A guidebook to Liberia - West Africa's least explored state
Africa's oldest republic, has mountains to climb, cities to enjoy, broad sandy shores to have fun on and national parks to look for several of the continent's most enigmatic wildlife. You can also surf, swim and trek or just kick back inside of a hammock on the edge of the rainforest. Yet nobody you know has ever been here.
Anywhere on earth is Liberia?
When the American Colonization Society selected away a homeland for freed American slaves in 1822, they select a portion of West Africa that had not been found from the external world since European powers set up (and abandoned) trading outposts inside the 17th century. The story of life right here before the foundation of Liberia is mainly unwritten, although the brand new arrivals set about producing a household that had been slightly American, a little bit West African, and definitely not like anywhere else inside the world.
Hemmed in today by Sierra Leone, Guinea and C�te d'Ivoire, Liberia is blessed with a long Atlantic coast and a densely forested interior that remains one of the least explored parts of West Africa. The government has just signed an offer with Norway to cease all lumber of Liberia's perfect rainforests in exchange for development tool, but infrastructure for exploring is limited as well as getting into amongst the greenery takes some organising. Start the trip at Visit Liberia, a handy one-stop-shop for information on all things Liberian.
Five curious Liberia facts
- Liberia turned out to be Africa's very first independent republic in 1847
- twelve % of the world's ships are registered in Liberia
- The president, George Weah, utilized to relax football for Man City as well as Chelsea
- Air pollution levels are less than in America and the UK
- Along with Ethiopia, Liberia was one of just 2 African nation to in no way be colonised by European powers
Do you find it safe?
Though the scars of two civil wars (from 1989 to 1997, and from 1999 to 2003) are still obvious, Liberia is safer to visit than it has been in years. Stability has returned to Monrovia and also the coastline and infrastructure is slowly getting restored, however, highways are still largely unsurfaced, making overland traveling difficult during the rainy time of year from May to November. Ebola emerged in Liberia, sierra Leone and Guinea in 2014, but the region was given a clean bill of wellness by the World Health Organisation contained 2015.