuous presence in Liberia is the Mel. Located primarily in the north and coastal northwest, Mel speakers include the Gola and Kisi. As in other African countries, Liberia's national boundaries were superimposed on the area without regard to ethnic groupings. As a result, all of the Indigenous tribes in Liberia have counterparts in neighboring countries, a factor which has affected civil wars in the region and the distribution of refugees.

Education: In 2021 education expenditures amounted to 2.7 percent of Liberia's gross domestic product (GDP). It was estimated in 2017 that 62.7 percent of adult men but only 34.1 percent of Liberian women had basic literacy skills. Primary school attendance from ages six to sixteen is compulsory under Liberian law, but many Liberian children do not attend school due to poverty, lack of access, and other barriers.

As in other areas of Liberia's social structure, the period of civil war is to blame for the country's educational crisis. During the fourteen-year conflict, about 80 percent of the nation's 2,400 schools were destroyed or put out of service. Teacher training institutes were destroyed in two of the country's most populated regions, and about 800,000 children were forced to leave school when their parents fled, or when they were forced into military service.

Both public and private schools in Liberia charge fees to students who attend. Public school fees range up to $20 per year; private school fees range between $100–$175 per year. Relief organizations and government officials have targeted public school fees as a major obstacle to school enrollment in a country where over half of the population lived below the poverty line by the 2020s. Public school teachers earn only $40 per month.

Education officials are also debating the possibility of using regional languages in some of the public schools where students are not fluent in English.

For those students who finish compulsory primary and junior level school, Liberia has implemented a standard examination from the West African Examination Council. Students who pass receive their West African Examination Certificate after successfully completing three years of senior high school. After passing an entrance examination, students may proceed to higher education at the University of Liberia in Monrovia, the African Methodist Episcopal University, or Cuttington University College (private and linked to the Episcopalian Church).

Health Care: Liberia is now in the process of trying to rebuild a health care system after the civil war left roads, hospitals, clinics, and equipment destroyed. The war also depleted the number of health care workers in the nation from 200 doctors and 600 physician's assistants to twenty-five doctors and 125 paramedics. In 2018, there approximately 0.05 physicians for every 1,000 members of the population.

Health care services are run by international relief organizations, most under the guidance of the World Health Organization (WHO). Because of the severity of communicable diseases and disease stemming from malnutrition and poor sanitation, health care is now targeted almost exclusively at immunization, sanitation, and the provision of food. Violence has prevented relief organizations from getting to areas outside of Liberia's urban centers, such that three-quarters of Liberians have little or no access to health care.

Food: Rice is the most important part of the Liberian staple diet, though Liberians also eat a lot of plantains, cassava, palm butter, peppers, onions, okra, coconut and ginger in their meals. The country's national soup is made with goat meat and served with bread called foo-foo. Jollof rice, beef internal soup, and country chop (a sort of meaty stew) are served at roadside stands and in homes.

If they are able, Liberians will prepare a feast for any visiting guests, beginning with the slaughter of a goat. Feasts are usually accompanied by ginger beer or palm wine made by the host family.

Private relief organizations and the United Nations have been working with public and private schools to provide food for children who are frequently prone to malnutrition.

Arts & Entertainment: Liberia's urban areas, and especially Monrovia, show a mixture of traditional arts and entertainment, with cultural imports from other African countries and from the West. In the largely rural interior of the country, traditional tastes and customs still flourish. Dancing, music, and storytelling play an important role in both types of community.

Much of a student's education in Liberia comes not from books and formal schooling, but from moral lessons, social bonds, history, myth, and skills passed down through the media of dance and storytelling.

Unlike many West African countries in which only men may participate in traditional dances, Liberia's Sande (secret societies) reserve certain significant traditional dances for female participants.

Holidays: Liberia's public holidays include New Year's Day, Armed Forces Day (February 11), Decoration Day (March 14), J.J. Robert's Birthday (March 15), Fast and Prayer Day (April 11), Unification and Integration Day (May 14), Independence Day (July 26), Flag Day (July 24), Thanksgiving Day, Memorial Day (Nov 12), and President Tubman's Birthday or "Goodwill Day" (November 29).

Environment and Geography

Topography: Liberia's gently rolling coastal lowlands extend for 563 kilometers (350 miles) along the Atlantic and 40 to 80 kilometers (25 to 50 miles) toward the interior. The coastal plain is fed with a multitude of rivers, streams, and lagoons that tend to flood during rainy seasons and storms.

At the edge of the coastal plain, the land rises dramatically to a string of 245-meter (800-foot) plateaus. On the plateaus, the Bong and Putu mountain ranges rise from wide grasslands and lush tropical rainforest. Liberia's highest point of elevation is the summit of Mount Wuteve, which soars to 1,380 meters (4,528 feet) near the border of Guinea and Sierra Leone.

Natural Resources: Liberia is rich in high-grade iron ore that was mined by foreign conglomerates between World War II and 1990, when violence put an end to the mining. With its tropical forests, Liberia also has a wealth of timber. Diamond, mineral, and gold reserves exist in unknown quantities. The country's major rivers and tributaries are also capable of providing hydropower.

Plants & Animals: Poverty and the destruction of natural habitats have endangered a number of plant and animal species throughout Liberia. However, the grasslands, coastal wetlands, and rainforests still provide refuge for a vast array of wildlife.

Some of Liberia's rarest species include zebras, hippopotamus, African elephants, chimpanzees, Diana monkeys, fruit bats, and Liberian mongoose. In the coastal waters, sperm whales, West African manatees, and spotted-neck otters are found.

Climate: Liberia has a tropical climate. The average temperature is about 27° Celsius (80° Fahrenheit) year-round near the coast. In the mountains, the average is closer to 18° Celsius (65° Fahrenheit).

Liberia's rainy season lasts from May to October. Yearly rainfall in the country varies from 520 centimeters (205 inches) in some places on the coast to 178 centimeters (70 inches) on the central plateau.

The Harmattan winds blow dust from the Sahara across Liberia from December to March.

Economy

In the wake of the civil wars, Liberia remained dependent to at least to a certain extent on foreign economic aid from the United States, China, Japan, and several Western European countries, among others. The country still manages to generate income by exporting rubber and timber, and more recently, gold. In 2021 the gross domestic product (GDP, purchasing power parity) was estimated at US$7.39 billion, which amounted to $1,400 per capita (2017 dollars)—among the lowest in the world. Nonetheless, Liberia’s unemployment rate was estimated at 4.1 percent at that time.

Industry: Liberia's industries have included mining iron and gold, rubber processing, palm oil processing, timber logging, and diamond mining.

Agriculture: Agriculture is still the foundation of Liberia's subsistence throughout most of the country. Liberian plantations harvest rubber, coffee beans, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, sugarcane, and bananas. Liberia also harvests large amounts of timber. The herding of sheep and goats is an essential part of rural life in the country. A significant portion of Liberia's labor force works in agriculture.

Tourism: Liberia's brutal civil war largely put an end to the country's tourist industry. Tourism is unlikely to become a major sector in the near future because of ongoing political and economic instability as well as public health issues.

Government

Liberia is the oldest republic in Africa, dating back to 1847, and one of the few areas never to be under the authority of a non-African government. However, the political history of the country has been far from peaceful.

In 1822, Americans made their first efforts at settling the area with formerly enslaved people. With the help of the American Colonization Society, thousands of formerly enslaved people from the United States and from captured slave ships off the African coast settled in Liberia. The name "Liberia" is derived from Latin, meaning "Land of the Free."

Relations with the various African people already living in the region were hostile from the beginning. Skirmishes, attacks, and above all, linguistic differences kept barriers between immigrants from the United States, former West Indian enslaved people, and the different ethnic groups who had arrived in the region during the medieval era.

Throughout the remainder of the nineteenth century, Liberia struggled to maintain its borders against encroachment from the French in Côte d'Ivoire and the British in Sierra Leone, while always retaining its independence. By the 1930s, however, it became clear that Liberia's democratic government was not without problems. A League of Nations report showed that the government had taken advantage of ongoing enslavement practices within some of the interior tribes, and of the huge disparities between Americo-Liberians and tribally affiliated Liberians, to obtain enslaved labor for government projects. The practice stopped soon afterward, but elite position held by the Americo-Liberian minority in Liberia had been exposed.

A 1980 coup led by a Liberian Army master sergeant and Kahn tribe member, Samuel K. Doe, finally destroyed the Americo-Liberian power base. Unfortunately, Doe's regime proved to be brutally repressive toward all but his own tribal members, resulting in another coup in 1989, this one led by Americo-Liberian Charles Taylor. This initiated the First Liberian Civil War, which lasted from 1989 to 1997 and killed some 250,000 people. Taylor's faction in the civil war became famous for its own brutality, including attempts at genocide. Nonetheless, he was elected president in 1997 at the end of the war. In 1999, the Second Liberian Civil War broke out, and lasted until 2003, killing hundreds of thousands more.

In 2003, with the country in a state of devastation, the Liberian government and two major rebel groups entered into negotiations. Charles Taylor stepped down from power and was indicted by the United Nations for war crimes. He was sentenced to fifty years in prison after being found guilty by the International Criminal Court at the Hague in May 2012.

The UN, with substantial support from the United States and ECOWAS (the Economic Community of West African States), launched a peacekeeping mission in Liberia, and in 2006 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected president, becoming the first female head of state in Africa. She served until 2018 when she was replaced by former football star George Weah, winner of that year's presidential election, in the first peaceful transfer of power to take place in the country in decades.

Under the Liberian constitution, the president is elected by popular vote to a six-year renewable term. Members of the bicameral National Assembly are all elected by popular vote to serve nine-year terms for the thirty Senate seats, or six-year terms for the seventy-three seats in the House of Representatives.

Interesting Facts

• Monrovia was named after United States President James Monroe.
• Many commercial vessels from other countries are registered in Liberia to avoid fees or regulations in their actual countries of origin; as a result, Liberia has the second-largest maritime registry in the world, after Panama.
• In 2011, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Leymah Gbowee of Liberia and Tawakkol Karman of Yemen for their work to advance peace and women's rights.
• Before entering politics in the early 2000s, President George Weah played professional football for international teams including Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.

Bibliography

Baughan, Brian. Liberia. Mason Crest, 2013.

Human Development Insights, United Nations Development Programme, Sept. 2022, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights#/ranks. Accessed 30 Oct. 2023.

"Liberia." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 19 Oct. 2023, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/liberia/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2023.

"Liberia Country Profile." BBC News, 9 May 2023, www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13729504. Accessed 30 Oct. 2023.

"Liberia: Human Development Indicators." Human Development Reports, United Nations Development Programme, 2020, hdr.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/LBR. Accessed 3 June 2022.