Political outlook for Liberia.
Civil society campaigners are pressing for an extension of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) until after the October 2017 presidential election, which will decide the successor to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who is constitutionally required to step down. The run-up to the polls will test the resilience of state institutions, which have undergone major reforms following the 1999-2003 civil war.
The NEC's clear elections timetable will boost transparency around the electoral process, reducing scope to dispute the result.
The small number of airlines flying to Liberia will limit the government's new tourism strategy, unveiled earlier this month.
Planned electricity imports from Ivory Coast (which is building cross-border transmission lines) will support economic activity.
If Sirleaf fails to pass legislation protecting rural communities' land rights before she steps down, some popular unrest could result.
