:Lesotho Communications
Railroads:
2.6 km; owned, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa
Highways:
7,215 km total; 572 km paved; 2,337 km crushed stone, gravel, or stabilized
soil; 1,806 km improved earth, 2,500 km unimproved earth (1988)
Civil air:
1 major transport aircraft
Airports:
28 total, 28 usable; 3 with permanent surface runways; none with runways
over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications:
rudimentary system consisting of a few landlines, a small microwave system,
and minor radio communications stations; 5,920 telephones; broadcast
stations - 3 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
:Lesotho Defense Forces
Branches:
Royal Lesotho Defense Force (RLDF; including Army, Air Wing), Royal Lesotho
Mounted Police
Manpower availability:
males 15-49, 408,003; 220,129 fit for military service
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $55 million, 13.1% of GDP (1990 est.)
:Liberia Geography
Total area:
111,370 km2
Land area:
96,320 km2
Comparative area:
slightly larger than Tennessee
Land boundaries:
1,585 km; Guinea 563 km, Ivory Coast 716 km, Sierra Leone 306 km
Coastline:
579 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf:
200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation
Territorial sea:
200 nm
Disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights;
wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers
Terrain:
mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low
mountains in northeast
Natural resources:
iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold
Land use:
arable land 1%; permanent crops 3%; meadows and pastures 2%; forest and
woodland 39%; other 55%; includes irrigated NEGL%
Environment:
West Africa's largest tropical rain forest, subject to deforestation
:Liberia People
Population:
2,462,276 (July 1992), growth rate 29.6% (1992)
Birth rate:
44 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
13 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
265 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
119 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
54 years male, 59 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
6.5 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
noun - Liberian(s); adjective - Liberian
Ethnic divisions:
indigenous African tribes, including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano,
Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, and Bella 95%; descendants of
repatriated slaves known as Americo-Liberians 5%
Religions:
traditional 70%, Muslim 20%, Christian 10%
Languages:
English (official); more than 20 local languages of the Niger-Congo language
group; English used by about 20%
Literacy:
40% (male 50%, female 29%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force:
510,000, including 220,000 in the monetary economy; agriculture 70.5%,
services 10.8%, industry and commerce 4.5%, other 14.2%; non-African
foreigners hold about 95% of the top-level management and engineering jobs;
52% of population of working age
Organized labor:
2% of labor force
:Liberia Government
Long-form name:
Republic of Liberia
Type:
republic
Capital:
Monrovia
Administrative divisions:
13 counties; Bomi, Bong, Grand Bassa, Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru,
Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, River Cess, Sinoe
Independence:
26 July 1847
Constitution:
6 January 1986
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
National holiday:
Independence Day, 26 July (1847)
Executive branch:
president, vice president, Cabinet
Legislative branch:
bicameral National Assembly consists of an upper house or Senate and a lower
house or House of Representatives
Judicial branch:
People's Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government:
interim President Dr. Amos SAWYER (since 15 November 1990); Vice President,
vacant (since August 1991); note - this is an interim government appointed
by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) that will be
replaced after elections are held under a West African - brokered peace
plan; rival rebel factions led by Prince Y. JOHNSON and Charles TAYLOR are
challenging the SAWYER government's legitimacy while observing a tenuous
cease-fire; the former president, Gen. Dr. Samuel Kanyon DOE, was killed on
9 September 1990 by Prince Y. JOHNSON
Political parties and leaders:
National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL), Augustus CAINE, chairman;
Liberian Action Party (LAP), Emmanuel KOROMAH, chairman; Unity Party (UP),
Carlos SMITH, chairman; United People's Party (UPP), Gabriel Baccus
MATTHEWS, chairman
Suffrage:
universal at age 18
Elections:
President:
last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held NA); 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
Senate:
last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote
by party NA; seats - (26 total) NDPL 21, LAP 3, UP 1, UPP 1
House of Representatives:
last held on 15 October 1985 (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote
by party NA; seats - (64 total) NDPL 51, LAP 8, UP 3, UPP 2
Member of:
ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD,
IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO