1994 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1994 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Administrative divisions
13 counties; Bomi, Bong, Grand Bassa, Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, River Cess, Sinoe
Agriculture
accounts for about 40% of GDP (including fishing and forestry); principal products - rubber, timber, coffee, cocoa, rice, cassava, palm oil, sugarcane, bananas, sheep, goats; not self-sufficient in food, imports 25% of rice consumption
Area
total area: 111,370 sq km land area: 96,320 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee
Birth rate
43.48 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Branches
the ultimate structure of the Liberian military force will depend on who is the victor in the ongoing civil war
Budget
revenues: $242.1 million expenditures: $435.4 million, including capital expenditures of $29.5 million (1989 est.)
Capital
Monrovia
Climate
tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers
Coastline
579 km
Constitution
6 January 1986
Currency
1 Liberian dollar (L$) = 100 cents
Death rate
12.34 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures
$NA, NA% of GDP
Digraph
LI
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Konah K. BLACKETT chancery: 5201 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: (202) 723-0437 through 0440 consulate(s) general: New York
Economic aid
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $665 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $870 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $25 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $77 million
Electricity
capacity: 410,000 kW production: 750 million kWh consumption per capita: 275 kWh (1991)
Environment
current issues: West Africa's largest tropical rain forest, subject to deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity natural hazards: dust-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to March) international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic divisions
indigenous African tribes 95% (including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, and Bella), Americo-Liberians 5% (descendants of repatriated slaves)
Exchange rates
Liberian dollars (L$) per US$1 - 1.00 (officially fixed rate since 1940); unofficial parallel exchange rate of L$7 = US$1, January 1992 (unofficial rate floats against the US dollar)
Executive branch
chief of state and head of government: Chairman of the Council of State David KPOMAKPOR (since March 1994); election last held on 15 October 1985 (next scheduled to be held September 1994); results - Gen. Dr. Samuel Kanyon DOE (NDPL) 50.9%, Jackson DOE (LAP) 26.4%, other 22.7%; note - President Doe was killed by rebel forces on 9 September 1990 cabinet: Cabinet; selected by the leaders of the major factions in the civil war note: a transitional coalition government was formed as part of a July 1993 Cotonou Peace Treaty negotiated under UN auspices by the leaders of the major factions in the civil war; elections now scheduled for September 1994
Exports
$505 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.) commodities: iron ore 61%, rubber 20%, timber 11%, coffee partners: US, EC, Netherlands
External debt
$2.1 billion (September 1993 est.)
FAX
[231] 223710
Fiscal year
calendar year
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
Illicit drugs
increasingly a transshipment point for heroin and cocaine
Imports
$394 million (c.i.f., 1989 est.) commodities: rice, mineral fuels, chemicals, machinery, transportation equipment, other foodstuffs partners: US, EC, Japan, China, Netherlands, ECOWAS
Independence
26 July 1847
Industrial production
growth rate NA% (1993-94); much industrial damage caused by factional warfare
Industries
rubber processing, food processing, construction materials, furniture, palm oil processing, mining (iron ore, diamonds)
Infant mortality rate
113.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
12% (1989)
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
20 sq km (1989 est.)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court
Labor force
510,000 including 220,000 in the monetary economy by occupation: agriculture 70.5%, services 10.8%, industry and commerce 4.5%, other 14.2% note: non-African foreigners hold about 95% of the top-level management and engineering jobs; 52% of population of working age
Land boundaries
total 1,585 km, Guinea 563 km, Cote d'Ivoire 716 km, Sierra Leone 306 km
Land use
arable land: 1% permanent crops: 3% meadows and pastures: 2% forest and woodland: 39% other: 55%
Languages
English 20% (official), Niger-Congo language group about 20 local languages come from this group
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
unicameral Transitional Legislative Assembly, the members of which are appointed by the leaders of the major factions in the civil war note: the former bicameral legislature no longer exists and there is no assurance that it will ever be reconstituted
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 57.73 years male: 55.27 years female: 60.25 years (1994 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 40% male: 50% female: 29%
Location
Western Africa, bordering the North Pacific Ocean between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 707,927; fit for military service 377,950
Map references
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to depth of exploitation territorial sea: 200 nm
Member of
ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Names
conventional long form: Republic of Liberia conventional short form: Liberia
National holiday
Independence Day, 26 July (1847)
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $2.3 billion (1993 est.)
National product per capita
$800 (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate
1.5% (1988)
Nationality
noun: Liberian(s) adjective: Liberian
Natural resources
iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold
Net migration rate
2.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Overview
Civil war since 1990 has destroyed much of Liberia's economy, especially the infrastructure in and around Monrovia. Businessmen have fled the country, taking capital and expertise with them. 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. Political instability threatens prospects for economic reconstruction and repatriation of some 750,000 Liberian refugees who have fled to neighboring countries. The political impasse between the interim government and rebel leader Charles Taylor has prevented restoration of normal economic life, including the re-establishment of a strong central government with effective economic development programs.
Political parties and leaders
National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL), Augustus CAINE, chairman; Liberian Action Party (LAP), Emmanuel KOROMAH, chairman; Unity Party (UP), Joseph KOFA, chairman; United People's Party (UPP), Gabriel Baccus MATTHEWS, chairman; National Patriotic Party (NPP), Charles TAYLOR, chairman; Liberian Peoples Party (LPP), Dusty WOLOKOLLIE, chairman
Population
2,972,766 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate
3.33% (1994 est.)
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
Religions
traditional 70%, Muslim 20%, Christian 10%
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Terrain
mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast
Total fertility rate
6.36 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Type
republic
Unemployment rate
43% urban (1988)
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d' Affaires William P. TWADDELL embassy: 111 United Nations Drive, Monrovia mailing address: P. O. Box 100098, Mamba Point, Monrovia, or APO AE 09813 telephone: [231] 222991 through 222994
Government
Airports
total: 59 usable: 41 with permanent-surface runways: 2 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 4
Highways
total: 10,087 km paved: 603 km unpaved: gravel 5,171 km (includes 2323km of private roads of rubber and timber firms, open to the public); earth 4,313 km
Merchant marine
1,595 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 56,923,236 GRT/97,692,316 DWT, barge carrier 3, bulk 423, cargo 126, chemical 122, combination bulk 30, combination ore/oil 64, container 112, liquefied gas 67, oil tanker 468, passenger 32, refrigerated cargo 61, roll-on/roll-off cargo 19, short-sea passenger 2, specialized tanker 7, vehicle carrier 59 note: a flag of convenience registry; all ships are foreign owned; the top 4 owning flags are US 14%, Japan 13%, Norway 10%, and Hong Kong 8%
Ports
Monrovia, Buchanan, Greenville, Harper (or Cape Palmas)
Telecommunications
telephone and telegraph service via radio relay network; main center is Monrovia; broadcast stations - 3 AM, 4 FM, 5 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station; most telecommunications services inoperable due to insurgency movement