Angola

República de Angola
Flag	Coat of Arms
Capital	Luanda
Government	Multi-party republic
Language	Portuguese (official)
President	João Lourenço
Area	481,354 sq mi
Population	35,000,000 (2022)
GDP 2005	$65,000,000,000 (2020)
GDP per capita	$1,958 (2020)
Currency	Kwanza

Angola is a country in southwestern Africa. It borders Namibia, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of the Congo (adjacent to the Cabinda enclave). The capital of Angola is Luanda.

Geography[edit]

Angola is located on the South Atlantic Coast of West Africa between Namibia and the Republic of the Congo. It also is bordered by the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north and east and Zambia to the east. The country is divided into an arid coastal strip stretching from Namibia to Luanda; a wet, interior highland; a dry savanna in the interior south and southeast; and rain forest in the north and in Cabinda. The upper reaches of the Zambezi River pass through Angola, and several tributaries of the Congo River have their sources in Angola. The coastal strip is tempered by the cool Benguela current, resulting in a climate similar to coastal Baja California. There is a short rainy season lasting from February to April. Summers are hot and dry, while winters are mild. The interior highlands have a mild climate with a rainy season from November through April followed by a cool dry season from May to October when overnight temperatures can fall to freezing. Elevations generally range from 3,000 to 6,000 feet. The far north and Cabinda enjoy rain throughout much of the year.

• Area: 1,246,700 km². (481,354 sq. mi), about twice the size of Texas.
• Cities: Capital—Luanda (est. pop. 5.0 million); Huambo (750,000); Benguela (600,000).
• Terrain: A narrow, dry coastal strip extending from the far north (Luanda) to Namibia in the south; well watered agricultural highlands; savanna in the far east and south; and rain forest in the north and the enclave of Cabinda.
• Climate: Tropical and tropical highland.

People[edit]

Estimates of Angola's population vary widely, as there has been no census since 1970, but it is estimated at no less than 15.5 million. Angola has three main ethnic groups, each speaking a Bantu language: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, and Bakongo 13%. Other groups include Chokwe, Lunda, Ganguela, Nhaneca-Humbe, Ambo, Herero, and Xindunga. In addition, mixed racial (European and African) people amount to about 2%, with a small (1%) population of whites, mainly ethnically Portuguese. Portuguese make up the largest non-Angolan population, with at least 30,000 (though many native-born Angolans can claim Portuguese nationality under Portuguese law). Portuguese is both the official and predominant language.

• Population (2005 est.): 15,500,000.
• Annual population growth rate (2004): 2.8%.
• Ethnic groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mixed racial 2%, European 1%.
• Religions (2001 official est.): Roman Catholic 68%, various Protestant 20%; indigenous beliefs 12%.
• Languages: Portuguese (official), Ovimbundu, Kimbundu, Bakongo, and others.
• Education: Years compulsory—8. Enrollment (combined gross enrollment for primary, secondary, and tertiary schools, 2004 est.)--26%. Literacy (total population over 15 that can read and write, 2004 est.)--67.4% (female 54.2%, male 82.9%).
• Health: Life expectancy (2004 est.)--total population 40.7 years. Infant mortality rate (2004 est.)--154/1,000.
• Work force (2003 est. 5.6 million): Agriculture—85%; industry and commerce—15%; services—6%.

Religion[edit]

The majority of the 16 million population is Christian, and of those, Roman Catholics are the largest religious group. The Catholic Church estimates that 55 percent of the population is Catholic, but this figure cannot be verified. Data from the National Institute for Religious Affairs (INAR) indicates African Christian denominations make up 25 percent of the population; 10 percent of the population follows a major Protestant tradition, such as Methodist, Baptist, Congregationalist (United Church of Christ), and Assembly of God; and 5 percent belongs to various Brazilian Evangelical churches. A small portion of the rural population practices animism or traditional indigenous religions. There is also a small Muslim community, estimated at 80,000-90,000 adherents, composed largely of migrants from West Africa and families of Lebanese origin.

Governmental agencies, church groups, and civil society organizations continued campaigns against traditional religions that involve shamans, employ animal sacrifices, or were identified as practicing witchcraft. The goal of these campaigns was to discourage abusive practices that can sometimes stem from the practice of traditional indigenous beliefs, in particular violence associated with exorcism. Church-related organizations focused on the doctrinal issues related to such practices as animal sacrifices or the use of shamans. There were periodic reports of child and elder abuse stemming from accusations of witchcraft, generally in rural areas and smaller cities. In some instances these accusations led to exorcism rituals that included willful neglect and physical abuse. In some cases deaths have been reported^[1]

Government and Political Conditions[edit]

Angola changed from a one-party Marxist–Leninist system ruled by the MPLA to a nominal multiparty democracy following the 1992 elections, in which President dos Santos won the first-round election with 49% of the vote to Jonas Savimbi's 40%; a runoff never took place. The Constitutional Law of 1992 establishes the broad outlines of government structure and delineates the rights and duties of citizens. The government is based on ordinances, decrees, and decisions issued by a president and his ministers or through legislation produced by the National Assembly and approved by the president. The parliament is generally subordinate to the executive.

Few opportunities exist for opposition parties to challenge MPLA dominance. President dos Santos, following a recommendation of the Council of the Republic, has said legislative elections are being planned for 2008, with presidential elections to follow in 2009. A multi-party constitutional reform process will resume following elections.

Angola is governed by a president who is assisted by a prime minister and 31 cabinet ministers, all appointed by the president. Political power is concentrated in the presidency. The executive branch of the government is composed of the president (head of state and government), the prime minister, and the Council of Ministers. The Council of Ministers, composed of all government ministers and vice ministers, meets regularly to discuss policy issues. The president, the Council of Ministers, and individual ministers in their areas of competence have the ability to legislate by decree.

Of the 220 deputies in the National Assembly, 130 are elected at large, and 5 are elected to represent each of the 18 provinces. The Electoral Law also calls for the election of three additional deputies to represent citizens living abroad; however, those positions were not filled in the 1992 elections. The ruling MPLA controls 59% of the seats.

The central government administers the country through 18 provinces. Governors of the provinces are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the president.

The legal system is based on Portuguese and customary law but is weak and fragmented. Courts operate in only a fraction of the 164 municipalities. A Supreme Court serves as the appellate tribunal; a Constitutional Court with powers of judicial review has never been constituted despite statutory authorization. Recently, the Supreme Court has acted as a Constitutional Court.

The 27-year-long civil war ravaged the country's political and social institutions. The government estimates that 4.7 million people were internally displaced by the civil war. In March 2007, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Angola jointly celebrated the end of a 5-year organized voluntary repatriation program that returned home more than 400,000 Angolan refugees. The Angolan Government estimates as many as 100,000 refugees remain outside Angola, and it is working to help those who wish to return. Daily conditions of life throughout the country mirror the inadequate administrative infrastructure as well as weak social institutions. Government support for social institutions is often inadequate. Many hospitals are without medicines or basic equipment, schools are without books, and public employees often lack the basic supplies for their day-to-day work.

Principal Government Officials[edit]

• President—João Lourenço
• Vice President—Bornito de Sousa
• President of the National Assembly—Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos

Foreign Relations[edit]

From 1975 to 1989, Angola was aligned with the Soviet Union and Cuba. Since then, it has focused on improving relationships with Western countries, cultivating links with other Portuguese-speaking countries, and asserting its own national interests in Central Africa through military and diplomatic intervention. In 1993, it established formal diplomatic relations with the United States. It has entered the Southern African Development Community as a vehicle for improving ties with its largely anglophone neighbors to the south. In 1997, Zimbabwe and Namibia joined Angola in its military intervention in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Angolan troops fought in support of the Laurent and Joseph Kabila governments. It also has intervened in the Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) in support of President Sassou-Nguesso. Angola has also engaged in a more robust economic relationship with the People's Republic of China. The P.R.C. has extended a U.S. $2 billion credit line to Angola.

Multilaterally, Angola has promoted the revival of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) as a forum for cultural exchange and a means of expanding ties with Portugal and Brazil. During the peace process, the government fully cooperated with the UN Mission in Angola (UNMA), which concluded its mandate in mid-February 2003. Angola concluded a 2-year term on the UN Security Council in December 2004. In June 2007, it began a 3-year term on the Human Rights Council.

Defense[edit]

The Angolan Armed Forces, known by its Portuguese acronym FAA, are headed by a chief of staff who reports to the civilian minister of defense. There are three services—the army, navy, and air force. Total manpower is about 140,000. The army is by far the largest of the services with about 130,000 personnel. The navy numbers about 3,000 and operates several small patrol craft and barges. Air force personnel total about 7,000; its equipment includes Russian-manufactured fighters and transport planes, Bell helicopters, and Italian trainers. The "Casa Militar," or presidential guard, answers directly to the Office of the President and is separate from FAA command and control structures.

Economy[edit]

Angola has a fast-growing economy largely due to a major oil boom, but it also ranks in the bottom 10% of most socioeconomic indicators. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects that Angola's real GDP will increase by 31.4% in 2007, although the Angolan Government in July reduced its own projection for 2007 real GDP growth to 19.8%. Aside from the oil sector and diamonds, Angola is recovering from 27 years of nearly continuous warfare, corruption, and economic mismanagement. Despite abundant natural resources, and rising per capita GDP, it was ranked 161 out of 177 countries on the 2006 UN Development Program's (UNDP) Human Development Index. Subsistence agriculture sustains one-third of the population.

By contrast, the rapidly expanding petroleum industry—now producing approximately 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd), behind only Nigeria in Africa—accounts for 51.7% of GNP, 95% of exports, and 80% of government revenues. Production is expected to reach 1.8 million barrels per day by the end of 2007. Angola also produces 40,000 bpd of locally refined oil. Oil production remains largely offshore and has few linkages with other sectors of the economy, though a local content initiative promulgated by the Angolan Government is pressuring oil companies to source from local businesses.

Block 15, located offshore of the enclave of Cabinda, currently provides 40% of Angola's crude oil production. ExxonMobil, through its subsidiary Esso, is the operator with a 40% share. In 2005, Block 15's second major sub-field, Kizomba B, came online producing at about 250,000 bpd. BP, ENI-Agip, and Statoil are partners in the concession. Chevron operates Block 0, also in offshore Cabinda, which provides one-quarter of Angola's crude oil production. Its partners in Block 0 are Sonangol (the Angolan state oil company), TotalFinaElf, and ENI-Agip. In 2006, Block 0 had a total production of 400,000 bpd, and drilling activity continues at a high level. Chevron also operates Angola's first producing deepwater section, Block 14, which started pumping in January 2000 and produced 105,000 bpd in 2006.

TotalFinaElf brought the first Kwanza Basin deepwater blocks on-line with production from its Block 17 concession that began in February 2002. Inauguration of the Dalia oilfield in December 2006 combined with the Girassol field already in operation brought Block 17's total production to approximately 500,000 bpd as of July 2007. Exploration is ongoing in ultra-deep water concessions and in deepwater and shallow concessions in the Namibe Basin. BP made the first significant ultra-deepwater find in its Block 31 concession in 2002 and had reached nine significant discoveries by the end of 2005. BP expects to ship its first crude from the Plutonio oilfied in Block 18 in September 2007 and expects Plutonio to average 200,000 bpd in full production. Marathon also drilled a successful well in its Block 32 ultra-deep water concession. TotalFinaElf operates Angola's one refinery (in Luanda) as a joint venture with Sonangol; plans for a second refinery in Lobito with projected production of 200,000 bpd are moving forward. There are plans to increase capacity of the Luanda refinery from 40,000 bpd to 100,000 bpd. Chevron, Sonangol, BP, Total, and Eni are developing a $4–5 billion liquefied natural gas plant at Soyo.

Exports to Asian countries have grown rapidly in recent years, particularly China. In late 2004, China's state oil company Sinopec bought into Block 18, securing the deal by offering a $2 billion signing bonus to Sonangol, the national oil company. Sinopec has also formed a partnership with Sonangol to operate Block 3/05 (formerly Block 3/80), whose operation was transferred from Total to Sonangol. Sonangol will seek to expand its operation of onshore and shallow water blocks. This includes the northern block of Cabinda's onshore concessions, which since the reduction in hostilities with separatist forces is now open to exploration. Sonangol and Sinopec will also be eyeing future concession rounds, particularly for 23 blocks in the Kwanza Basin onshore area and the relinquished parts of Blocks 15, 17, and 18, currently operated by Exxon, Total, and BP. During 2006, Angola was the leading source country in terms of dollar value for the crude oil China imported, importing U.S. $10.928 billion, up 16.5% year on year.

Diamonds make up most of Angola's remaining exports, with yearly production at 6 million carats. Diamond sales reached approximately $1.1 billion in 2006. Despite increased corporate ownership of diamond fields, much production is currently in the hands of small-scale prospectors, often operating illegally. Only eight formal sector mines are operating out of a total of 145 concessions. In June 2005, De Beers signed a $10 million prospecting contract with the government's diamond parastatal, ending a 4-year investment dispute between De Beers and the government. The government is making an increased effort to register and license prospectors. Legal sales of rough diamonds may occur only through the government's diamond-buying parastatal, although many producers continue to bypass the system to obtain higher prices. The government has established an export certification scheme consistent with the "Kimberley Process" to identify legitimate production and sales. Other mineral resources, including gold, remain largely undeveloped, though granite and marble quarrying have begun.

In the last decade of the colonial period, Angola was a major African agricultural exporter. Because of severe wartime conditions, including extensive laying of landmines throughout the countryside, agricultural activities were brought to a near standstill, and the country now imports about half of its food. Small-scale agricultural production has increased dramatically over the last 3 years as internally displaced persons (IDPs) are returning to the land. Some efforts at commercial agricultural recovery have gone forward, notably in fisheries and tropical fruits, but most of the country's vast potential remains untapped. Coffee production, though a fraction of its pre-1975 level, is sufficient for domestic needs and some exports. Recently passed land reform laws will attempt to reconcile overlapping traditional land use rights, colonial-era land claims, and recent land grants to facilitate significant commercial agricultural development.

An economic reform effort launched in 1998 was only marginally successful in addressing persistent fiscal mismanagement and corruption. In April 2000, Angola started an IMF staff-monitored program (SMP). The program lapsed in June 2001 over IMF concerns about lack of adequate Angolan progress. Under the program, the Government of Angola did succeed in unifying exchange rates and moving fuel, electricity, and water prices closer to market rates. In March 2007, the government announced it was not interested in a formally-structured IMF program, but would continue to participate in Article IV consultations and other technical assistance on an ad hoc basis.

In December 2002 President dos Santos named a new economic team to oversee homegrown reform efforts. The new team succeeded in decreasing overall government spending, rationalizing the Kwanza exchange rate, closing regulatory loopholes allowing off-budget expenditures, and capturing all revenues in the state budget. New procedures were implemented to track the flow of funds between the Treasury, Banco Nacional de Angola (the central bank), and the state-owned Banco de Poupanca e Credito, which operates the budget. The Angolan Government adopted a new investment code. Concerns remain about quasi-fiscal operations by the state oil company Sonangol, continued oil-backed commercial borrowing by the Angolan Government, and inadequate transparency and oversight in the management of public accounts. The Angolan commercial code, financial sector law, and telecommunications law all require substantial revision.

Angola is the second-largest trading partner of the United States in sub-Saharan Africa, largely because of its petroleum exports. U.S. exports to Angola primarily consist of industrial goods and services—such as oilfield equipment, mining equipment, chemicals, aircraft, and food. On December 30, 2003, President Bush approved the designation of Angola as eligible for tariff preferences under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

• GDP (2006 est. using purchasing power parity): $53.9 billion.
• Annual real GDP growth rate (2006 est.): 15.3%.
• Per capita GDP (2006 est. using purchasing power parity): $3,399.
• Avg. inflation rate (2006): 12.3%.
• Natural resources: Petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, bauxite, uranium, gold, granite, copper, feldspar.
• Agriculture: Products—bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc, tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fisheries products.
• Industry: Types—petroleum drilling and refining, mining, cement, basic metal products, fish processing, food processing, brewing, tobacco products, sugar refining, textiles.
• Trade: Exports (2007 projected)--petroleum $35.6 billion. 2006 exports consisted of petroleum and derivatives (94%), diamonds (3.5%), other (2.2%), coffee, sisal, timber, cotton, fish, scrap metal. Major markets (2004)--U.S. (37.70%), China (35.6%), France (6.4%), South Korea (2.95%). Imports (2006)--$10.7 billion: machinery, electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts, medicines, food, textiles. Major sources (2006)--Portugal (17.1%), U.S. (9.8%), South Africa (8.0%), China (8.5%), Brazil (8.6%).

History[edit]

In 1482, when the Portuguese first landed in what is now northern Angola, they encountered the Kingdom of the Congo, which stretched from modern Gabon in the north to the Kwanza River in the south. Mbanza Congo, the capital, had a population of 50,000 people. South of this kingdom were various important states, of which the Kingdom of Ndongo, ruled by the ngola (king), was most significant. Modern Angola derives its name from the king of Ndongo. The Portuguese gradually took control of the coastal strip throughout the 16th century by a series of treaties and wars. The Dutch occupied Luanda from 1641 to 1648, providing a boost for anti-Portuguese states. In 1648, Brazilian-based Portuguese forces re-took Luanda and initiated a process of military conquest of the Congo and Ndongo states that ended with Portuguese victory in 1671. Full Portuguese administrative control of the interior did not occur until the beginning of the 20th century.

Portugal's primary interest in Angola quickly turned to slavery. The slaving system began early in the 16th century with the purchase from African chiefs of people to work on sugar plantations in São Tomé, Principé, and Brazil. Many scholars agree that by the 19th century, Angola was the largest source of slaves not only for Brazil, but also for the Americas, including the United States. By the end of the 19th century, a massive forced labor system had replaced formal slavery and would continue until outlawed in 1961. It was this forced labor that provided the basis for development of a plantation economy and, by the mid-20th century, a major mining sector. Forced labor combined with British financing to construct three railroads from the coast to the interior, the most important of which was the transcontinental Benguela railroad that linked the port of Lobito with the copper zones of the Belgian Congo and what is now Zambia, through which it connects to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Colonial economic development did not translate into social development for native Angolans. The Portuguese regime encouraged white immigration, especially after 1950, which intensified racial antagonisms. As decolonization progressed elsewhere in Africa, Portugal, under the Salazar and Caetano dictatorships, rejected independence and treated its African colonies as overseas provinces. Consequently, three independence movements emerged: the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) led by Agostinho Neto, with a base among Kimbundu and the mixed-race intelligentsia of Luanda, and links to communist parties in Portugal and the East Bloc; the National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), led by Holden Roberto with an ethnic base in the Bakongo region of the north and links to the United States and the Mobutu regime in Kinshasa; and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), led by Jonas Malheiro Savimbi with an ethnic and regional base in the Ovimbundu heartland in the center of the country and links to the People's Republic of China and apartheid South Africa.

From the early 1960s, elements of these movements fought against the Portuguese. A 1974 coup d'état in Portugal established a military government that promptly ceased the war and agreed, in the Alvor Accords, to hand over power to a coalition of the three movements. The ideological differences between the three movements eventually led to armed conflict, with FNLA and UNITA forces, encouraged by their respective international supporters, attempting to wrest control of Luanda from the MPLA. The intervention of troops from South Africa on behalf of UNITA and Zaire on behalf of the FNLA in September and October 1975 and the MPLA's importation of Cuban troops in November effectively internationalized the conflict. Retaining control of Luanda, the coastal strip, and increasingly lucrative oil fields in Cabinda, the MPLA declared independence on November 11, 1975, the day the Portuguese abandoned the capital. UNITA and the FNLA formed a rival coalition government based in the interior city of Huambo. Agostinho Neto became the first president of the MPLA government that was recognized by the United Nations in 1976. Upon Neto's death from cancer in 1979, then-Planning Minister José Eduardo dos Santos ascended to the presidency.

The FNLA's military failures led to its increasing marginalization, internal divisions, and abandonment by international supporters. An internationalized conventional civil war between UNITA and the MPLA continued until 1989. For much of this time, UNITA controlled vast swaths of the interior and was backed by U.S. resources and South African troops. Similarly, tens of thousands of Cuban troops remained in support of the MPLA, often fighting South Africans on the front lines. A U.S.-brokered agreement resulted in withdrawal of foreign troops in 1989 and led to the Bicesse Accord in 1991, which spelled out an electoral process for a democratic Angola under the supervision of the United Nations. When UNITA's Jonas Savimbi failed to win the first round of the presidential election in 1992 (he won 40% to dos Santos's 49%, which required a runoff), he called the election fraudulent and returned to war. Another peace accord, known as the Lusaka Protocol, was brokered in Lusaka, Zambia, and signed in 1994. This agreement, too, collapsed into renewed conflict. The UN Security Council voted on August 28, 1997 to impose sanctions on UNITA. The Angolan military launched a massive offensive in 1999, which destroyed UNITA's conventional capacity and recaptured all major cities previously held by Savimbi's forces. Savimbi then declared a return to guerrilla tactics, which continued until his death in combat in February 2002.

On April 4, 2002, the Angolan Government and UNITA signed the Luena Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which formalized the de facto cease-fire that prevailed following Savimbi's death. In accordance with the MOU, UNITA recommitted to the peace framework in the 1994 Lusaka Protocol, returned all remaining territory to Angolan Government control, quartered all military personnel in predetermined locations, and relinquished all arms. In August 2002, UNITA demobilized all military personnel and in September 2002, together with the government, reconstituted the UN-sponsored Joint Commission to resolve all outstanding political issues under the Lusaka Protocol. On November 21, 2002, UNITA and the government declared all outstanding issues resolved and the Lusaka Protocol fully implemented. UN Security Council sanctions on UNITA were lifted on December 9, 2002. UNITA and the MPLA held their first post-war party congresses in June and December 2003, respectively. The UNITA Congress saw the democratic transfer of power from interim leader General Paulo Lukumba "Gato" to former UNITA representative in Paris Isaias Henriqué Samakuva, while the MPLA Congress reaffirmed President dos Santos' leadership of party structures. Samakuva was reelected to a second 4-year term as UNITA party president at a UNITA party congress in July 2007, and will serve as UNITA's leader for the next 4 years.

The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Peace and Reconciliation in Cabinda on August 1, 2006, is seen as a step toward ending conflict in Cabinda and in bringing about greater representation for the people of Cabinda. It follows a successful counterinsurgency campaign by the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA), who still maintain a strong troop presence there. The MOU rejects the notion of Cabindan independence, calls for the demobilization and reintegration of former Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC) fighters into various governmental positions, and creates a special political and economic status for the province of Cabinda. Many FLEC military combatants have now been integrated into the Angolan Armed Forces, including some command positions. In addition, Cabindans will be given designated numbers of vice ministerial and other positions in the Angolan Government. Some FLEC members, who did not sign onto the peace memorandum, continue their independence efforts through public outreach and infrequent low-level attacks against FAA convoys and outposts.

See also[edit]

• Big government Welfare state leads to Nanny state, leads to Police state

References[edit]

1. ↑ See 2008 State Department Report on Religious Freedom in Angola

CIA World Factbook - Angola