1990 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1990 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers
Coastline
579 km
Comparative area
slightly larger than Tennessee
Continental shelf
200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Environment
West Africa's largest tropical rain forest, subject to deforestation
Land boundaries
1,585 km total; Guinea 563 km, Ivory Coast 716 km, Sierra Leone 306 km
Land use
1% arable land; 3% permanent crops; 2% meadows and pastures; 39% forest and woodland; 55% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Natural resources
iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold
Terrain
mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast
Territorial sea
200 nm
Total area
111,370 km2; land area: 96,320 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
45 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
14 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
95% indigenous African tribes, including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, and Bella; 5% descendants of repatriated slaves known as Americo-Liberians
Infant mortality rate
126 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
510,000, including 220,000 in the monetary economy; 70.5% agriculture, 10.8% services, 4.5% industry and commerce, 14.2% other; non-African foreigners hold about 95% of the top-level management and engineering jobs; 52% of population of working age
Language
English (official); more than 20 local languages of the Niger-Congo language group; English used by about 20%
Life expectancy at birth
54 years male, 58 years female (1990)
Literacy
35%
Nationality
noun--Liberian(s); adjective--Liberian
Net migration rate
2 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
2% of labor force
Population
2,639,809 (July 1990), growth rate 3.4% (1990)
Religion
70% traditional, 20% Muslim, 10% Christian
Total fertility rate
6.6 children born/woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
13 counties; Bomi, Bong, Grand Bassa, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Jide, Grand Kru, Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, Rivercess, Sino
Capital
Monrovia
Constitution
6 January 1986
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Eugenia A. WORDSWORTH-STEVENSON; Chancery at 5201 16th Street NW, Washington DC 20011; telephone (202) 723-0437 through 0440; there is a Liberian Consulate General in New York; US--Ambassador James K. BISHOP; Embassy at 111 United Nations Drive, Monrovia (mailing address is P. O. Box 98, Monrovia, or APO New York 09155); telephone [231] 222991 through 222994
Elections
President--last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held October 1991); results--Samuel Kanyon Doe (NDPL) 50.9%, Jackson Doe (LAP) 26.4%, others 22.7%; Senate--last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held 15 October 1991); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(26 total) NDPL 21, LAP 3, UP 1, LUP 1; House of Representatives--last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held October 1991); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(64 total) NDPL 51, LAP 8, UP 3, LUP 2
Executive branch
president, vice president, Cabinet
Flag
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
Independence
26 July 1847
Judicial branch
People's Supreme Court
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Gen. Dr. Samuel Kanyon DOE (since 12 April 1980); Vice President Harry F. MONIBA (since 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
Legislative branch
bicameral National Assembly consists of an upper house or Senate and a lower house or House of Representatives
Long-form name
Republic of Liberia
Member of
ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ITU, Mano River Union, NAM, OAU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO
National holiday
Independence Day, 26 July (1847)
Political parties and leaders
National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL), Augustus Caine, chairman; Liberian Action Party (LAP), Emmanuel Koromah, chairman; Unity Party (UP), Carlos Smith, chairman; United People's Party (UPP), Gabriel Baccus Matthews, chairman
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for about 40% of GDP (including fishing and forestry); principal products--rubber, timber, coffee, cocoa, rice, cassava, palm oil, sugarcane, bananas, sheep, and goats; not self-sufficient in food, imports 25% of rice consumption
Aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $634 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $793 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $25 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $77 million
Budget
revenues $242.1 million; expenditures $435.4 million, including capital expenditures of $29.5 million (1989)
Currency
Liberian dollar (plural--dollars); 1 Liberian dollar (L$) = 100 cents
Electricity
400,000 kW capacity; 730 million kWh produced, 290 kWh per capita (1989)
Exchange rates
Liberian dollars (L$) per US$1--1.00 (fixed rate since 1940); unofficial parallel exchange rate of L$2.5 = US$1, January 1989
Exports
$550 million (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--iron ore 61%, rubber 20%, timber 11%, coffee; partners--US, EC, Netherlands
External debt
$1.7 billion (December 1989 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
$988 million, per capita $395; real growth rate 1.5% (1988)
Imports
$335 million (c.i.f., 1989); commodities--rice, mineral fuels, chemicals, machinery, transportation equipment, other foodstuffs; partners--US, EC, Japan, China, Netherlands, ECOWAS
Industrial production
growth rate 1.5% in manufacturing (1987)
Industries
rubber processing, food processing, construction materials, furniture, palm oil processing, mining (iron ore, diamonds)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
12% (1989)
Overview
In 1988 and 1989 the Liberian economy posted its best two years in a decade, thanks to a resurgence of the rubber industry and rapid growth in exports of forest products. Richly endowed with water, mineral resources, forests, and a climate favorable to agriculture, Liberia is a producer and exporter of basic products. Local manufacturing, mainly foreign owned, is small in scope. Liberia imports primarily machinery and parts, transportation equipment, petroleum products, and foodstuffs. Persistent budget deficits, the flight of capital, and deterioration of transport and other infrastructure continue to hold back economic progress.
Unemployment rate
43% urban (1988)
Communications
Airports
76 total, 60 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 4 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
3 major transport aircraft
Highways
10,087 km total; 603 km bituminous treated, 2,848 km all weather, 4,313 km dry weather; there are also 2,323 km of private, laterite-surfaced roads open to public use, owned by rubber and timber companies
Merchant marine
1,379 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 48,655,666 DWT/ 90,005,898 DWT; includes 11 passenger, 148 cargo, 26 refrigerated cargo, 18 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 42 vehicle carrier, 42 container, 4 barge carrier, 436 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 100 chemical, 63 combination ore/oil, 41 liquefied gas, 6 specialized tanker, 413 bulk, 2 multifunction large-load carrier, 26 combination bulk; note--a flag of convenience registry; all ships are foreign owned; the top four owning flags are US 17%, Hong Kong 13%, Japan 10%, and Greece 10%; China owns at least 20 ships and Vietnam owns 1
Ports
Monrovia, Buchanan, Greenville, Harper (or Cape Palmas)
Railroads
480 km total; 328 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 152 km 1.067-meter narrow gauge; all lines single track; rail systems owned and operated by foreign steel and financial interests in conjunction with Liberian Government
Telecommunications
telephone and telegraph service via radio relay network; main center is Monrovia; 8,500 telephones; stations--3 AM, 4 FM, 5 TV; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
Military and Security
Branches
Armed Forces of Liberia, Liberia National Coast Guard
Defense expenditures
2.4% of GDP (1987)
Military manpower
males 15-49, 627,519; 335,063 fit for military service; no conscription