Liberia+name+page

The **liberian flag** bears close resemblance to the flag of the United States, showing the ex-American slave origins of the country. The Liberian flag has similar red and white stripes, as well as a blue square with a white star in the middle.The eleven stripes symbolize the signatories of the Liberian Declaration of Independence, red and white symbolizing courage and moral excellence.The white star represents the freedom the ex-slaves were given and above the blue square representing the African mainland.
 * Capital:** Monrovia
 * Current Time:** 12:04 PM
 * Latitude:** 6.18
 * Longitude:** -10.47
 * Population:** 3,334,587 (rank=134)
 * Area, sq. mi.:** 43,000 (rank=101)
 * Area, sq. km.:** 111,370
 * Human Dev. Index rank:** NA
 * Adjusted for women:** NA
 * Real GDP per capita:** $900
 * Adult literacy rate:** 73% (male); 42% (female)
 * Infant mortality rate:** 150 per 1,000 births
 * Life expectancy:** 39 (male); 42 (female)
 * Currency:** Liberian dollar

Backround The nation of Liberia came into existence in the early 19th century. In 1816, U.S. abolitionists formed the American Colonization Society with the intent of resettling freed U.S. slaves in Africa. The group secured land from local rulers and established a settlement at Cape Mesurado (the site of present-day Monrovia) in 1822. Other coastal settlements followed. The communities survived despite conflicts between settlers and the indigenous inhabitants. In 1841, Joseph Jenkins Roberts was appointed Liberia's first black governor. The American Colonization Society granted independence in 1847, making Liberia the first independent republic in Africa. Roberts became its first president. The nation of Liberia came into existence in the early 19th century. In 1816, U.S. abolitionists formed the American Colonization Society with the intent of resettling freed U.S. slaves in Africa. The group secured land from local rulers and established a settlement at Cape Mesurado (the site of present-day Monrovia) in 1822. Other coastal settlements followed. The communities survived despite conflicts between settlers and the indigenous inhabitants. In 1841, Joseph Jenkins Roberts was appointed Liberia's first black governor. The American Colonization Society granted independence in 1847, making Liberia the first independent republic in Africa. Roberts became its first president.

Housing in Liberia The more expensive homes where made out of cement walls and floors and a roof made out of timber or metal.However for other homes they are just like rual areas,and those homes where made out of mud bricks with a cement finishing. Wood was also used to make homes.

Elephant in Sapo Naational Park Geography Location Liberia is a large Sub-Saharan nation in West Africa located at 6 °N, 9 °W.
 * Tourist attractions:**One of the many beautiful torrist attractions is the lake piso.Lake piso served as a naval base for the US naval forces in WWII.[[image:http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:nNsvIuz8CTpXPM:http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/3/1/15/f_2328153121fm_69892b0.jpg width="156" height="117" caption="See full size image" link="http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/3/1/15/f_2328153121fm_69892b0.jpg"]]Here are a couple other great tourist attractctions. The Kendeja Cultural Center, about 15 miles from Monrovia and off the Robertsfield Highway, and the Beasao village, are special sites dedicated to the preservation and potrayal of Liberia's indigenous culture. Providence Island, a tiny island between downtown Monrovia and the port, at the mouth of the Mesurado River. It was the first landing site of the Founding Fathers of Liberia on 7 January 1822. Providence Island is now a place of amusement and recreation with a bandstand and amphitheater for traditional African music and dance. Sapo National Park in Sinoe County is Liberia's first national park, home of wide variety of Liberian species like the pygmy hippo, forest elephant, bongo antelope, leopard, crocodile, jentinks duiker, primates, etc.

Topography
The country is shaped like a rectangle with a shape similar to El Salvador

Land boundaries and size
It borders the north Atlantic Ocean to the southwest and three other African nations on the other three sides. The total length of Liberia’s land borders is 1,587 km: 306 km with Sierra Leone on the northwest, 563 km with Guinea to the north. In total, Liberia comprises 111,370 km of which 96,320 km is land and 15,050 km² is water, making the country slightly smaller than the U.S. state of Washington

Terrain
Liberia has a mostly hilly terrain from rolling plains along the coast to a rolling plateau and low mountains in the northeast.

Elevation extremes
The lowest point on Liberia is at sea level on the Atlantic Ocean. The highest point on Liberia is 1 440 meters above sea level at Mount Wuteve

Climate
Liberia has a tropical climate. This means it is hot and humid throughout much of the year. The seasons are split into dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights,wet and cloudy summers with frequent and heavy showers.

Natural resources
Natural resources that are found in Liberia include iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold and hydropower.

Irrigated land
30 square kilometres of Liberia's land was irrigated in 2003.

Natural hazards
The natural hazard that occurs in Liberia is a dust-laden harmattan wind that blows from the Sahara.

Current environmental issues
Current environmental issues include the fact that the tropical rainforest is subject to deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity and the pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw sewage.

**Area**: total 111,370km, land 96,320km,water 15,050km

Land Use arable land 3.95%,permanent cros 2.28%,other 93.77%

**Religion** :indegenous beliefs 40%,Christain 40%,Muslim 20%


 * Agricultural Products :** cocoa, coffee, palm nuts, cassava, pepper, banana, mango, yam, potatoes, eddoes and rice

**Imports** :Rice is the main import for liberia

**Languages** :20% of liberians speek english but the other peole speek kpelle,bassa,mano and dan

**Leader**: Ellen Johnso-Siralf

**Military Expenses** :1.5 million is the budget for the liberian military

**Industries:** Liberia is most known for their diamond industry,it went down for at least three year but now it is back in buisness and running smoothly.
 * Education:** Although education is compulsory from ages 6 to 16, probably fewer than half of all children aged 6–18 are in school. As of 1999, 83% of primary-school-age children were enrolled in school, while only 20% of those eligible attended secondary school. In the same year, the pupil-teacher ratio at the primary level was 36 to 1. Projected adult illiteracy rates for the year 2000 stand at 46.6% (males, 30.1%; females, 63.2%). The largest secondary school is the Booker Washington Institute, a vocational school located at Kakata, with about 1,500 students.




 * Net migration rate: ** Value 26.86,1,000 migrants populated


 * Independence **:A young African American man from Virginia named Joseph Jenkins Roberts declared the colony of Liberia in West Africa an independent republic on July 26, 1847. The following year he became the first elected president of the new country. Roberts had moved there in 1829 at the age of twenty from Petersburg, Virginia. At that time, Liberia was a colony owned by a group of people in the United States.

**Map of Liberia**


 * Economic Overview:** Civil war since 1990 has destroyed much of Liberia's economy especially the infrastructure in and around Monrovia. Many businessmen have 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 depends on continued disarmament of factions and the implementation of sound macro- and micro-economic policies of the new government.


 * Unemployment: **Liberia's unemployment rate is at 86% they are ranked 197 in the world for highest unemployed workers


 * Exports: **Libeia is a major exporter of iron ore


 * Illicit drugs **: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


 * Internet Access **:Their are only a few internet cafes in Monrovia and some hotels offer it but other than that the internet access in liberia is very low
 * Time Line: **

1809 Mar 15, Joseph Jenkins Roberts, first president of Liberia, was born. (HN, 3/15/98)

1816 A project to repatriate freed slaves from American was begun by the American Colonization Society. It was supported by Thomas Jefferson, Daniel Webster and James Monroe. (WSJ, 7/31/03, p.A19)

1821-1867 The American Colonization Society helped some 13,000 black Americans go to Liberia. (SSFC, 2/1/04, p.M1)

1822 Feb 4, Free American Blacks settled in West Africa. The first group of colonists landed at Cape Mesurado and founded Monrovia, named in honor of President James Monroe. They named their colony Liberia. (HNPD, 7/26/98)(MC, 2/4/02)(NG, Feb, 04)

1822-1904 Some 23,000 immigrants, mostly from the US, arrived in Liberia. (NG, Feb, 04)

1824 Aug 15, Freed American slaves formed the country of Liberia. (MC, 8/15/02)

1836 Isaac Wade Ross, Revolutionary war hero, died in Mississippi. His will stipulated that his slaves should be emancipated upon his death, but only if they agreed to go to Liberia. The 1st of almost 200 were finally set free in 1848. In 2004 Alan Huffman authored "Mississippi in Africa: The Saga of the Slaves of Prospect Hill Plantation and Their Legacy in Liberia Today." (SSFC, 2/1/04, p.M1)

1847 Jul 26, Liberia became the first African colony to become an independent state. A mutual agreement between the settlers and the society created the republic of Liberia. More than 10,000 free blacks had moved there. Joseph Jenkins Roberts, the Virginia-born son of free blacks, was elected the first president of Liberia, an African nation that grew out of the efforts of the American Colonization Society. Roberts made a state visit to the United States in 1851. The American Colonization Society supported setting up a colony for freed slaves in Africa as an alternative to American integration. [see Aug 26] (HNPD, 7/26/98)(HN, 7/26/98)

1847 Aug 26, Liberia was proclaimed an independent republic. Freed American slaves founded Liberia. They modeled their constitution after that of the US, copied the US flag, and named their capital Monrovia, after James Monroe, who financed early settlers. Over the decades 16,400 former slaves made the voyage. They assumed that the 16 native tribes were there to be exploited. (AP, 8/26/97)(SFC, 4/10/96, p.A-4)(SFC, 4/16/96, p.A-9)

1871 Mar 1, J. Milton Turner was named US minister to Liberia. (SC, 3/1/02)

1878 Apr 21, Ship Azor left Charleston with 206 blacks for Liberia. (MC, 4/21/02)

1895 Mar 18, Some 200 blacks left Savannah, Ga., for Liberia. (MC, 3/18/02)

1926 Firestone Tire and Rubber Co. created the world's largest plantation at Harbel, Liberia, and rubber became the backbone of the economy. (AP, 7/1/03)(NG, Feb, 04)

**Current Event: License Plate Finally Arrive.** MONROVIA – More than 94,000 assorted motor vehicle and motorcycle license plates have arrived in the country along with 30,000 vehicle registration stickers.

Lyberia:

Citations www.ciafactbook.com www.liberiannation.com www.bing .com