Community revitalization 287. The majority of Liberians identify themselves with their tribe and family land. Even educated and urbanized Liberians have maintained these cornerstones of identity. State institutions did not have the confidence of Liberian society prior to the conflict and were not readily trusted at the end of the conflict. 288. Government officials were and to a large extent still are considered to be representing political interests In Monrovia and not the communities they are sent to serve. The local officials working in rural areas who answer to the central government find it difficult to persuade rural residents that they are honest brokers - -and many are not. The fact that nearly all such officials still are appointed by the central government reinforces this view. 289. Through community outreach and dialogue, state authorities are slowly making their presence felt, despite the fact that even with the best intentions they face daunting obstacles: extremely low salaries (if they receive any salary at all), very limited transportation or communications equipment (impeding their ability to assess conditions in their communities), limited confidence on the part of the local inhabitants, and negligible support from the central government. 290. In large part thanks to the interventions of national and international peacebuilding programmes, there are indications of improving relations between tribal and state authorities and traditional chiefs are increasingly reaching out to these authorities; both are working cooperatively with the Liberian Land Commission. Among both state officials and traditional chiefs interviewed (primarily in Bong County), several declared their commitment to inclusiveness and reconciliation within their jurisdictions. Restoring rural livelihoods: a model in need of review 291. From the outset, the apparent consensus of Liberian policy makers, international organizations and donors has been the premise that restoration of peace and economic stability would both rest on revitalizing Liberia’s agricultural base. Agriculture has always represented Liberia’s largest economic sector and has employed over 70 per cent of its people. 292. The long conflict disrupted both the traditional agrarian economy and its essentially tribally based organization. The aims of the Transitional Government, shared by the present democratically elected government and most donors, have been to restore Liberia as an essentially agricultural society and to accommodate traditional sources of authority while installing effective, accessible and even-handed state governance at all levels. The government is committed to finding rural options for as many as possible of those now concentrated in Monrovia, preferably a return to their places of origin. 293. The logic is reasonable and is based both on national history, the very limited number of available wage employment opportunities, and present low skill sets of the majority of the population. Ideally Liberian agriculture could be modernized, with a better balance of food for
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