Liberia

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

agricultural land:

28.1%;

• arable land 5.2%;
• permanent crops 2.1%;
• permanent pasture 20.8%

forest:

44.6%

other:

27.3% (2011 est.)

• tropical rain forest deforestation;
• soil erosion;
• loss of biodiversity;
• pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw sewage

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation

• facing the Atlantic Ocean, the coastline is characterized by lagoons, mangrove swamps, and river-deposited sandbars;
• the inland grassy plateau supports limited agriculture

noun:

Liberian(s)

adjective:

Liberian

at birth:

1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.02 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.99 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.97 male(s)/female

total population:

0.99 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

degree of risk:

very high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever

water contact disease:

schistosomiasis

aerosolized dust or soil contact disease:

Lassa fever

animal contact disease:

rabies (2016)

conventional long form:

Republic of Liberia

conventional short form:

Liberia

etymology:

name derives from the Latin word "liber" meaning "free"; so named because the nation was created as a homeland for liberated African-American slaves

name:

Monrovia

geographic coordinates:

6 18 N, 10 48 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

history:

previous 1847 (at independence); latest drafted 19 October 1983, revised version adopted by referendum 3 July 1984, effective 6 January 1986

amendments:

• proposed by agreement of at least two-thirds of both National Assembly houses or by petition of at least 10,000 citizens;
• passage requires at least two-thirds majority approval of both houses and approval in a referendum by at least two-thirds majority of registered voters;
• amended 2011;
• note - a series of amendment proposals approved by the Constitution Review Conference in early 2015 are pending a referendum ahead of October 2017 elections (2017)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Liberia

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

2 years

chief of state:

• President Ellen JOHNSON SIRLEAF (since 16 January 2006);
• Vice President Joseph BOAKAI (since 16 January 2006);
• note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Ellen JOHNSON SIRLEAF (since 16 January 2006); Vice President Joseph BOAKAI (since 16 January 2006)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president, confirmed by the Senate

elections/appointments:

• president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 6-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held on 10 October 2017 (run-off scheduled for 7 November 2017 has been halted pending a ruling on fraud allegations)

election results:

percent of vote in first round - George WEAH (Coalition for Democratic Change) 38.4%, Joseph BOAKAI (UP) 28.8%, Charles BRUMSKINE (LP) 9.6%, Prince JOHNSON (MDR) 8.2%, Alexander B. CUMMINGS (ANC) 7.2%, other 7.8%

note: Ellen JOHNSON SIRLEAF is the first elected female head of state in Africa

description:

bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (30 seats; members directly elected in 15 2-seat districts by simple majority vote to serve 9-year staggered terms with one seat in each district up for election after 3 years followed by a 6-year hiatus; eligible for a second term; and the House of Representatives (73 seats; members directly elected in single-seat districts by simple majority vote to serve 6-year terms; eligible for a second term)

elections:

• Senate - last held on 20 December 2014 (originally scheduled for 14 October 2014 but postponed due to Ebola-virus epidemic; next to be held in October 2020);
• House of Representatives - last held on 11 October 2011 (next to be held on 10 October 2017)

election results:

• Senate - percent of vote by party - CDC 29.8%, UP 10.3%, LP 11.5%, NPP 6.1%, PUP 4.9%, ANC 4.2%, NDC 1.3%, other 7.6%, independent 24.3%;
• seats by party - UP 4, CDC 2, LP 2, ANC 1, NDC 1, NPP 1, PUP 1, independent 3

;

• House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - UP 17.8%, CDC 12.8%, LP 9.2%, NDC 5.7%, LTP 4.5%, NUDP 3.9%, NPP 3.3%, MPC 2.4%, APD 2.1%,LDP 1.0%, NRP 0.8%, other 16.8% independent 19.7%;
• seats by party - UP 24, CDC 11, LP 7, NUDP 6, NDC 5, APD 3, NPP 3, MPC 2, LDP 1, LTP 1, NRP 1, independent 9

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of a chief justice and 4 associate justices); note - the Supreme Court has jurisdiction for all constitutional cases

judge selection and term of office:

chief justice and associate justices appointed by the president of Liberia with consent of the Senate; judges can serve until age 70

subordinate courts:

• judicial circuit courts;
• special courts including criminal, civil, labor, traffic;
• magistrate and traditional or customary courts

• Alliance for Peace and Democracy or APD [Marcus S. G. DAHN]
• Alternative National Congress or ANC [Orishil GOULD]
• Coalition for Democratic Change [George WEAH] (includes CDC, NPP, LPDP)
• Congress for Democratic Change or CDC [George WEAH]
• Liberia Destiny Party or LDP [Nathaniel BARNES]
• Liberia Transformation Party or LTP [Julius SUKU]
• Liberian People Democratic Party or LPDP [Alex J. TYLER]
• Liberty Party or LP [J. Fonati KOFFA]
• Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction or MDR [Prince Y. JOHNSON]
• Movement for Progressive Change or MPC [Simeon FREEMAN]
• National Democratic Coalition or NDC [Dew MAYSON]
• National Democratic Party of Liberia or NDPL [D. Nyandeh SIEH]
• National Patriotic Party or NPP [Jewel HOWARD TAYLOR]
• National Reformist Party or NRP [Maximillian T. W. DIABE]
• National Union for Democratic Progress or NUDP [Victor BARNEY]
• People's Unification Party or PUP [Isobe GBORKORKOLLIE]
• Unity Party or UP [Varney SHERMAN]

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Jeff Gongoer DOWANA (since 12 April 2017)

chancery:

5201 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011

telephone:

[1] (202) 723-0437

FAX:

[1] (202) 723-0436

consulate(s) general:

New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador Christine A. ELDER (since 23 June 2016)

embassy:

U.S. Embassy, 502 Benson Street, Monrovia

mailing address:

P.O. Box 98, Monrovia

telephone:

[231] 77-677-7000

FAX:

[231] 77-677-7370

• 11 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white;
• a white five-pointed star appears on a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner;
• the stripes symbolize the signatories of the Liberian Declaration of Independence;
• the blue square represents the African mainland, and the star represents the freedom granted to the ex-slaves;
• according to the constitution, the blue color signifies liberty, justice, and fidelity, the white color purity, cleanliness, and guilelessness, and the red color steadfastness, valor, and fervor

note: the design is based on the US flag

name:

"All Hail, Liberia Hail!"

lyrics/music:

Daniel Bashiel WARNER/Olmstead LUCA

note: lyrics adopted 1847, music adopted 1860; the anthem's author later became the third president of Liberia

• rubber, coffee, cocoa, rice, cassava (manioc, tapioca), palm oil, sugarcane, bananas;
• sheep, goats;
• timber

agriculture:

70%

industry:

8%

services:

22% (2000 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.4%

highest 10%:

30.1% (2007)

general assessment:

• the limited services available are found almost exclusively in the capital, Monrovia;
• fixed-line service stagnant and extremely limited;
• telephone coverage extended to a number of other towns and rural areas by four mobile-cellular network operators

domestic:

mobile-cellular subscription base growing and teledensity approached 90 per 100 persons in 2016

international:

country code - 231; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2015)

• 8 private and 1 government-owned TV station;
• satellite TV service available;
• 1 state-owned radio station;
• 19 independent radio stations broadcasting in Monrovia, with another 77 local stations operating in other areas;
• transmissions of 4 international broadcasters are available (2017)

total:

429 km

standard gauge:

345 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:

84 km 1.067-m gauge

note: most sections of the railways inoperable due to damage sustained during the civil wars from 1980 to 2003, but many are being rebuilt (2008)

country comparison to the world: 119

total:

10,600 km

paved:

657 km

unpaved:

9,943 km (2000)

country comparison to the world: 134

• as the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) continues to drawdown prior to the 1 March 2018 closure date, the peacekeeping force is being reduced to 434 soldiers and two police units;
• some Liberian refugees still remain in Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone, and Ghana;
• Liberia shelters almost 15,000 Ivoirian refugees, as of May 2017;
• in 2017, Liberia's 3 refugee camps will be converted into "settlements" and remaining Ivoirian refugees will be integrated into local communities

refugees (country of origin):

11,949 (Cote d'Ivoire) (2017)

IDPs:

up to 23,000 (civil war from 1990-2004; post-election violence in March and April 2011; many dwell in slums in Monrovia) (2014)

• transshipment point for Southeast and Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine for the European and US markets;
• corruption, criminal activity, arms-dealing, and diamond trade provide significant potential for money laundering, but the lack of well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a major money-laundering center