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PUREONE - LIBERIA
Liberia - and Dept of State Contacts
Liberia
Principal Government Officials
President--Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Vice President--Joseph Nyumah Boakai
Speaker of the House of Representatives--J. Alex Tyler
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court--Johnnie N. Lewis
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Olubanke King-Akerele
Minister of Finance--Augustine Ngafuan
Minister of Justice--Philip A. Z. Banks
Minister of Defense--Brownie Samukai
Minister of Post and Telecommunication--Jeremiah Sulunteh
Minister of Internal Affairs--Ambulai Johnson
Minister of Education--Joseph Korto
Minister of Public Works--Luseni Donzo
Minister of Agriculture--Christopher Toe
Minister of Health and Social Welfare--Walter Gwenigale
Minister of Commerce and Industry--Miata Beysolow (acting)
Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism--Lawrence Bropleh
Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs--Amara Konneh
Minister of State and Chief of Staff--Edward McClain
Minister of Land, Mines and Energy--Eugene Shannon
Minister of Labor--Samuel Kofi Woods
Minister of Youth and Sports--Etmoniah Tarpeh
Minister of Gender and Development--Varbah Gayflor
Minister of Transportation--Jackson E. Doe
Chairman, National Investment Commission--Richard Tolbert
Director, Bureau of the Budget--vacant
Director General, General Service Agency--Willard Russell
Executive Governor, Central Bank of Liberia--J. Mills Jones
Commissioner, Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization--Christian Massaquoi
Director General, Liberia National Police--Beatrice Munah Sieh
Director, National Security Agency--Fombah Sirleaf
Director General, National Fire Service--Joseph A.B. Derrick
Chairman, Governance Commission--Amos C. Sawyer
Chairman, National Elections Commission--James Fromoyan
Chairman, Truth and Reconciliation Commission--Jerome Verdier
Chairwoman, Anti-Corruption Commission--Frances Johnson Morris (acting)
Liberia maintains an embassy in the United States at 5201 16th Street, NW, Washington DC, 202-723-0437.
U.S.-LIBERIA RELATIONS
Congress appropriated $100,000 in 1819 for the establishment of Liberia (and
resettlement of freemen and freed slaves from North America) by the American
Colonization Society, led by prominent Americans such as Francis Scott Key,
George Washington's nephew Bushrod, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and Presidents
Monroe, Adams, and Jackson. The first group of settlers arrived in Liberia from
the United States in the 1820s. The United States, which officially recognized
Liberia in 1862, shared particularly close relations with Liberia during the
Cold War.
The outbreak of civil war in Liberia and the long dominance of Charles Taylor soured bilateral relations. However, Liberia now counts the United States as its strongest supporter in its democratization and reconstruction efforts. Since the end of Liberia's civil war in 2003, the United States has contributed over $750 million in bilateral assistance and more than $750 million in assessed contributions to the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). In the current fiscal year, the U.S. will commit another $162 million bilaterally and $179 million through UNMIL. In February 2008, President Bush visited Liberia, where he held his fourth one-on-one meeting with President Sirleaf since Sirleaf's inauguration in January 2006. Peace Corps volunteers will return to Liberia in 2008 for the first time since 1990.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) implements the U.S. Government's development assistance program in Liberia, the second-largest USAID development program in Africa. USAID's post-conflict rebuilding strategy focuses on reintegration and is increasingly moving towards a longer-term development focus. Rehabilitation efforts include national and community infrastructure projects, such as expanding access to electricity, building roads, refurbishing government buildings, training Liberians in vocational skills, promoting business development, and improving livelihoods while protecting Liberia's forests. USAID also funds basic education programs, improving education for children, focusing on girls, and training teachers. In the health area, USAID programs include primary health care clinics, HIV/AIDS prevention, and a large malaria program. USAID supports rule of law programs, establishing legal aid clinics and victim abuse centers, training judges and lawyers, community peace building and reconciliation efforts, and anti-corruption projects to promote transparency and accountability in public sector entities. USAID is also providing support to strengthen the legislature and other political processes. USAID is strengthening civil society's role in delivering services and advocating good governance. Total USAID funding in FY 2008 is $105 million.
Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Linda
Thomas-Greenfield
Chargé d'Affaires--Brooks A. Robinson
Acting USAID Director--Rick Scott
Management Counselor--vacant
Political/Economic Counselor--Steven Koutsis
Economic Officer--Lucy Abbott
Public Affairs Officer--Meg Riggs
Consular Officer--Alma Gurski
Regional Security Officer--Adrian Diaz (acting)
Defense Attaché--LTC Jeffrey Stansfield
Office of Security Cooperation--LTC William Wyatt
Peace Corps--Lucianne Phillips
The U.S. Embassy is located on 111 United Nations Drive, Mamba Point, Monrovia, tel: 011-231-77-054825; fax: 231-77-010370.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Liberia has maintained traditionally cordial relations with the West. Liberia
currently also maintains diplomatic relations with Libya, Cuba, and China.
Liberia is a founding member of the United Nations and its specialized agencies and is a member of the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Development Bank (ADB), the Mano River Union (MRU), and the Non-Aligned Movement.
During the administration of Charles Taylor, relations between Liberia and its West African neighbors became seriously strained. West African countries backed by the African Union and the United Nations negotiated a peace agreement in Accra, Ghana that subsequently led to the exile of Charles Taylor to Nigeria in August 2003. With the election of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia has seen significant improvements in relations with its West African neighbors and the wider world. Relations between Liberia and its immediate neighbors in the Mano River region are back on track, and efforts are underway to strengthen relations with other countries. Liberia currently holds the chairmanship of the reinvigorated Mano River Union. Liberia signed a non-aggression pact with Sierra Leone when newly elected President Ernest Bai Koroma visited in September 2007. Liberia is a major proponent of regional integration.
Liberia has taken steps to forge closer ties with Western countries, especially the United States. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has visited several Western countries, including the United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, Spain, France, and Germany. President Sirleaf has also visited China and Libya, with whom Liberia maintains close ties.
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATIONFor the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://www.travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. Consular Affairs Publications, which contain information on obtaining passports and planning a safe trip abroad, are also available at http://www.travel.state.gov. For additional information on international travel, see http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.
The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad. Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.
Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.
NGO CONTACTS
Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia (AFELL)
PO Box 6727
Monrovia, Liberia
Tel/Fax: 233 231 227330
E-mail:c/o The Carter Centre:
tccliberia@aol.com
Association for Reconstruction Through Democracy
Issues: Working for the Resettlement of Refugees from Liberia
PO Box 19935, Accra-North
Fax#: 233 21 311 53
The Liberian Federation of Women's
Organisations
Issues: Co-ordinates and networks between women's organisations
University of Liberia, Monrovia
Liberian Women's Initiatiave
11 Broad Street, PO Box 1063, Monrovia
Ph #: 231 227 095
National Federation of Liberian Women
Issues: Umbrella organisation
PO Box 2703, Monrovia
Women in Peace Building Network (WIPNET)
West Africa Network for Peace-Building
P.O. Box CT 4434
Cantonment-Accra
Ghana
Tel.: 233 (0) 21 221318,221388,256439,258299
Fax : 233 (0) 21 221735
Email: tekiyor@wanep.org
UNITED NATIONS CONTACTS
Division for the Advancement of Women
Department of Economic and Social Affairs
United Nations
New York, NY 10017, USA
Fax#: (212) 963-3463
Email: daw@un.org
Website:
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw
United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
Florence Butegwa
Regional Programme Director
UNIFEM Office for English-speaking West Africa
Countries include: Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone
P.O. Box 2075, Lagos
Tel. (234-1) 2692006
Fax: (234-1) 269-0885
UNDP Africa
One United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017, USA
Fax#: (212) 906-6478
Website: http://www.un.org/rba/
UNDP Liberia
Mr. Marc DESTANNE DE BERNIS UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident
Representative
P. O. Box 10-0274
1000 Monrovia 10, Liberia 231
Ph#: 0031-20-5407-121 thru 126
Fax#: 0031-20-5407-127, 0031-20-5407-128
Email: fo.lbr@undp.org
Web site: www.undp.org/rba/
Last Update: Apr 9, 2002 16:24
GOVERNMENT CONTACTS
NEW YORK PERMANENT MISSION
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Liberia to the United
Nations
820 Second Avenue, 13th floor, New York, NY
10017
Ph#: (212) 687 1033 ext.1034
Fax#: (212) 687 1035 ext. 1846