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Liberia   Why children in Liberia need your helpFor the last two decades, children and their families in Liberia have had to live in an environment of civil war and violence. During this time, over a quarter of a million people were killed, while thousands fled the country altogether.
As Liberia begins reconstruction efforts, the task ahead is enormous. Very little public infrastructure remains, and almost 80 per cent of the population has no regular employment. Liberia is one of the most food-insecure nations in Africa, and only 57 per cent of people are able to read and write. For children, neonatal deaths and pneumonia remain the primary cause of death, and limited access to safe water increases the risks of contracting water-borne illnesses. As a result of the protracted war, Liberia's water and sanitation systems were destroyed, and only 27 per cent of people have access to piped water. Country factsLiberia was established, with the support of the US, by freed slaves from America and the Caribbean. This group made up just five per cent of the population, with indigenous Africans comprising the remainder. It was not until the 1980s that civil unrest descended on the republic, with a military coup by Samuel Doe overthrowing William Tolbert. Doe's authoritarian government was then challenged by Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia, with fighting between both groups continuing until 2003, until Taylor left the country and went into exile in Nigeria. Liberia is now headed by president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf - who is also Africa's first female head of state.
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The country has only recently begun to see some measure
of peace, but the United Nations continues to deploy around
15,000 soldiers within the country, in order to maintain law and
order.
