AFRICA

Liberia

Founded in the 1800s by freed people from the United States, Liberia is Africa's oldest republic and its capital honours a US president. Its rainforests shelter some of West Africa's last wild elephants.

WHAT THE FLAG MEANS ◢

Eleven alternating red and white horizontal stripes with a blue canton bearing a single white star, closely modelled on the United States flag. The constitution has no flag provision. The eleven stripes are conventionally read for the eleven signatories of the 1847 declaration of independence, the star for Liberia as the first independent republic in Africa, and the red, white and blue for courage, moral virtue and the African mainland.

Liberia FACTS ◢

Capital	Monrovia
Continent	Africa
Population	5,731,206 (2025)
Area	111,369 km²
Population density	51/km²
Currency	Liberian dollar (LRD)
Official language	English
Calling code	+231
Internet TLD	.lr
Time zone	UTC±00:00
Drives on the	Right
ISO codes	LR / LBR

DID YOU KNOW? ◢

It was founded in the 19th century as a home for freed African Americans and declared independence in 1847.
Its capital, Monrovia, is named after US President James Monroe.
It holds a large share of West Africa's remaining Upper Guinean rainforest.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, elected here in 2005, was Africa's first elected female head of state.