[24][25] The United Kingdom was the first country to recognize Liberia's independence. However, Lincoln in 1862 described Liberia as only "in a certain sense...a success", and proposed instead that free people of color be assisted to emigrate to Chiriquí, today part of Panama. Along with Ethiopia, Liberia is considered to be one of the only two African countries never to have been colonize d by European powers during the Scramble for Africa from 1880 to 1900. [24], By 1877, the True Whig Party was the country's most powerful political entity. Ethiopia (it was known as Abyssinia at the time) was a strong country with a thriving empire. A small number of people are Baháʼí, Hindu, Sikh, or Buddhist. [10] Americo-Liberians promoted religious organizations to set up missions and schools to educate the indigenous peoples. [158], Higher education is provided by a number of public and private universities. [46] The Second Liberian Civil War began in 1999 when Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy, a rebel group based in the northwest of the country, launched an armed insurrection against Taylor. While people there, still reeling from Nat Turner’s 1831 rebellion in which emancipated slaves had a hand in, formed local colonization societies. [83] The National Police Training Academy is in Paynesville City. [34], Liberia remained neutral during World War I until August 4, 1917, when it declared war on Germany. [54] The 2005 elections marked the first time that the president's party did not gain a majority of seats in the Legislature. Liberia began as a settlement of the American Colonization Society (ACS), who believed black people would face better chances for freedom and prosperity in Africa than in the United States. The ethnic Kru opposed the influx of Vai, forming an alliance with the Mane to stop further influx of Vai. [126] In 2013, the mineral sector accounted for 11% of GDP in the country and the World Bank has projected a further increase in the sector by 2017. (2007). [150] Liberians also speak a variety of creolized dialects collectively known as Liberian English. Liberia was the only African nation on the African continent that was a colony and protectorate for the United States. The Cavalla is the longest river in the nation at 515 kilometers (320 mi). "Monrovia's 'Never-Ending' Pollution Issues In 2013, Edwin M. 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Life expectancy in Liberia is estimated to be 57.4 years in 2012. "[82] In 2014 the US ambassador to Liberia said that corruption there was harming people through "unnecessary costs to products and services that are already difficult for many Liberians to afford". [13], The Pepper Coast, also known as the Grain Coast, has been inhabited by indigenous peoples of Africa at least as far back as the 12th century. In 1817, in Washington D.C., the ACS established the new colony on a plot of land in West Africa they had purchased from local tribes. [66], Prior to the 2008 census, the last census had been taken in 1984 and listed the country's population as 2,101,628. [72] In 2012, President Sirleaf granted licenses to companies to cut down 58% of all the primary rainforest left in Liberia. The landscape is characterized by mostly flat to rolling coastal plains that contain mangroves and swamps, which rise to a rolling plateau and low mountains in the northeast. The Greater Monrovia District has 970,824 residents. [45] A peace deal between warring parties was reached in 1995, leading to Taylor's election as president in 1997. [100] The global financial crisis slowed GDP growth to 4.6% in 2009,[100] though a strengthening agricultural sector led by rubber and timber exports increased growth to 5.1% in 2010 and an expected 7.3% in 2011, making the economy one of the 20 fastest-growing in the world. [2] Senators serve nine-year terms and are elected at-large by a plurality of the popular vote. By 1900 a significant part of Africa had been colonized by mainly seven European powersâBritain, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and Italy. [18] Similar state-based organizations established colonies in Mississippi-in-Africa, Kentucky in Africa, and the Republic of Maryland, which Liberia later annexed. [16], People along the coast built canoes and traded with other West Africans from Cap-Vert to the Gold Coast. Global Powers and Africa Programme. [101][102], Current impediments to growth include a small domestic market, lack of adequate infrastructure, high transportation costs, poor trade links with neighboring countries and the high dollarization of the economy. Social evolution in Liberia has largely been an interplay between the peoples who found themselves in the territory after the ACS arrived. [112], Liberia has the highest ratio of foreign direct investment to GDP in the world, with US$16 billion in investment since 2006. Britain negotiated with local tribe leaders to gain more land. [140], As of the 2017 national census, Liberia was home to 4,694,608 people. These resulted in the deaths of 250,000 people (about 8% of the population) and the displacement of many more, and shrank Liberia's economy by 90%. [172], In 2014, an outbreak of Ebola virus in Guinea spread to Liberia. Liberian History PBS", "COMMISSION'S REPORT: INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY IN LIBERIA", "Pan-Africanism Revisited: Vision and Reality of African Unity and Development", "Liberia and the United States: A Complex Relationship", "Liberia's civil war: Fiddling while Monrovia burns", "Profile: Leymah Gbowee—Liberia's 'peace warrior, "Taylor resigns as president of Liberia, leaves the country", "Liberia: UNMIL extends deployment as more troops arrive", "LIBERIA-NIGERIA: "Time to bring Taylor issue to closure," says Sirleaf", "Taylor Sent Off to Face War Crimes Charges", "LIBERIA: War-battered nation launches truth commission", "From Football King To Liberian President – George Weah's Journey", "Top 10 youngest serving presidents in Africa, 2018", "George Weah sworn in as Liberia's president", "An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm", "Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity - Supplementary Material", "2008 National Population and Housing Census: Preliminary Results", "THE MODEL CITY STATUTE FOR THE LIBERIAN CITY", "Poaching in Liberia's Forests Threatens Rare Animals", "Extinction is forever: A crisis that is Liberia's endangered wildlife", "Restoring the Battered and Broken Environment of Liberia One of the Keys to a New and Sustainable Future". The British government advised Liberian authorities that it did not recognize the right of the American Colonization Society, a private organization, to levy these taxes. [99] As a result of bilateral, multilateral and commercial debt relief from 2007 to 2010, the country's external debt fell to $222.9 million by 2011. Liberia is an African country that people usually claim is not colonized, but since it was founded by American Blacks who established a very European … As of 2016, it had approximately 9,118 students. Founded as the Liberian Frontier Force in 1908, the military was renamed in 1956. Liberia. An American society under president Monroe bought land there ⦠In 1816, a group of white Americans founded the American Colonization Society (ACS) to deal with the âproblemâ of the growing number of free blacks in the United States by resettling them in Africa. [54], The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are the country's armed forces. [189] Moore's novella Murder in the Cassava Patch is considered Liberia's most celebrated novel. There is a high percentage of interracial marriage between ethnic Liberians and the Lebanese, resulting in a significant mixed-race population especially in and around Monrovia. [62] During the winter months of November to March, dry dust-laden harmattan winds blow inland, causing many problems for residents. [93] When dealing with public-facing government functionaries, 89% of Liberians say they have had to pay a bribe, the highest national percentage in the world according to the organization's 2010 Global Corruption Barometer. [2] Among the president's other duties are to sign or veto legislative bills, grant pardons, and appoint Cabinet members, judges, and other public officials. Liberia. As of October 2007 it has 844 officers in 33 stations in Montserrado County, which contains Monrovia. While Liberia was never technically colonized by way of imperial annexation as took place in the rest of Africa, it‘s foundational story has an intriguing echo of colonization. This was a cause for concern among the British colonial authorities of Sierra Leone and the French colonial authorities of French Guinea and the Ivory Coast as tensions with Germany increased. [108], In 2003, additional UN sanctions were placed on Liberian timber exports, which had risen from US$5 million in 1997 to over US$100 million in 2002 and were believed to be funding rebels in Sierra Leone. The second most popular sport in Liberia is basketball. Likewise, why was Ethiopia and Liberia never colonized? It has 3,500 vessels registered under its flag, accounting for 11% of ships worldwide. [54] Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a US-educated economist and former Minister of Finance, was elected as the first female president in Africa. Mortality from tropical diseases was high — of the 4,571 emigrants who arrived in Liberia between 1820 and 1843, only 1,819 were alive in 1843. African Methodist Episcopal University, a private higher education institution that was founded in 1995. [72] After international protests, many of those logging permits were canceled. Under heavy pressure from the international community and the domestic Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace movement,[49] Both Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast annexed territories. Liberia was founded, colonized, established and controlled by the American Colonization Society. As in other African countries, China is an important part of the post-conflict reconstruction. [99] This decline was accelerated by the outbreak of civil war in 1989; GDP was reduced by an estimated 90% between 1989 and 1995, one of the fastest declines in history. Making Liberia safe : transformation of the national security sector. The government does not require businesses or schools to excuse Muslims for Friday prayers. [71], Liberia is a global biodiversity hotspot—a significant reservoir of biodiversity that is under threat from humans. Minority ethnic groups especially were exploited in a system that enriched well-connected elites. English is the official language, but over 20 indigenous languages are spoken, representing the numerous ethnic groups who make up more than 95% of the population. However, this is disputed as the country was founded by free Black American immigrants in the 1820s and governed by these Americo-Liberians until 1989. [30] Today over 20 political parties are registered in the country, based largely around personalities and ethnic groups. [2] An informal system of traditional courts still exists within the rural areas of the country, with trial by ordeal remaining common despite being officially outlawed. Liberia was one of the founding members of the League of Nations when it was founded in January 1920. Liberia used to include half of Ivory Coast's coastline. The question is who started it, and were their intentions pure? and an interim government took power the following October. While Liberia was never technically colonized by way of imperial annexation as took place in the rest of Africa, itâs foundational story has an intriguing echo of colonization. The Senate is made up of two senators from each county for a total of 30 senators. Liberia wasn't colonized because the USA protected them, and even then Britain and France took sizable chunks. [51], The United Nations Mission in Liberia began arriving in September 2003 to provide security and monitor the peace accord,[52] Liberia hosted National Fairs in 1857 and 1858 in which prizes were awarded for various needle arts. [66] As of 2006[update], Liberia had the highest population growth rate in the world (4.50% per annum). [149] Thirty-one indigenous languages are spoken in Liberia, but each is a first language for only a small percentage of the population. [99] Upon the end of the war in 2003, GDP growth began to accelerate, reaching 9.4% in 2007. European traders would barter commodities and goods with local people. Adventist University of West Africa, a post-secondary learning environment that is situated in Margibi County, on the Roberts International Airport. It has a population of around 5 million and covers an area of 111,369 square kilometers (43,000 sq mi). Photo: The New York Chapter of the Colonization Society (The New York Historical Society/Getty Images). Liberia was indeed a colony but unlike other countries which were invaded by Europeans and taken advantage of, it was never breached. [32] On July 16, 1892, Martha Ann Erskine Ricks met Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle and presented her a handmade quilt, Liberia's first diplomatic gift. [53] It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south-southwest. [69] Bushmeat is often exported to neighboring Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast, despite a ban on the cross-border sale of wild animals. A constitution modeled after the U.S. Constitution was approved, and in 1848 Joseph Jenkins Roberts was elected Liberiaâs first president. [64] It had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4.79/10, ranking it 116th globally out of 172 countries. Edward Wilmot Blyden, Bai T. Moore, Roland T. Dempster and Wilton G. S. Sankawulo are among Liberia's more prominent authors. The question is … [citation needed], In the United States there was a movement to settle free people of color, both free-born and formerly enslaved, in Africa. Financial Time's World Desk Reference (2004) Dorling Kindersley Publishing, p. 368. The country was established by Americans in 1821. [2] Each House member represents an electoral district within a county as drawn by the National Elections Commission and is elected by a plurality of the popular vote of their district into a six-year term. This is because Liberia, a country founded in 1847 as a home for freed enslaved African by abolitionists ulterior motives, was also technically never colonized, at least, not in any way close to how we would speak of the imperial annexation of other places in Africa. The emerging chronometric record of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) indicates that core and flake technologies have been present in West Africa since at least the Middle Pleistocene (~780-126 thousand years ago or ka), and that they persisted until the Terminal Pleistocene/Holocene boundary (~12ka)—the youngest examples of such technology anywhere in Africa. [2], The Legislature is composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The oldest counties are Grand Bassa and Montserrado, both founded in 1839 prior to Liberian independence. Liberia was never colonized because it was mainly a country for freed slaves who wanted to … Although only some 600 strong in 1850 they set themselves up among the native people and became the new "massahs" and ruled the locals with mix of fear, cruelty and were more remote from their "subjects" than any White colonists on the continent. [86], Both male and female homosexuality are illegal in Liberia. It was a democracy with parties similar to those in the U.S. at the time: the Republican Party, the True Whig Party, and the National Democratic Party. It was colonised by African-American freed slaves. This gave it a ranking 87th of 178 countries worldwide and 11th of 47 in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, Liberia is also known to be the West African counterpart that was never colonized. [41] A strategic Cold War ally of the West, Doe received significant financial backing from the United States while critics condemned the PRC for corruption and political repression. They intermarried largely within the colonial community, developing an ethnic group that had a cultural tradition infused with American notions of political republicanism and Protestant Christianity. However, the new mandate lacked strong enforcement and many Marylanders forgot their aversion towards free Black people when they needed extra hands at harvest time. The subsequent 2005 elections were internationally regarded as the most free and fair in Liberian history. However, hunter-gatherers have survived in the more forested parts of West Africa until much later, attesting to the strength of ecological boundaries in this region. The Kpelle comprise more than 20% of the population and are the largest ethnic group in Liberia, residing mostly in Bong County and adjacent areas in central Liberia. Most of these Christian denominations were brought by African American settlers moving from the United States into Liberia via the American Colonization Society, while some are indigenous—especially Pentecostal and evangelical Protestant ones. The most popular sport in Liberia is association football, with President George Weah — the only African to be named FIFA World Player of the Year — being the nation's most famous athlete. Below them, came any of the various other former-slave families that came to Liberia after emancipation. [55][56], In 2006, the government established a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address the causes and crimes of the civil war. The colonial settlements were raided by the Kru and Grebo from their inland chiefdoms. It lies between latitudes 4° and 9°N, and longitudes 7° and 12°W. Notable supporters of transporting freed blacks to Liberia included Henry Clay, Francis Scott Key, Bushrod Washington, and the architect of the U.S. Capitol, Liberia is the only Black state in Africa never subjected to colonial rule and is Africa’s oldest republic. By 1900 a significant part of Africa had been colonized by mainly seven European powers—Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and Italy. [155], In 2010, the literacy rate of Liberia was estimated at 60.8% (64.8% for males and 56.8% for females). In 1821 the society successfully founded the African colony of Liberia. [15], This influx of these groups was compounded by the decline of the Western Sudanic Mali Empire in 1375 and the Songhai Empire in 1591. Liberia imports 90% of its rice, a staple food, and is extremely vulnerable to food shortages. [97] In 2011 the country's nominal GDP was US$1.154 billion, while nominal GDP per capita stood at US$297, the third-lowest in the world. [156] In some areas primary and secondary education is free and compulsory from the ages of 6 to 16, though enforcement of attendance is lax. [143] Of those, 1,118,241 lived in Montserrado County, the most populous county in the country and home to the capital of Monrovia. During World War II the United States made major infrastructure improvements to support its military efforts in Africa and Europe against Germany. Located on Capitol Hill, the school has approximately 2,000 students. In 1820, the first former U.S. slaves arrived at the British colony of Sierra Leone from the United States, and in 1821 the American Colonization Society founded the colony of Liberia south of Sierra Leone as a homeland for former slaves outside British jurisdiction. In the case of the state of Maryland, ACS leader John H. B. Latrobe and associates were so active and independent that … [62], The highest point wholly within Liberia is Mount Wuteve at 1,440 meters (4,724 ft) above sea level in the northwestern Liberia range of the West Africa Mountains and the Guinea Highlands. [71] Of households where bushmeat was served, 80% of residents said they cooked it "once in a while," while 13% cooked it once a week and 7% cooked bushmeat daily. [38], After the war President William Tubman encouraged foreign investment in the country. Much of Liberia's communications infrastructure was destroyed or plundered during the two civil wars (1989–1996 and 1999–2003). Liberia received partial independence in 1839 through a commonwealth declaration, however, it wasn’t until the 26th of July, 1847, that Liberia did indeed attain liberty. [2] The country's education sector is hampered by inadequate schools and supplies, as well as a lack of qualified teachers. As of 2015 it had more than 8,000 mostly Liberian employees, making it the country's largest private employer. At $0.54 per kWh, the cost of electricity in Liberia is among the highest in the world. While Christian, many Liberians also participate in traditional, gender-based indigenous religious secret societies, such as Poro for men and Sande for women. Competition for office was usually contained within the party; a party nomination virtually ensured election.[30]. [citation needed] Four terrestrial ecoregions lie within Liberia's borders: Guinean montane forests, Western Guinean lowland forests, Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, and Guinean mangroves. A small minority of Liberians who are White Africans of European descent reside in the country. [54] Most parties suffer from poor organizational capacity. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south-southwest. [27][28][29], The leadership of the new nation consisted largely of the Americo-Liberians, who initially established political and economic dominance in the coastal areas that the ACS had purchased; they maintained relations with U.S. contacts in developing these areas and the resulting trade.
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