Weather

Perched on the chin of West Africa’s coast just above the equator, Liberia has a tropical climate with a pronounced rainy season from May to November. There is little seasonal variation with temperatures usually averaging around 30°C (86°F) between November and May, and only a few degrees lower in the middle of the year. However, humidity levels of more than 85% in the dry season (November to April) and more than 90% in the rainy season (May to October) often make it feel much warmer.

Monrovia

Monrovia, population 572,971 (2003 census), is the capital city of Liberia. It is also Liberia’s largest city. The city’s economy is dominated by its harbor, which was significantly expanded by U.S. forces during the second World War. Main exports include latex and iron ore. Materials are also manufactured on-site, such as cement, refined petroleum, food products, bricks and tiles, furniture and chemicals. The harbor also has a large amount of storage and facilities for repairing ships.

Liberia

Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Atlantic Ocean. Liberia has a hot equatorial climate with most rainfall arriving in summer with harsh harmattan winds in the dry season. Liberia’s populated Pepper Coast is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the sparse inland is forested, later opening to a plateau of drier grasslands. Since 1989, Liberia has been in a state of flux witnessing two civil wars, the First Liberian Civil War (1989–1996), and the Second Liberian Civil War (1999–2003), displacing hundreds of thousands of people and devastating the country’s economy.