Liberia: An Appraisal

Abstract

W HEN one looks at the continent of Africa these days and considers the number of territories moving toward self-government, it is natural to wonder what lessons the emergent states can from the experience of established African governments. Can Nigeria, the Gold Coast, or Sierra Leone benefit from the example of the Republic of Liberia? I am afraid that this yearning to learn from may be misleading for two reasons: 1. Although there may be many similarities in climate, ethnic groupings, and history of the independent and the presently dependent countries, nevertheless it may be that the differences are more critical. Thus it would be dangerous to draw inferences; for example, Liberia does not have within its boundaries any tribe which had established a stable political power over an extensive region, as had, say, the Hausa, the Yoruba, or the Ashanti, and the relationship of the central governments to the tribes may be different for that reason. 2. The kinds of problems that African states had to face in the nineteenth century will perhaps not recur in the second half of the twentieth, which it seems will present different problems. Liberia had to contend with an expanding colonialism, which was then the Zeitgeist in this region of the world; the Gold Coast and Nigeria, on the other hand, will come into a world in which colonialism is receding. Therefore the things of value which Liberia learned from its experience may not need to be applied by its neighbors. The problems of the present are economic development to satisfy the aspirations of the electorate, and international diplomacy in a world divided by a cold war. A more fruitful inquiry might be, what role can Liberia play in a present day comity of African nations? Before this question can be pursued, it will be necessary to assess the achievements and failures of Liberia and see them in their context,1 in order to know its strengths and weaknesses and what resources it could bring to a regional bloc.