Felicity DeWeese

Logan
Issues in the 21st Century Period 1
9 February 2016
Researching a Country
Political Structure:
The political structure of Liberia is very similar to the United States political structure. Liberias
government is so similar to ours because American abolitionists sent freed slaves to this area.
The freed slaves elected their first president in 1847. In Liberia, the people elect a president who
is in office for six years and can run a maximum of two terms. This president serves as the head
of state and the head of government. Liberias government and economy arent very stable
because the country is still recovering from two civil wars in the past.
Natural Resources:
Liberias most abundant natural resources and exports are rubber, timber, diamonds, gold, iron
ore, cocoa, and coffee. Most of the people in Liberia rely on farming to make a living, they grow
crops such as palm oil, cocoa, coffee, and rubber. Liberias major trading partners are China,
France, Poland, Spain, Germany, Belgium, the United States, Luxembourg, Cote DIvoire, and
the Netherlands. Liberia relies on many of these trading partners due to their weak and unstable
economy.

Cultural Factors:

Liberia has many different religions and ethnic groups. About 40% of Liberians are Christians.
Most of the Christian based religions are Baptist, Roman Catholic, United Methodist, Lutheran,
and Assemblies of God. Another 40% follow indigenous animist religions, these people believe
that spirits live in living things and inanimate objects. The last 20% are Muslim. There are
approximately 28 different ethnic groups in Liberia, each have their own language.The largest
ethnic groups are the Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi,
Vai, and Bella. The large number of ethnic groups are due to the centuries of migration in the
Liberian area. Customs also have a lot of variation because of all of the different ethnic groups,
but overall, the customs are all similar. Common greetings are good morning, good afternoon,
good night, how are you, etc. When Liberians are giving or receiving an object, they accept them
with their right hand, or both hands. Using their left hand is thought to be rude. The people of
Liberia also like to stay in touch and visit with family members. Liberians usually eat breakfast,
lunch, and dinner, but these meals dont have much variation. Lunch is usually the largest meal
of the day.
History:
Liberia has had many different migrants go through the area, this caused many different ethnic
groups, languages, and religions. In 1816, the United States resettled freed slaves in Africa, these
people were later called Americo-Liberians. After resettling the freed slaves, there were a few
conflicts with the other inhabitants in the area. Despite these conflicts, the people survived and
began to establish their own community. In the 1930s, there were many attempts to make
everyone equal, unfortunately, indigenous Liberians were considered second-class compared to
the Americo-Liberians. This inequality later caused a violent military coup to execute many of
the government leaders in 1980. After the president was assassinated, the leader of the military

coup, Master Sergeant Samuel Doe, was elected in 1985. In 1989, a rebel by the name of Charles
Taylor began an uprising against Doe, which caused Liberias first civil war. By 1996, the civil
war had ended and in 1997, Taylor was elected as the new president. The violence stopped for
only two years. In 1999, more rebel groups began to go against the government once again. By
2003 Taylor was forced into exile and 15,000 UN peacekeepers replaced him for two years. In
January 2006, a new president was elected, but Liberias infrastructure has been destroyed
because of the two civil wars.
Economy:
Liberia uses the same monetary system as the United States does. They use coins that are worth 1
cent, 5cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, and also 50 cents. They also use dollars that are worth 1 dollar, 5
dollars, 10 dollars, 50 dollars, and 100 dollars. Liberia is a land rich with natural resources, but
due to the 14 years of civil war and the recent Ebola crisis, it is a very undeveloped country.
Although Liberia has plenty of mineral resources, timber, and a climate perfect for agriculture, it
still relies heavily on foreign countries for help. Reconstructing Liberias infrastructure depends
on financial support and technical assistance from other countries. As a result of all the foreign
assistance Liberia has needed in the past, by 2006 the country was about $4.5 billion in debt.
Fortunately, in 2007 to 2010 there was a commercial debt relief that brought Liberias debt down
to $222.9 million. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Liberia was $2.6 billion in 2005. The
annual growth rate is about 8%. Agriculture accounted for about 78.9% of the GDP, industry
5.4%, and services 17.7%.

Standard of Living

1. The government is mostly involved with Liberias issues. Foreign countries have
also helped Liberia and are still helping get the economy back on track. After the civil

wars, many foreign countries helped Liberia develop a less corrupt government. The
government now is working on making the economy better.
2. Liberia is facing mostly economic and political issues. Liberia may have many
natural resources, but because of the weak government, Liberia still needs support from
other countries.
3. Most of the issues Liberia is facing today are because of the civil wars in 19891996 and 1999-2003. These wars caused many conflicts with the government,
infrastructure and economy. Liberia is working on a better government and a stronger
economy.
4. Liberia has many natural resources, the most abundant resources are iron ore
diamonds,and
other mineral
resources, rubber,
timber, and coffee,
as shown on this
map. The
resources are
located across
Liberia and are
helping the
economy. The
companies are also shown on the map.
Works Cited
CultureGrams World Edition 2008. 2008 ed. Northampton: Society of Homeopaths, 2007.

CultureGrams. ProQuest LLC, 2008. Web. 3 Feb. 2016.

<https://www2.viu.ca/homestay/host/CultureGrams/Liberia.pdf>.
"Liberia." Encyclopedia.com. Encyclopedia.com, 2015. Web. 8 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Liberia.aspx>.
"Liberia - Ethnic Groups." Nations Encyclopedia. Advameg, Inc., 2016. Web. 04 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Liberia-ETHNIC-GROUPS.html>.
"Major Export Trading Partners." The Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The Ministry of
Commerce and Industry, 2008. Web. 3 Feb. 2016. <http://www.moci.gov.lr/2content.php?
sub=74&related=18&third=74&pg=sp>.
"Services and Living Conditions." PeacebuildingData.org. Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, n.d.
Web. 9 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.peacebuildingdata.org/research/liberia/results/priorities-services/services-liv
ing-conditions>.