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Liberia Dollar
The Liberian dollar is the official currency of Libya. Similar to all other dollar systems, the dollar is sub-divided into 100 cents and it is denoted by the $ symbol, but often with L$ used to indicate that it is the Liberian dollar as opposed to other dollar systems.
The Liberian dollar is issued by the Bank of Liberia and is in the form of both coins and notes. Coins are issued as 5, 10, 25, 50 cents and then 1 dollar. Notes come in the form of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars.
The dollar is identified internationally by the letters LRD.
History of the Liberian Dollar
The Liberian dollar was initially introduced in 1847, although the dollar in its present format has only been in use since 1943. It is in some ways interesting that the dollar has survived, since the country experienced an economic collapse in the 1980's with a huge problem in terms of the currency becoming in short supply. Yet the dollar weathered the storms and is still around today.
Getting Hold of Liberian Dollars
Getting hold of Liberian dollars is something that is easier said than done! For a start ATM machines are not really available in Liberia, so if you usually rely on accessing cash via your credit or debit card, then Liberia will be something of a shock to you. A few have been installed but often they will not accept foreign cards, or they simply do not work, which renders them useless.
Traveller's cheques are also not widely accepted, but you can exchange them at a few banks in Monrovia, which is the capital of Libya.
The best way of getting cash is actually to take money in with you and then exchange it at a bank, again, your best bet is at Monrovia.
Safety Issues
One of the main problems with Liberia is that it is not a safe country. It has just ended a very long and very bloody civil war, which has resulted in the country being almost ripped apart. It will take a long time to recover and nearly every government in the world is advising its citizens that it is simply not safe to visit Libya, possibly for a very long time to come.
Basically although Liberia is often described as being in recovery from a civil war, there were in fact two wars. The first lasted from 1989- 1996 and then the second was from 1999-2003. So in almost twenty years there has only been three years of peace and even then, the peace could only be described as 'fragile' at best.
The effects on the Liberian economy have been, to say the least, dire. So even if you decide to take the risk and go to Liberia, you really are not helping the country, even though you think you may be. First of all there is no tourist infrastructure, so the facilities are simply not there for people to be able to move around the country and getting to experience life in Liberia. It is almost impossible to travel outside the capital and even if you can, it will be very unsafe.
Next, the presence of travellers actually heightens the risk of people targeting the places where travellers are staying, so your presence can simply make the surroundings you are in less safe for everyone, not just you.
In addition, the food shortage in Liberia is actually critical. The number of people who have been displaced from their homes, literally runs into thousands and they exist in camps/make shift accommodation. The fact that there are so many and that they have been displaced from the countryside, means that the food resources in cities is under enormous pressure, so people will not thank you for visiting the country: you will simply be another mouth to feed and they have a hard enough time feeding their own people, so why would they bother to feed someone else?
Finally, if you are kidnapped or held hostage, then this would also put pressure on the Embassy or Consulate, which represents your country. Many have withdrawn their Embassy staff, due to the potential for violence and so they would have to come from neighbouring countries and again, run the risk of being placed in danger themselves.
So no matter how strong your desire to see Liberia, it is advisable to wait for the moment and see whether or not the situation does remain stable.
The fact that the economy has not recovered fully from the economic collapse it suffered in the 1980's, means that there is grinding poverty in Liberia, with people displaced, homeless, rootless and simply exhausted from the daily fight for food, shelter and for survival basically.
This poverty leads people to believe that they have nothing to lose: they are basically at the bottom of civilisation, so what does it matter if they have to go to prison? Thus they will often turn to violence as a means of getting their voices heard, or if they see an unsuspecting tourist or traveller, they are more likely to attack them, since they will assume, possibly very correctly, that as a traveller you have much more money than they do. So all travellers really are at a particularly high risk of violent robbery.
Insurance Issues
Boring as it may seem, the issue of insurance is one that any traveller who is thinking of going to Liberia (i.e. if your journey is absolutely necessary and cannot be postponed), must take into account.
There are some basic medical facilities in Monrovia, but elsewhere in the country they are practically non-existent. But even the ones that are there will only provide you with very basic attention and if there is something seriously wrong with you, then you may need to be airlifted out of Liberia, which could cost in the region of up to $100,000 ! So you need to ensure that you have a specific travel insurance policy that will cover you for travelling to Liberia and if you do not have this, then do not go: since it could well cost you a huge amount of money if things do go wrong.
The Country Itself
Liberia ironically bills itself as the 'Land of the Free' which, given its political history, seems something of a misnomer, but nonetheless it does have a lot to offer. True, currently, this is not a country where you can book into a resort and have all inclusive deals and make sure that you have a good time, but if (and it is a big IF) it manages to stabilise itself and sort out all the political problems, then it will have a lot to offer travellers.
Despite the bloodshed that has taken place in Liberia over many years, the wildlife has been flourishing and there are lots of indigenous animals to be seen, such as elephants, giant forest hogs, as well as pygmy hippos.
Much of the interior is sheer jungle and is an eco-system all of its own, with its own heartbeat, which beats to a different rhythm than that of humans. For anyone who wants to view the power of nature, raw, unchanged to some extent and utterly cut off from the modern world, this is an ideal place to visit. Indeed the Sapo National Park actually contains the biggest area of rainforest that is untouched and unlogged.
Some of the beaches are utterly breathtaking and a real treat for the senses. Here you won't find sunbeds for hire, or any bars or kiosks in the immediate vicinity (indeed you won't find many in existence at all) but what you will find is miles of beaches that have been untouched by humans and are perfectly tranquil and offer a means of really getting back to one with the power of the sea. Most of the beaches can only be accessed if you have paid a small fee, which keeps them safe from 'undesirables'.
Due to its coastline, fishing is obviously also an option, but water sports have not yet been developed, so whether they will be over time is yet to be seen.
Although the country would like to attract visitors, it knows that it is not yet safe for them to travel to Liberia. So it does not waste time setting up tourist facilities, for people who may never visit. In addition, it simply does not have the time or the resources to devote to almost frivolous activities like building hotels or swimming pools. Instead it has to concentrate on trying to rebuild the economy, trying to find housing for people who have been displaced.
On top of all this, which is actually quite a tall order, the authorities also need to ensure that the peace holds and that there will not be a third civil war, which effectively could mean that Liberia really does tear itself apart. So it looks like it will be a number of years before Liberia is able to welcome visitors.
Overview
Given the fragility of the country, it is really hard to make any accurate predictions about whether or not the peace will actually continue. Certainly the government needs to do something to ensure that it provides basic facilities for its citizens, particularly the displaced people, or they will be more likely to turn to violence once more and civil war then becomes more likely. So the government definitely has a lot of work to do and this will not happen overnight. It will take time and much hard work before Liberia can really fling open her arms and welcome people into her borders.
Until that time, Liberia remains a pretty closed shop for any traveller, but given the history of violence that has gone on for so long, it means that the country is virtually unknown to travellers and when it does open its doors, then it should be an ideal destination, particularly for travellers who like their travel experiences to be 'raw' and undiscovered by others.
So keep an eye on Liberia and when, or maybe if, it becomes safe to travel there, get set and go! But in the meantime, you can check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberia so that you can get a feel for this very special country.
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