As evidenced by remains found in Lunda, Congo and the Namibe desert, the area currently known as Angola has been inhabited since pre-historic times. However, it was only until thousands of years later, at the beginning of recorded history, that more developed societies arrived in the area. The first to settle were the Bushmen, who were known to be great hunters. Physically they were similar to the pygmies in size and had light brown complexions.
At the beginning of the sixth century AD, a darker complexioned, more technologically advanced people began one of the greatest migrations in history. They were the Bantu, and they came from the north, probably from somewhere near the present-day Republic of Cameroon. The Bantu had mastered metal working technology. When they reached what is now Angola they encountered the Bushmen and other ethnic groups considerably less advanced than themselves. They quickly dominated these groups with their superior knowledge of metal-working, ceramics and agriculture. Over the course of centuries the Bantu established themselves in the region and gave rise to a number of differernt groups, who over time took on different ethnic characteristics, some of which persist to this day.
The first large political entity in the area, known as the Kingdom of Congo, appeared in the thirteenth century and stretched from Gabon in the north to the river Kwanza in the south, and from the Atlantic in the west to the river Cuango in the east.
Their wealth came mainly from agriculture. Power was in the hands of the "Mani," aristocrats who occupied key positions in the kingdom and who answered only to the all-powerful King of the Congo. Mbanza was the name given to a territorial unit administered and ruled by a Mani; Mbanza Congo, the capital, had a population of over fifty thousand in the sixteenth century.
The Kingdom of Congo was divided into six provinces and included some dependent kingdoms, such as Ndongo to the south. Trade, based on highly productive agriculture and increasing exploitation of mineral wealth, was the main economic activity of the region. In 1482, Portuguese caravans commanded by Diogo Cao arrived in the Congo. Other expeditions followed and close relations were soon established between the two states. The Portuguese brought firearms and an interesting religion; in return, the King of the Congo could offer slaves, ivory, and minerals. The King of the Congo was soon converted to Christianity, and adopted a similar political structure to the Europeans; he became a well-known figure in Europe, to the point of receiving missives from the Pope.
To the south of the Kingdom of the Congo, around the river Cuanza, there were various important states, of which the Kingdom of Ndongo, ruled by the Ngola (King), was the most significant. At the time of the arrival of the Portuguese, Ngola Kiluange was in power, and by maintaining a policy of alliances with neighboring states, managed to hold out against the foreigners for several decades. Eventually he was beheaded in Luanda. Years later, the Ndongo rose to prominence again when Jinga Mbandi, known as Queen Jinga, took power. A wily politician, she kept the Portuguese in check with carefully-prepared agreements. After undertaking various journeys she succeeded in 1635 in forming a grand coalition with the states of Matamba and Ndongo, Congo, Kassanje, Dembos and Kissamas. At the head of this formidable alliance, she forced the Portuguese to retreat.
Meanwhile, Portugal had been occupied by Spain, and their overseas territories had taken second place to their internal affairs. The Dutch took advantage of this situation and occupied Luanda in 1641. Jinga entered into an alliance with the Dutch, thereby strengthening her coalition and confining the Portuguese to Massangano, which they fortified strongly, sallying forth on occasion to capture slaves in the Kuata Kuata wars. Slaves from Angola were essential to the development of the colony of Brazil, but the traffic had been interrupted by these events. In 1648 a large force from Brazil under the commmand of Salvador Correia de Sa re-took Luanda, leading to the return of the Portuguese in large numbers.
Jinga's coalition began to fall apart; the absence of the Dutch allies with their firearms, and the strong position of Correia de Sa, delivered a deadly blow to the morale of the indigenous forces. Jinga died in 1663; two years later, the King of the Congo committed all his forces to an attempt to capture the island of Luanda, occupied by Correia de Sa, but they were defeated and lost their independence. The Kingdom of Ndongo likewise submitted to the Portuguese Crown in 1671. Early Colonial Period:
When Portuguese mariner Diego Cao landed at the mouth of the Congo River in 1483, two distinct African Kingdoms ruled the region. The Kingdom of the Bakongo reigned in the north. The Quimbundos Kingdom, also known as Ndongo, dominated in the western and central areas. The king of the Quimbundos was called "Ngola". The land, taking its name from the king, became Angola.
Portugal's initial interest was limited to establishing a coastal base to provide provisions for its ships sailing around Africa to the Far East. At first, the Portuguese had friendly relations with the Bakongo rulers. Catholic missionaries began arriving and the Bakongo king soon converted to Christianity.
At the same time, however, the Portuguese began buying slaves from African chiefs to work on sugar plantations in Sao Tome, Principe and Brazil. As the transatlantic slave trade grew, so did tension between the Portuguese and both the Bakongo and Ndongo kingdoms. In 1526, the Bakongo King wrote to the Portuguese King to tell him the slave trade must end. The Portuguese refused. For the following 140 years Africans resisted Portuguese rule.
It was not until after the Portuguese defeated the Dutch, their main rivals, in 1648 that Lisbon began seriously consolidating its colonies. The Portuguese finally conquered the Bakongo in the Battle of Ambuila in 1665. Portugal, however, did not manage to extend complete administrative control throughout Angola until the beginning of the
Resistance Movement:
Portugal ruthlessly suppressed African Nationalism throughout the first half of the 20th century. In 1951 Portugal decided to treat Angola as an overseas province. This gave rise to a new surge of nationalistic fervor. In the next few years three main opposition groups emerged.
In 1956 Africans and mixed-race mesticos founded the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). Its leadership fled to neighboring countries after a Portuguese crackdown on the the movement in 1961. The MPLA mounted guerrilla incursions from the Congo into the enclave of Cabinda and from Zambia into eastern Angola. The MPLA guerrilla forces had little impact beyong these peripheral areas. Moreover, the MPLA was cut off from its main supporters, the Mbundu people of Luanda and the north-western provinces. Although it was not overtly Marxist before independence, the MPLA received military and diplomatic support from the Soviet Union. Agostinho Neto, the son of a Mbundu Methodist pastor, was president of the MPLA from 1962 to 1979.
A group of Bakongo nationalists formed the National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA) in 1962 after a failed uprising in the north-west corner of the country. The FNLA, under the leadership of Holden Roberto, operated from bases in Zaire. Holden Roberto was related by marriage to Zaire's Mobuto Sese Seko. The FNLA was the only Angolan organization given sanctuary in Zaire. Both the United States and China gave some help to the FNLA but, crippled by internal strife, the FNLA was never able to get any popular support outside of the Bakongo community.
A split within the FNLA led to the formation of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) in 1966. Jonas Malheiro Savimbi, a graduate of the University of Lausanne and a member of the country's huge Ovimbundo tribe, was the FNLA's foreign minister until 1964. Savimbi, who had almost no external support, focused his energy on building a political base among the Ovimbundo, Angola's largest ethnic group. Neither the MPLA nor the FNLA had any support from the Ovimbundo.
Civil war has been the norm in Angola since independence from Portugal in 1975. A 1994 peace accord between the government and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) provided for the integration of former UNITA insurgents into the government and armed forces. A national unity government was installed in April of 1997, but serious fighting resumed in late 1998, rendering hundreds of thousands of people homeless. Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost in fighting over the past quarter century. The death of insurgent leader Jonas SAVIMBI in 2002 and a subsequent cease-fire with UNITA may bode well for the country.
In the South-Eastern areas of Angola where the civil war has raged until recently, conditions are the worst. They estimate that there are still about 8 million landmines that have to be lifted. One only travels in the tracks made by other vehicles. If a vehicle breaks down in front of you, you do not dare overtake it for fear of setting off a landmine. One rather waits until the vehicle has been repaired or until one of the local people takes the risk of driving past first. At this stage there are no churches working in that area and obviously no medical care. People are dying by the thousands from malaria and there are not even records of how many die or are alive. Virtually a whole generation has grown up without any exposure to the gospel. We have been invited to go there and next year, Lord willing, that is priority number one for our next trip.
Timeline: Important recent events:
1991: The MPLA and UNITA accept a UN-backed peace plan in May. 1992: UNITA loses presidential and legislative elections in September; war resumes. 1993: UN-brokered peace talks collapse in Addis Ababa in January and in Abidjan in June. Sanctions are imposed against UNITA. 1994: A new peace agreement is signed in Lusaka in November. 1997: The Government of Unity and National Reconciliation (GURN) is formed in April. UNITA`s two main regional allies, Presidents Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire and Pascal Lissouba of Congo (Brazzaville), are ousted in rebellions backed by the Angolan army. 1998: The UN special representative, Alioune Blondin Beye, dies in an air crash in June. UNITA is suspended from parliament and government in August. Peace collapses and government offensives begin in early December. 1999: UNITA expands control over the countryside, reaching the height of its military power by mid-year. Offensives starting in September result in the Forças Armadas Angolanas (FAA) capturing Mr Savimbi`s headquarters at Bailundo and Andulo in the central highlands. Government advances continue. 2000: By mid-year a new stalemate is reached. UNITA has re-emerged as a weaker but persistent guerrilla force restricted largely to non-strategic rural areas. The government rejects calls for new dialogue. 2000: 06.12.2000 - Angolan Government gains momentum in civil war
14.11.2000 - Angolan refugees enter Congo Kinshasa
08.11.2000 - Angolan refugees stuck on DRC border
04.11.2000 - Congo Kinshasa allows Angolans to enter
03.11.2000 - Angolan Government focuses on public health
02.11.2000 - Angolan Government notes major military success
31.10.2000 - Spillover of refugees and conflict from Angola to Congo
31.10.2000 - Angolan Supreme Court upholds sentence of defamation
27.10.2000 - Scandinavian agencies focus on fighting AIDS in Southern Africa
20.10.2000 - Repatriation of Angolans from the Congos
12.10.2000 - Southern African former Liberation Movements meet
02.10.2000 - Above normal rainfall forecasted for Southern Africa
29.09.2000 - UNITA officials among new Angolan refugees to Zambia
17.09.2000 - Angola supports tighter control of diamond trade
05.09.2000 - Angolan refugees arrive in Zambia after bombing
02.09.2000 - Angolan Government offers Savimbi pardon
15.08.2000 - Now 350.000 Angolan refugees in neighbour countries
26.07.2000 - Increasing insecurity for internally displaced in Angola 2002:
24.10.2002 - One third of all Angolans are displaced
02.10.2002 - Angolan President wants more focus on women
12.09.2002 - UN: "Angola peace process at very critical stage"
30.08.2002 - Food aid stuck in Angolan ports
13.08.2002 - "Angolan govt doesn't seem to care about humanitarian crisis"
12.08.2002 - Angola may hold key to region's water scarcity
24.07.2002 - Life expectancy down in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana
11.07.2002 - Angolan peace unveiled a "too big" humanitarian crisis
27.06.2002 - Funds needed for Angolan food crisis
24.05.2002 - Interview with UNITA General Lukamba "Gato"
23.05.2002 - Disarmament of starving Angolan rebels
09.05.2002 - Angolan peace makes hunger visible
26.04.2002 - Peace and decentralisation discussed in Angola
03.04.2002 - Angolan parliament grants amnesty to UNITA
31.03.2002 - An end to Angola's 27 years of war
26.03.2002 - Angola peace talks in critical phase
17.03.2002 - Angolan rebels giving mixed signals on peace effort
15.03.2002 - Peace hopes grow in Angola
07.03.2002 - Angola at the crossroads
06.03.2002 - "UN fails to protect the displaced in Angola"
05.03.2002 - Second Angolan rebel leader dies
25.02.2002 - Savimbi's death a chance for Angolan peace
25.02.2002 - Angolan rebels defiant after Savimbi's death
23.02.2002 - Angola: Death of rebel leader Savimbi confirmed
22.02.2002 - Namibian court protects ex-UNITA representative
28.01.2002 - Angolan refugees in Zambia wait for resettlement
24.01.2002 - Angolan journalist must pay compensation to President 2001: 03.11.2001 - Ex-UNITA combatants transferred to special camp in Zambia
01.11.2001 - Angola notes results in fight against illicit diamonds
23.08.2001 - Angolan President to step down
08.08.2001 - Anti-polio campaign succeeding in Central Africa
21.06.2001 - Angola not to join the OPEC
05.06.2001 - Angolan food distribuition reaches new war victims
31.05.2001 - Angolan govt receives total support from Europe
21.05.2001 - African governments spend millions on US lobbying
08.05.2001 - 60 abducted Angolan children cause controversy
01.05.2001 - Angola and Namibia studying offshore oil in Namibe Basin
26.04.2001 - UN says Angolan rebels are not seeking peace
21.04.2001 - Congolese civilians victims of foreign troops' exploitation
11.04.2001 - "Peace in Angola when Savimbi lays down his weapons"
03.04.2001 - Angolan army hunting down rebel leader Savimbi
29.03.2001 - Angolan rebels fail to counter army gains
27.03.2001 - Inflation remains high in Angola
12.03.2001 - Regional defence organ wrested from Mugabe
13.02.2001 - Moves made for transparency in Angolan oil sector
08.02.2001 - IMF forces African countries to privatise water
07.02.2001 - Is Joseph Kabila bringing peace to the DRC?
27.01.2001 - Arrests of oppositionals in Angola
22.01.2001 - Kinshasa's allied troops to stay in the Congo
15.01.2001 - Media organisations protest against Angolan rights violations
11.01.2001 - Media situation in Angola worsening 2003: 11.07.2003 - Angolan refugees to repatriate from Zambia
02.07.2003 - Slow integration of Angolan rebels
24.06.2003 - Efforts to improve Angola's social services
13.06.2003 - New Angolan media law to enhance press freedom
17.05.2003 - 7.6 million Angolan children to be vaccinated
29.04.2003 - Child soldiers forgotten in Angola
28.04.2003 - Most Angolan women unaware of AIDS risk
25.01.2003 - 69 percent of Angolans live in poverty
15.01.2003 - Angolan opposition, govt go for elections in 2006
08.01.2003 - UNITA apologises for partaking in Angolan war
Demographics:
Land Area: total: 1,246,700 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 1,246,700 sq km Population: 10,145,267 (July 2000 est.) Infant mortality rate: 195.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.) Life expectancy: 38.31 years Ethnic groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22% Official language: Portuguese Capital: Luanda Independence : 11 November 1975 (from Portugal ) GDP growth rate: 4% (1999 est.) GDP - per capita: US$1,030 (1999 est.) Inflation rate: 270% (1999 est.) Industries: petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles Debt: US$10.5 billion (1999 est.) Currency: 1 kwanza (NKz) = 100 lwei Televisions: 150,000 (1997) Radios: 630,000 (1997) Military expenditures: US$1.2 billion (FY97/98) Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 25% (FY97/98) Imports - partners: Portugal 20%, US 17%, South Africa 10%, Spain, Brazil, France (1998) Location: Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo Geographic coordinates: 12 30 S, 18 30 E Area : - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas Land boundaries : total: 5,198 km border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of discontiguous Cabinda Province), Republic of the Congo 201 km, Namibia 1,376 km, Zambia 1,110 km Coastline: 1,600 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM Climate: semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April) Terrain: narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Morro de Moco 2,620 Natural resources: petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium Land use: arable land: 2.41% , permanent crops: 0.4% , other: 97.19% (1998 est.) Irrigated land : 750 sq km (1998 est.) Natural hazards: locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on the plateau Environment - current issues: overuse of pastures and subsequent soil erosion attributable to population pressures; desertification; deforestation of tropical rain forest, in response to both international demand for tropical timber and to domestic use as fuel, resulting in loss of biodiversity; soil erosion contributing to water pollution and siltation of rivers and dams; inadequate supplies of potable water Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements Geography - note: the province of Cabinda is an exclave, separated from the rest of the country by the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Population:
10,766,471 (July 2003 est.) Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,363,829; female 2,317,610)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,941,999; female 2,842,923)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 134,330; female 165,780) (2003 est.) Median age: total: 18.2 years
male: 18.2 years
female: 18.2 years (2002) Population growth rate:
1.97% (2003 est.) Birth rate:
45.57 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) Death rate:
25.83 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.) Infant mortality rate: total: 193.82 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 180.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 206.26 deaths/1,000 live births Life expectancy at birth: total population: 36.96 years
male: 36.13 years
female: 37.83 years (2003 est.) Total fertility rate: 6.38 children born/woman (2003 est.) HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 5.5% (2001 est.) HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/ AIDS: 350,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
24,000 (2001 est.) Nationality: noun: Angolan(s)
adjective: Angolan Ethnic groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22% Religions: indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.)
Languages :
Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages Literacy :
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42%
male: 56%
female: 28% (1998 est.)
Government:
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Angola
conventional short form: Angola
local short form: Angola
former: People's Republic of Angola
local long form: Republica de Angola Government type: republic, nominally a multiparty democracy with a strong presidential system Administrative divisions: 18 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Bengo, Benguela, Bie, Cabinda, Cuando Cubango, Cuanza Norte, Cuanza Sul, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Luanda, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe, Uige, Zaire Independence: 11 November 1975 (from Portugal) National holiday: Independence Day, 11 November (1975) Constitution: 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992 Legal system: based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law; recently modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of free mark ets Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; Fernando de Piedade Dias DOS SANTOS was appointed Prime Minister on 6 December 2002, but this is not a position of real power
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president elected by universal ballot for a NA-year term; President DOS SANTOS originally elected (in 1979) without opposition under a one-party system and stood for reelection in Angola's first multiparty elections 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA)
election results: DOS SANTOS 49.6%, Jonas SAVIMBI 40.1%, making a run-off election necessary; the run-off was not held and SAVIMBI's National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) repudiated the results of the first election; the civil war resumed
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (220 seats; members elected by proportional vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA)
election results: percent of vote by party - MPLA 54%, UNITA 34%, others 12%; seats by party - MPLA 129, UNITA 70, PRS 6, FNLA 5, PLD 3, others 7
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Tribunal da Relacao (judges are appointed by the president)
Political parties and leaders:
Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Analia de Victoria PEREIRA]; National Front for the Liberation of Angola or FNLA [disputed leadership: Lucas NGONDA, Holden ROBERTO]; National Union for the Total Independence of Angola or UNITA [interim leader: PAULO Lukamba "Gato"], largest opposition party has engaged in years of armed resistance; Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola or MPLA [Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS], ruling party in power since 1975; Social Renewal Party or PRS [disputed leadership: Eduardo KUANGANA, Antonio MUACHICUNGO]
note: about a dozen minor parties participated in the 1992 elections but only won a few seats and have little influence in the National Assembly
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda or FLEC [N'zita Henriques TIAGO; Antonio Bento BEMBE]
note: FLEC is waging a small-scale, highly factionalized, armed struggle for the independence of Cabinda Province
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Josefina Perpetua Pitra DIAKIDI
FAX: [1] (202) 785-1258
consulate(s) general: Houston and New York
telephone: [1] (202) 785-1156
chancery: 1615 M Street NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20036
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher William DELL
embassy: number 32 Rua Houari Boumedienne (in the Miramar area of Luanda), Luanda
mailing address: international mail: Caixa Postal 6468, Luanda; pouch: American Embassy Luanda, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2550
telephone: [244] (2) 445-481, 447-028, 446-224
FAX: [244] (2) 446-924
Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and black with a centered yellow emblem consisting of a five-pointed star within half a cogwheel crossed by a machete (in the style of a hammer and sickle)
Economy:
Overview:
Angola has been an economy in disarray because of a quarter century of nearly continuous warfare. An apparently durable peace was established after the death of rebel leader Jonas SAVIMBI on February 22, 2002, but consequences from the conflict continue including the impact of wide-spread land mines. Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for 85% of the population. Oil production and the supporting activities are vital to the economy, contributing about 45% to GDP and more than half of exports. Much of the country's food must still be imported. To fully take advantage of its rich natural resources - gold, diamonds, extensive forests, Atlantic fisheries, and large oil deposits - Angola will need to continue reforming government policies. While Angola made progress in bringing inflation down further, from 325% in 2000 to about 106% in 2002, the government has failed to make sufficient progress on reforms recommended by the IMF such as increasing foreign exchange reserves and promoting greater transparency in government spending. Increased oil production should bring about 6% GDP growth in 2003.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $16.9 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
9% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $1,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 8%
industry: 67%
services: 25% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
106% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
5 million (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 85%, industry and services 15% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate:
extensive unemployment and underemployment affecting more than half the population (2002 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $928 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $963 million (1992 est.)
Industries:
petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles
Industrial production growth rate:
1% Electricity - production:
1.45 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 36.4%
hydro: 63.6%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
1.348 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
742,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
31,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
5.691 billion bbl (January 2002 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
79.57 billion cu m (January 2002 est.)
Exports:
$8.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
crude oil, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton
Exports - partners:
US 44.2%, China 18.7%, France 9.0%, Belgium 8.8%, Spain 2.1% (2001)
Imports:
$4.1 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods
Imports - partners:
Portugal 14.6%, South Africa 12.4%, US 10.3%, France 4.8%, Brazil 4.1% (2001)
Debt - external:
$9.9 billion (2002 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$383.5 million (1999)
Currency:
kwanza (AOA)
Currency code:
AOA
Exchange rates:
kwanza per US dollar - 43.5302 (2002), 22.058 (2001), 10.041 (2000), 2.791 (1999), 0.393 (1998); note - in December 1999 the kwanza was revalued with six zeroes dropped off the old value
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications
Telephones - main lines in use:
72,000 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
25,800 (2000)
Telephone system:
general assessment: telephone service limited mostly to government and business use; HF radiotelephone used extensively for military links
domestic: limited system of wire, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 21, FM 6, shortwave 7 (2000)
Television broadcast stations:
6 (2000)
Internet country code:
.ao
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)
Internet users:
60,000 (2002)
Transportation:
Railways:
total: 2,761 km
narrow gauge: 2,638 km 1.067-m gauge; 123 km 0.600-m gauge (2002)
Highways:
total: 76,626 km
paved: 19,156 km
unpaved: 57,470 km (1997)
Waterways:
1,295 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 179 km
Ports and harbors:
Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Mocamedes, Namibe, Porto Amboim, Soyo
Merchant marine:
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 30,311 GRT/48,924 DWT
ships by type: cargo 7, petroleum tanker 1 (2002 est.)
Airports:
243 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 32
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 211
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 30
914 to 1,523 m: 95
under 914 m: 80 (2002)
Military
Military branches:
Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Police Force
Military manpower - military age:
18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 2,568,082 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,290,884 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 109,752 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$222.7 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
5.4% (FY02)
Transnational Issues Disputes - international:
gives shelter to thousands of refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo while thousands of Angolan refugees still remain in neighboring states as a consequence of the protracted civil wars in both states
Illicit drugs:
used as a transshipment point for cocaine destined for Western Europe and other African states
