Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf last week won a promise of French help in recovering from a quarter century of turmoil and 14 years of war. This week she is making an official visit to the United States, where Congress is considering an increase in development assistance. Despite resources that include rubber, timber and diamonds, Liberia is destitute, and Sirleaf must make hard choices. U.S. legislators must decide whether to approve or increase the $50 million in new aid approved by the House foreign appropriations committee last week.
Weigh in with your advice, and invite your friends to participate. Should the international community lift the sanctions that prohibit Liberia from exporting its raw materials? What should be the U.S. role? And what should be President Sirleaf's priorities?
