Liberia Military - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Military and security forces

Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL): Army, Liberian Coast Guard, Air Wing; Ministry of Justice: Liberia National Police, Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (2023)

note: the AFL Air Wing was previously disbanded in 2005 and has been under redevelopment since 2019; the Liberian National Police and the Liberian Drug Enforcement Agency are under the Ministry of Justice

Military expenditures

0.8% of GDP (2022 est.)

0.7% of GDP (2021 est.)

0.5% of GDP (2020 est.)

0.6% of GDP (2019 est.)

0.5% of GDP (2018 est.)

Military and security service personnel strengths

approximately 2,000 active personnel (2022)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the military has a limited inventory; in recent years, it has received small quantities of equipment, including donations, from countries such as China and the US (2022)

Military service age and obligation

18-35 years of age for men and women for voluntary military service; no conscription (2022)

note: as of 2020, women made up less than 1% of the active military

Military deployments

160 Mali (MINUSMA) (May 2022)

Military - note

the AFL is responsible for external defense but also has some domestic security responsibilities if called upon, such as humanitarian assistance during natural disasters and support to law enforcement; it is a small, lightly equipped force comprised of 2 combat infantry battalions and supporting units; the infantry battalions were rebuilt with US assistance in 2007-2008 from the restructured AFL following the end of the second civil war in 2003 when military and police forces were disbanded and approximately 100,000 military, police, and rebel combatants were disarmed

the first militia unit established for defense of the colony was raised in 1832; the AFL traces its origins to the 1908 establishment of the Liberia Frontier Force, which became the Liberian National Guard in 1965; the AFL was established in 1970

the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) was established in 2003 as a peacekeeping force; at its height, UNMIL was comprised of about 15,000 personnel, including more than 3,000 troops absorbed from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) peacekeeping mission; Liberian forces reassumed full control of the country’s security in June of 2016, and the UNMIL mission was ended in 2018 (2023)

Maritime threats

the International Maritime Bureau reported one incident in the territorial and offshore waters of Liberia in 2022; the offshore waters of the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea remain a very high risk for piracy and armed robbery of ships; past incidents have been reported where vessels were attacked and crews kidnapped; these incidents showed that the pirates / robbers in the area are well armed and violent; pirates have robbed vessels and kidnapped crews for ransom; in the past, product tankers were hijacked and cargo stolen; the Maritime Administration of the US Department of Transportation has issued a Maritime Advisory (2023-001 - Gulf of Guinea-Piracy/Armed Robbery/Kidnapping for Ransom) effective 3 January 2023, which states in part, "Piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom continue to serve as significant threats to US-flagged vessels transiting or operating in the Gulf of Guinea"

NOTE: The information regarding Liberia on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Liberia 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Liberia 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.