Years of civil strife have destroyed much of Liberia's economic infrastructure, made civil administration nearly impossible, and brought economic activity virtually to a halt. The deterioration of economic conditions has been greatly exacerbated by the flight of most business people with their expertise and capital. Civil order ended in 1990 when President Samuel Kanyon DOE was killed by rebel forces. The ensuing civil war persisted until August 1995 when the major factions signed the Abuja peace accord and, in September 1995, formed a transitional coalition government under Wilton SANKAWULO. The war was resumed in April 1996, when forces loyal to faction leaders Charles TAYLOR and Alhaji KROMAH attacked rival factions in Monrovia, further damaging the capital's already dilapidated infrastructure and causing panic among the remaining foreign residents, thousands of whom sought refuge in US facilities. Prospects for peace became extremely uncertain again.
Transportation
Railways:
total:
490 km (single track); note - three rail systems owned and operated by foreign steel and financial interests in conjunction with Liberian Government; one of these, the Lamco Railroad, closed in 1989 after iron ore production ceased; the other two have been shut down by the civil war
standard gauge:
345 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge:
145 km 1.067-m gauge
Highways:
total:
10,029 km
paved:
600 km
unpaved:
9,429 km (1987 est.)
Ports:
Buchanan, Greenville, Harper, Monrovia
Merchant marine:
total:
1,601 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 59,449,296 GRT/98,819,081 DWT
ships by type:
barge carrier 2, bulk 411, cargo 121, chemical tanker 108, combination bulk 28, combination ore/oil 56, container 143, liquefied gas tanker 77, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 463, passenger 42, passenger-cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 64, roll-on/roll-off cargo 23, short-sea passenger 4, specialized tanker 9, vehicle carrier 48
note:
a flag of convenience registry; includes ships from 59 countries among which are US 253, Japan 172, Norway 165, Germany 149, Greece 137, Hong Kong 114, UK 78, China 49, Monaco 41, and Cyprus 34 (1995 est.)
Airports:
total:
39
with paved runways over 3 047 m:
1
with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m:
1
with paved runways under 914 m:
29
with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m:
2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m:
6 (1995 est.)
