Post-Conflict Liberia
By Richard J. Brennan and Jacob Hughes
Liberia is the oldest republic in Africa, having been settled by freed American slaves in the 1820s and becoming a sovereign nation in 1847. Decades of oppression of the indigenous population by the ruling elite culminated in a vicious coup in 1980 and, subsequently, 14 years of civil conflict between 1989 and 2003. Following free and fair elections, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf assumed the presidency in 2006, becoming the first female head of state in Africa. She inherited a nation with major disruption of every sector.
With it came very low levels of trust between this former “pariah state” and the international community, as well as between the citizens of Liberia and their government. It is never easy for the leadership of a country emerging from conflict to set a course for national reconstruction in the face of enormous loss, or to make the difficult choices among overwhelming and competing demands.
But in many ways, Liberia’s recent progress has been as impressive as any post-conflict country. Over the past five years, the Sirleaf government has gained widespread respect both nationally and internationally for the return to peace and stability, the progress of its poverty reduction strategy, and the successful negotiation of $4.6 billion in debt relief.
One sector that has documented considerable success is health – in large part due to the leadership and vision of the country’s Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. In many ways the ministry is on its way to fulfilling its ambitious 2007 goal of becoming a “model of post-conflict recovery in the health field.” Nonetheless, the challenges facing Liberia are considerable, including the persistent corruption, the global recession, and the recent arrival of an estimated 158,000 refugees from the conflict in neighboring Côte d'Ivoire.
