Nairobi/Monrovia - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday threw her weight behind Africa's only female leader, Liberian President Ellen Johnson, who is facing calls to quit.

The West African nation's Truth and Reconciliation Commission recently recommended Sirleaf be banned from politics for backing former warlord Charles Taylor at the beginning of the country's two bloody civil wars.

However, Clinton said that Sirleaf's entire record had to be considered when judging her.

"Today, Liberia is a model of successful transition from conflict to post-conflict, from lawlessness to democracy, from despair to hope," Clinton said after meeting Sirleaf in the capital Monrovia. "And we are supportive and will continue to be so because we think that Liberia is on the right track."

Clinton, on the penultimate leg of her seven-nation trip around Africa, arrived in Monrovia to a rapturous reception from well- wishers and traditional dancers, who lined the streets despite a downpour.

The US has long had strong links with Liberia, which was founded 150 years ago by freed American slaves.

Clinton's support comes as a welcome boost to Sirleaf as she fights to shake off the commission's recommendation that she be banned from politics for 30 years.

Sirleaf has admitted that she backed Taylor's rebellion and conducted fundraising for him.

Taylor is currently on trial in The Hague on charges of murder, rape, conscripting child soldiers and other war crimes.

Sirleaf said that she backed Taylor because she believed his battle against military ruler Samuel Doe in the late 1980s was necessary.

However, in an address to the nation in late July she said had withdrawn her support when his true character became clear and regretted backing him.

Taylor's rebellion sparked years of civil strife from which Liberia is still struggling to recover.

An estimated 250,000 people died and most of Liberia's infrastructure was destroyed during two civil wars, the second of which ended in 2003.

Clinton has also emphasized female empowerment during her seven- nation trip around Africa - visiting rape victims in the Democratic Republic of Congo and calling for the efforts of African women's efforts to be recognized.

"If African women decided to stop working tomorrow, the whole continent would shut down," Clinton said in an interview with Nigerian talk show host Mo Abudu on Wednesday. "So from an economic perspective, empowering women is critical."

Clinton hailed Sirleaf, who in 2005 beat former AC Milan football player George Weah to become Africa's first democratically elected female president, as a role model.

However, it was not all smiles and pats on the back, as Clinton returned to a recurring theme of her Africa trip, calling for more to be done to end corruption. She also called for credible presidential elections in 2011.

Clinton spent Wednesday in Nigeria, Africa's most-populous nation and one of its largest oil producers, where she asked for better governance, an end to corruption and more tolerance between Muslims and Christians.

The top US diplomat is touring Africa to highlight the Obama administration's commitment to the continent, build trade links and promote better governance.

Clinton said that she believed the trip had been "wonderful" and had helped build better links between the US and Africa

"This was a very important trip that both President Obama and I wanted ... to send a very clear message that the Obama Administration is committed to developing an even stronger and closer relationship with not just the government, but especially the people of Africa," she said.

After Liberia, Clinton is expected to stop briefly in Cape Verde before returning to Washington on Friday.

Her trip has also taken in Kenya, South Africa, Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.(dpa)