use:
arable land: 3.95%
permanent crops: 2.28%
other: 93.77% (2001)

Irrigated land:
30 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
dust-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to March)

Environment - current issues:
tropical rain forest deforestation; soil erosion; loss of
biodiversity; pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw
sewage

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change, Environmental
Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:
facing the Atlantic Ocean, the coastline is characterized by
lagoons, mangrove swamps, and river-deposited sandbars; the inland
grassy plateau supports limited agriculture

People Liberia

Population:
3,390,635 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.4% (male 742,508; female 730,677)
15-64 years: 52.9% (male 875,951; female 918,570)
65 years and over: 3.6% (male 61,867; female 61,062) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 18.1 years
male: 17.7 years
female: 18.4 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.7% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
44.81 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
17.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: at least 200,000 Liberian refugees are in surrounding
countries; the uncertain security situation has hindered their
ability to return (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 130.51 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 123.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 137.32 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 47.93 years
male: 46.9 years
female: 48.99 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
6.16 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
5.9% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
100,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
7,200 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
typhoid fever, malaria, yellow fever, Lassa fever, schistosomiasis
overall de