Korea, North (2003) | Liberia (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 special cities* (si, singular and plural); Chagang-do (Chagang Province), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong Province), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong Province), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae Province), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae Province), Kaesong-si* (Kaesong City), Kangwon-do (Kangwon Province), Najin Sonbong-si*, Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (Pyongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) | 15 counties; Bomi, Bong, Gparbolu, Grand Bassa, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, River Cess, River Gee, Sinoe |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 25% (male 2,845,727; female 2,763,800)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 7,485,310; female 7,746,603) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 541,155; female 1,083,886) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.3% (male 714,563; female 709,582)
15-64 years: 53.2% (male 854,324; female 894,753) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 57,925; female 57,051) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs | rubber, coffee, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, sugarcane, bananas; sheep, goats; timber |
Airports | 72 (2002) | 47 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 34
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 7 (2002) |
total: 45
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 34 (2002) |
Area | total: 120,540 sq km
land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
total: 111,370 sq km
land: 96,320 sq km water: 15,050 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Mississippi | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | Following World War II, Korea was split, with the northern half coming under Communist domination and the southern portion becoming Western-oriented. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, North Korea repudiated a 1994 agreement that shut down its nuclear reactors and expelled UN monitors, further raising fears it would produce nuclear weapons. | Seven years of civil strife were brought to a close in 1996 when free and open presidential and legislative elections were held. President TAYLOR now holds strong executive power with no real political opposition. The years of fighting coupled with the flight of most businesses have disrupted formal economic activity. A still unsettled domestic security situation has slowed the process of rebuilding the social and economic structure of this war-torn country. In 2001, the UN imposed sanctions on Liberian diamonds along with an army embargo and a travel ban on government officials for Liberia's support of the rebel insurgency in Sierra Leone. |
Birth rate | 17.61 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 45.95 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $85.4 million
expenditures: $90.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Pyongyang | Monrovia |
Climate | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer | tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers |
Coastline | 2,495 km | 579 km |
Constitution | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 | 6 January 1986 |
Country name | conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: none note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country abbreviation: DPRK |
conventional long form: Republic of Liberia
conventional short form: Liberia |
Currency | North Korean won (KPW) | Liberian dollar (LRD) |
Death rate | 6.93 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 16.05 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $12 billion (1996 est.) | $2.1 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) | chief of mission: Ambassador John William BLANEY III
embassy: 111 United Nations Drive, P. O. Box 10-0098, Mamba Point, 1000 Monrovia, 10 Liberia mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [231] 226-370 through 226-380 FAX: [231] 226-148 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York | chief of mission: Ambassador William V. S. BULL
chancery: 5201 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 723-0437 FAX: [1] (202) 723-0436 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | with China, certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers are in uncontested dispute; a section of boundary around Paektu-san (mountain) is indefinite; China objects to illegal migration of North Koreans into northern China; Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953 | rebels and refugees contribute to border instabilities with Sierra Leone |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - nearly $300 million in food aid alone from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 2001 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations | $94 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and spare parts shortages. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. The nation has suffered its tenth year of food shortages because of a lack of arable land; collective farming; weather-related problems, including major drought in 2000; and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape mass starvation since 1995-96, but the population remains the victim of prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. Recently, the regime has placed emphasis on earning hard currency, developing information technology, addressing power shortages, and attracting foreign aid, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing widespread market-oriented reforms. In 2003, heightened political tensions with key donor countries and general donor fatigue have held down the flow of desperately needed food aid and have threatened fuel aid as well. | A civil war in 1989-96 destroyed much of Liberia's economy, especially the infrastructure in and around Monrovia. Many businessmen fled the country, taking capital and expertise with them. Some returned; 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 and timber industry to provide the bulk of its foreign exchange earnings. The restoration of the infrastructure and the raising of incomes in this ravaged economy depend on the implementation of sound macro- and micro-economic policies of the new government, including the encouragement of foreign investment. Recent growth has been from a low base, and continued growth will require major policy successes and containment of armed rebellion. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.91 billion kWh (2001) | 418.5 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 30.01 billion kWh (2001) | 450 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 29%
hydro: 71% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Wuteve 1,380 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation | tropical rain forest deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity; pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw sewage |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese | indigenous African tribes 95% (including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, Dei, Bella, Mandingo, and Mende), Americo-Liberians 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the US who had been slaves), Congo People 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean who had been slaves) |
Exchange rates | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 150 (December 2002), 2.15 (December 2001), 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 300-600 (December 2002), 200 (December 2001) | Liberian dollars per US dollar - 46.0400 (December 2001), 48.5833 (2001), 40.9525 (2000), 41.9025 (1999), 41.5075 (1998), 1.0000 (officially fixed rate 1940-97); market exchange rate: Liberian dollars per US dollar - 40 (December 1998), 50 (October 1995)
note: until December 1997, rates were based on a fixed relationship with the US dollar; beginning in January 1998, rates are market determined |
Executive branch | chief of state: KIM Chong-il (since NA July 1994); note - on 3 September 2003, KIM Chong-il was reelected Chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded the nation's "highest administrative authority"; KIM Yong-nam was reelected President of the Supreme People's Assembly Presidium and given the responsibility of representing the state and receiving diplomatic credentials
head of government: Premier PAK Pong-chu (since 3 September 2003); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom-ki (since 5 September 1998), CHON Sung-hun (since 3 September 2003), NO Tu-chol (since 3 September 2003) cabinet: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly elections: premier elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA) election results: HONG Song-nam elected premier; percent of Supreme People's Assembly vote - NA% |
chief of state: President Charles Ghankay TAYLOR (since 2 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Charles Ghankay TAYLOR (since 2 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (renewable); election last held 19 July 1997 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Charles Ghankay TAYLOR elected president; percent of vote - Charles Ghankay TAYLOR (NPP) 75.3%, Ellen Johnson SIRLEAF (UP) 9.6%, Alhaji KROMAH (ALCOP) 4%, other 11.1% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $55 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); textiles and fishery products | rubber, timber, iron, diamonds, cocoa, coffee |
Exports - partners | China 23.5%, Japan 19.9%, Costa Rica 12.4%, Brazil 6.5% (2002) | Belgium 38.5%, Germany 17.6%, Italy 6.0%, US 5.8% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22.26 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.6 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30.4%
industry: 32.3% services: 37.3% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 60%
industry: 10% services: 30% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 127 00 E | 6 30 N, 9 30 W |
Geography - note | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated | facing the Atlantic Ocean, the coastline is characterized by lagoons, mangrove swamps, and river-deposited sandbars; the inland grassy plateau supports limited agriculture |
Highways | total: 31,200 km
paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1999 est.) |
total: 10,600 km
paved: 657 km unpaved: 9,943 km note: there is major deterioration on all highways due to heavy rains and lack of maintenance (1996 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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 |
Imports | NA (2001) | $170 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; textiles, grain | fuels, chemicals, machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods; rice and other foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | China 24.9%, Brazil 12.1%, India 9.2%, Thailand 9.2%, Germany 7.8%, Japan 7.1%, Singapore 4.5%, Qatar 4% (2002) | France 29.1%, South Korea 20.6%, Japan 15.8%, Singapore 8.4% (2000) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | 26 July 1847 |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA |
Industries | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism | rubber processing, palm oil processing, timber, diamonds |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
130.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 2 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 14,600 sq km (1998 est.) | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 9.6 million | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% | agriculture 70%, industry 8%, services 22% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,673 km
border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
total: 1,585 km
border countries: Guinea 563 km, Cote d'Ivoire 716 km, Sierra Leone 306 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.12%
permanent crops: 2.49% other: 83.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 1.97%
permanent crops: 2.08% other: 95.95% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Korean | English 20% (official), some 20 ethnic group languages, of which a few can be written and are used in correspondence |
Legal system | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held in August 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; the KWP approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats are held by minor parties |
bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (26 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve nine-year terms) and the House of Representatives (64 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 19 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2006); House of Representatives - last held 19 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 21, UP 3, ALCOP 2; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 49, UP 7, ALCOP 3, Alliance of Political Parties 2, UPP 2, LPP 1; note - the Alliance of Political Parties was a coalition of the LAP and the Liberia Unification Party or LUP |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.79 years
male: 68.1 years female: 73.61 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 51.8 years
male: 50.33 years female: 53.33 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write Korean
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 38.3% male: 53.9% female: 22.4% (1995 est.) note: these figures are increasing because of the improving school system |
Location | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone |
Map references | Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM note: military boundary line 50 NM in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
territorial sea: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 149 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 881,276 GRT/1,309,547 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 120, combination bulk 2, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 8, refrigerated cargo 4, short-sea passenger 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 1, Greece 2, Pakistan 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 1,513 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 51,912,244 GRT/79,297,046 DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 3, bulk 313, cargo 89, chemical tanker 167, combination bulk 16, combination ore/oil 32, container 318, liquefied gas 99, multi-functional large-load carrier 4, passenger 23, petroleum tanker 302, refrigerated cargo 69, roll on/roll off 20, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 13, vehicle carrier 42 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Argentina 9, Australia 2, Austria 15, Belgium 9, Brazil 5, Canada 4, Cayman Islands 1, Chile 7, China 39, Croatia 11, Denmark 4, Ecuador 1, Estonia 1, Germany 437, Greece 154, Hong Kong 69, India 5, Indonesia 1, Israel 1, Italy 5, Japan 90, Latvia 20, Man, Isle of 5, Monaco 56, Netherlands 12, New Zealand 1, Nigeria 1, Norway 103, Pakistan 1, Portugal 5, Russia 66, Saudi Arabia 21, Singapore 20, Slovenia 1, South Africa 1, South Korea 10, Spain 2, Sweden 9, Switzerland 17, Taiwan 29, Turkey 3, Ukraine 4, United Arab Emirates 12, United Kingdom 39, United States 113, Uruguay 3, Vietnam 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5,217.4 million (FY02) | $7.8 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 33.9% (FY02) | 1.3% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,103,615 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 729,469 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,654,223 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 393,028 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 180,875 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) | Independence Day, 26 July (1847) |
Nationality | noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
noun: Liberian(s)
adjective: Liberian |
Natural hazards | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall | dust-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to March) |
Natural resources | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower | iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -10.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: by the end of 1999, all Liberian refugees who had fled the domestic strife were assumed to have returned (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | oil 136 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Chondoist Chongu Party [YU Mi-yong, chairwoman]; Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong-tae, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, general secretary] | All Liberia Coalition Party or ALCOP [Peter KERBAY]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [George BORWAH]; Liberian Action Party or LAP [C. Gyude BRYANT]; Liberian National Union or LINU [Victor MOMOH]; Liberian People's Party or LPP [Koffa NAGBE]; National Democratic Party of Liberia or NDPL [Isaac D. DIKENAH]; National Patriotic Party or NPP [Cyril ALLEN] - governing party; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Weah A. WEAH]; Reformation Alliance Party or RAP [James THOMAS]; True Whig Party or TWP [Rudolph SHERMAN]; United People's Party or UPP [Wesley JOHNSON]; Unity Party or UP [Charles Clarke] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 22,466,481 (July 2003 est.) | 3,288,198 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 80% |
Population growth rate | 1.07% (2003 est.) | 1.91% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan | Buchanan, Greenville, Harper, Monrovia |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) | AM 0, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | - | 790,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 5,214 km
standard gauge: 4,549 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge (2002) |
total: 490 km (328 km single-track)
standard gauge: 345 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 145 km 1.067-m gauge note: in 1989, Liberia had three rail systems owned and operated by foreign steel and financial interests in conjunction with the Liberian Government; one of these, the Lamco Railroad, closed in 1989 after iron ore production ceased; the other two were shut down by the civil war; large sections of the rail lines have been dismantled; approximately 60 km of railroad track was exported for scrap (2001) |
Religions | traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
general assessment: telephone and telegraph service via microwave radio relay network; main center is Monrovia
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.1 million (1997) | 6,700 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 0 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (1999) | 1 (plus four low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east | mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 6.29 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 70% |
Waterways | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |
none |