One indicator that the war is over; fighters from neighboring countries are trying to get home with their loot. Many men are trying to cross into Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast with large quantities of "pre-owned" appliances and other consumer goods. 

There are some half million refugees (out of Liberia's three million total population) around the capital, and aid workers are reluctant to venture too far outside the capital because of the number of bandits and undisciplined soldiers and rebels out there. Nigerian led peacekeepers have restored order in the capital and the port of Buchanan down the coast.

While only two or three percent of the population is armed and lawless, it's enough to cause the economy to collapse. Farmers won't plant crops, because of the fear that bandits will come by and steal it at harvest time. Shopkeepers are out of business for the same reason.