Gerdes, Felix: Liberia's Post-War Elite. A New Era of Inclusive Ownership or Old Wine in New Bottles? Arbeitspapier Nr. 1/2011 der Forschungsstelle Kriege, Rüstung und Entwicklung, Universität Hamburg 2011.

This working paper investigates to what extent Liberia’s post-war elite system is inclusive. In order to allow taking a comparative perspective, it firstly describes historic processes of elite formation and elite change, describing patterns of oligarchic elite reproduction as well as opportunities for political success of lower strata individuals. Its core piece is an overview on career paths and social and professional background of elites of Liberia’s first regular postwar government. It argues that Liberia’s new elite system is significantly more inclusive than previous ones, despite discernible continuities. This, however, does not necessarily translate into accountability of government.

Source: Article's abstract