Sanniquellie is a city and the capital of

Nimba County Nimba County is a county in northeastern Liberia that shares borders with the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire in the East and the Republic of Guinea in the Northwest. Its capital city is Sanniquellie and its most populous city is Ganta. With the count ...

and Sanniquellie-Mahn District,

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

. It is located in the north-east of the country at coordinates 07°21'49" N 008°42'40" W. The average altitude of the city is 420 metres above the sea level. As of the 2008 national census, the population stood at 11,415. The most represented tribes are

Mano Mano may refer to: People * Mano people, an ethnic group in Liberia * Mano (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Mano (Mozambican footballer) (born 1984), real name Celso Halilo de Abdul * Mano (Portuguese footballer) ...

Gio Gio or GIO may refer to: People * Gio (nickname) * Gio (footballer, born 1984), Spanish * Gio (singer) (born 1990) * Gio people, an ethnic group in northeastern Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire Science and technology * Gi/o, protein subunits * GIO, ...

and Mandingo. Sanniquellie is situated on the unpaved road connecting

Yekepa Yekepa is a town in northern Nimba County in Liberia, lying near the Guinean border. It was the base for Lamco's iron ore mining operation until it was destroyed in the First Liberian Civil War which lasted from 1989 to 1997. Nearby Guesthouse ...

Ganta Ganta, also known as Gompa City, is a town approximately from Monrovia in Nimba County of northern Liberia. It is located just south of the Guinea border. It is the second-most populous city in Liberia, with an estimated population of 41,106 as o ...

Gbarnga Gbarnga is the capital city of Bong County, Liberia, lying north east of Monrovia. During the First Liberian Civil War, it was the base for Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia. Cuttington College, a private, Episcopal-affilia ...

Kakata Kakata (pronounced ''Kak-ah-tah''), is the capital city of Liberia's Margibi County and is located in Kakata District just over the Du River bridge which is its border with Todee District. It is a transit town at the heart of the historical natur ...

, and

Monrovia Monrovia () is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2008 census had 1,010,970 residents, home to 29% of Liberia’s total population. As the ...

. The average rainy season lasts from May to October, dry season from mid-October to April/May. The coldest month is the second half of December and first half of January. The main religion is

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

(

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Adventists Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming (or the "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher Wil ...

, Methodists) and

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. You can also find

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

and some minor churches there. The city is divided to quarters and communities (Main Street, Bonnah Suah Compound, Charlie Kpowin Community, Veinpa, Dokie Quarter, Dahnlopa, Animal Farm, Airfield Zone 1, Airfield Zone 2, Old Barracks, New Barracks, Gono Quarter, Floyd Island, Plumcor community, Underground Community). An important concern is the issue of ex-combatants, as some of them did not benefit from the reintegration programs (DDRR) and some of those are facing the troubles to find stable employment in the

rural economy Rural economics is the study of rural economies. Rural economies include both agricultural and non-agricultural industries, so rural economics has broader concerns than agricultural economics which focus more on food systems. Rural developmen ...

. More than 2,000 of the population are employed by "Jungle Water Group of Investment" a Liberian owed company that was established by business man Mr. Tomah S. Floyd Sr a Liberian, Nimbadian from Duo Gorton a village in Nimba Co. Many others have turned to commercial motorcycling and other forms of tertiary sector employment, but for a small number of them crime is how they earn their daily bread.

Nature

Sanniquellie City is surrounded with tropical rain forests with typical fauna and flora. Very common are rubber trees, mango trees, citrus trees, cocoa trees,

lianas A liana is a long- stemmed, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a ta ...

, various palm trees, bush grass, etc. Many acres of forest were stumped because of agricultural need, revitalization of rubber tree plants, char coal production, etc. The rain forest you can find there is commonly known as secondary bush. There are various animals living in the

tropical rain forest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equatori ...

in Sanniquellie surroundings such as: frogs, lizards, snakes, scorpions, many kinds of insect, including

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

-carrying mosquitoes; porcupines, monkeys, bats and birds. There is an

artificial lake A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

in the middle of the town, Lake Teleh.

History

Mano and Gio people believe they came to this area in the period of great migration between 1450 and 1650 A.D. Until 1904, the area was ruled by traditional monarchs and warriors. Sanniquellie was named by native

Kpelle people The Kpelle people (also known as the ''Guerze, Kpwesi, Kpessi, Sprd, Mpessi, Berlu, Gbelle, Bere, Gizima,'' or ''Buni'') are the largest ethnic group in Liberia. They are located primarily in an area of central Liberia extending into Guinea. Th ...

who were sent to the north of the Liberia as border troops (later the

Liberian Frontier Force The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are the armed forces of the Republic of Liberia. Tracing its origins to a militia that was formed by the first black colonists in what is now Liberia, it was founded as the Liberian Frontier Force in 1908, and r ...

) to defend the internal stability of the country in the middle of the 19th century. The name was too difficult for home tribes of Mano and Gio, so they misspelled it as ''Sanniquellie/Sannquelle/Sanniquelle/Sanokwelleh''. The historical center of the town lies in present-day Bonnah Suah Compound, named after Bonnah G. Suah who was the District Chief for 25 years. During the 1950s and 1960s, there was an increase in infrastructure and building activities in Sanniquellie. Buildings erected during the 1950s include Queen's Theatre, Public Market, Old Presidential Palace, the water tower, the water plant and some other buildings. In 1959, the three presidents of Liberia,

Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

and

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

met in Sanniquellie and started talks that lead to the establishment of the

OAU The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; french: Organisation de l'unité africaine, OUA) was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's ...

. There were three palava houses built for the three presidents during these talks; currently they lie in ruins. There is a Memorial regarding this event at Yekepa Parking. In 1985 former General Thomas G. Quiwonkpa, alias "The Son of the County," stormed Yekepa (as a revenge for an unsuccessful coup d'état) in Sanniquellie. On 24 December 1989, the

First Liberian Civil War The First Liberian Civil War lasted from 1989 to 1997. President Samuel Doe had established a regime in 1980 but totalitarianism and corruption led to unpopularity and the withdrawal of support from the United States by the late 1980s. The Nat ...

started in Buutuo, Nimba County and the spark of wrath jumped to Sanniquellie and its surroundings. Years of tension between different tribes and different religion caused armed conflicts. At the New Barracks (newly constructed) the seated company of the Fifth Infantry Battalion was attacked and had to withdraw from the area. The New Barracks were looted and stayed abandoned till the present day. Despite the fact that war ended in 2003, there are some concealed tensions and unsolved problems from the past, which can cause instability in the region.

Administration

As a county capital Sanniquellie is an official seat of the Nimba County Superintendent. The current Superintendent is Nelson Korquoi he was installed in office in Sanniquellie City. The private residence of the Superintendent is in the Presidential Palace; the offices of the superintendent are situated in the Administration Building. The head of Sanniquellie City is Mayoress Madam Maima kamara. There is a LNP county headquarters in Sanniquellie - Nimba County Police Detachment (NCPD). NCPD is divided into patrol division, traffic division, Criminal Service Department (CSD) and Women and Children Protection Section (WACPS). NCPD is led by LNP County General Commander (in the rank of C/Supt) and his deputy Executive Officer (in the rank of C/Insp). Average crime rate is 50 crimes per month (simple and aggravated assaults, thefts, traffic accident, burglaries, misconducts; rarely drug trafficking, rapes or homicides). The area is calm and normal without any hazards for visitors and travelers. There are also the other law enforcement agencies as: BIN (Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization), DEA (

Drug Enforcement Agency The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is an agency within the Liberian government charged with fighting drug-related crimes.Firestone buying station located at New Barracks Junction. No less important is rice production. There are many rice fields in the town and outside, and the other equipment related to rice production are rice kitchens and rice mills. The product is called country rice. Vegetable (pepper, bitter balls, cucumbers, corn, cassava, eddoes, potatoes, tomatoes, peanuts) and fruit (pineapples, limes, mandarins, grapefruits, oranges, bananas, plaintains, mangoes, plums) production is provided by local farms supplying local markets or the market in Monrovia (mainly plantains and bananas). As a part of post-war revitalisation many people were trained as carpenters, fitters, plumbers, bakers, masons, car/motorbike repair technicians, tailors and barbers - these kinds of services are found in the town. The biggest company in the town is Jungle Water Group of Investments providing transport services, accommodation, general merchandise and diamond business. There is a mining area in Mt. Tokade, near the town of Zolowee (12 kilometers north from Sanniquellie), run by Arcelor Mittal Steel Co. Another area of exploration is run by BHP Billiton, in Gehwee town (just 6 kilometers south from Sanniquellie).

United Nations

Sanniquellie is the seat of

UNMIL The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) was a peacekeeping operation established in September 2003 to monitor a ceasefire agreement in Liberia following the resignation of President Charles Taylor and the conclusion of the Second Liberi ...

offices such as UNPOL (team UN police officers monitoring LNP), UNPOL CAU (Correction Advisory Unit monitoring Bureau of Corrections), Civil Affairs, HRPS, LJSSD. There is also mechanized troop of BANBAT-18 as a UN military component. All UNMIL offices are located on Main Street in the area of the Presidential Palace. A platoon of BANENGR-13 is also locater in the UN campus for maintenance of Sanniquellie- Yekepa and Sanniquellie- Loguatuo road.

Public Health

Health care trails behind the usual standards. There is G. W. Harley Hospital run by IRC. Hospital is situated near the Main Street in front of Charlie Kpowin Community. Medical care is free there. Hospital operates with ambulance cars which can be sent to traffic accidents or in the case of serious injuries. Hospital disposes of acute care ward, maternity ward and bed-ward. The quality of medical care is not sufficient and not according to the standards. On the other side of the town there is Saint Mary Clinic which offers in working hours medical care. The services of Saint Mary Clinic are paid. There are many drug stores in the town, many types of common drugs (against malaria, cold, stomach troubles, aches, etc.) are sold free without any administrative restrictions.

Education

There are four high schools in Sanniquellie City (St. Mary’ s High School, Shirley L. Harrison Memorial High School, Levi H. Martin Baptist High School, Sanniquellie Central High School) and large number of elementary and lower schools including the Muslim Union School, Dolo School, Dokie School; a university was built in 2010. The Shirley L. Harrison Memorial School, formerly called the SDA School, was established as an elementary school by two American Adventists and later gained high school status.

Transportation

Sanniquellie was an intermediate station on the Lamco iron ore railway connecting Yekepa and port of Buchanan. New owner of Yekepa mining area Arcelor Mittal reconstructed railroad in the years 2008–2009. First train with iron ore should be sent in 2011. There is no organized mass transportation. All depend on private cars, taxi cabs and motorcyclists. There are two transport organizations joining motorbike drivers and car operators: LMTU (Liberia Moto Transport Union) and FRTUL. The taxis and bike standpoint is in the middle of the city at Yekepa parking.

Life in the city

There is one bank in Sanniquellie. Other nearest banks are Ecobank and LBDI banks in Yekepa and Ganta with several banks (some equipped with ATM). There are many motels with class standard accommodations in Sanniquellie. You can find there Jackie Guest House motels (owned by Floyd Tomah/Jungle Water Group of Investment) located on Main Street, Airfield Zone Two, and Danopa Community; the Red Cross Guest House, ARS Guest House; and many more . Price for the night in A/C room with running water and electricity over the night is approx. US$35. Near the LNP station on the Main Street you can find Post Motel. Prices for accommodation are not known. There are also some local guest houses and motels in Sanniquellie (e.g. Thomas Motel near Yekepa Parking on the Main Street) offering local standards of accommodation for prices varies from 100 LD to 250 LD. You can find many types of local shops and selling booths on the streets of Sanniquellie offering wide range of goods, food, drinks. The biggest shop in the town in Floyd General Merchandise Store on the Main Street at Administration Building Junction. There are a few disco clubs in Sanniquellie - the major ones being Club Universe and Facebook which offer good local food and cold drinks. There are other places with food and drinks concentrated mainly alongside the Main Street. Typical food you cen get and eat in Sanniquellie: roasted corn, roasted cassava, GB, fufu, bread, eggs, pepper soup, cabbage soup, potato green, palava sour, jolof rice, country rice. There are two FM radio stations in Sanniquellie: Radio Nimba (95.10 MHz) and Radio Sehway. All main Liberian mobile phone operators operate in the area (Lonestar, Cellcom, Libercell, and Novafon). The post office was renovated and reopened in 2009, it is located on the Main Street. It provides worldwide postal services. Public Market (built up in 1958) joins the marketeers inside the building and in surrounding areas. Main goods offered at the market is vegetable, fruits, rice, nuts, meet, oil, spices, clothing, cloths, charcoal, shoes and household articles. There is market day every Saturday. There are many sport clubs in Sanniquellie, some of them work at the school or church, some of them are run by NGOs, some of them are independent. So you can find there county football team (winner of Liberia National Cup 2010), YMCA football team, SPVC (Sport for Peace Volleyball Club), Youth Academy Football Club and many others. Within the scope of help to Liberia there are many NGOs working in Sanniquellie such as: IRC - International Rescue Committee, DRC - Danish Refugee Council, NRC - Norwegian Refugee Council, The MENTOR Initiative, religious ministries, Medecins Sans Frontieres, ICRC - International Committee of the Red Cross, LRC - Liberian Red Cross.

References

{{Authority control Nimba County County capitals in Liberia