Legend:
Definition of Term
 Arranged
by Countries Field Listing
| Background: |
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. |
| Location: |
Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia
and Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
12 30 S, 18 30 E |
| Map
references: |
Africa |
| Area: |
total: 1,246,700 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 1,246,700 sq km |
| 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 m |
| 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: |
Cabinda is separated from rest of country by the Democratic Republic
of the Congo
|
| Population: |
10,593,171 (July 2002 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years: 43.3% (male 2,318,326; female 2,272,726)
15-64 years: 53.9% (male 2,904,595; female 2,806,430)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 131,316; female 159,778)
(2002 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
2.18% (2002 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
46.18 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
24.35 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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: 0.82 male(s)/female
total
population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
191.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population: 38.87 years
female:
40.18 years (2002 est.)
male: 37.62 years |
| Total
fertility rate: |
6.43 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
2.78% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
160,000 (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
15,000 (1999 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.)
|
| 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 |
| Capital: |
Luanda |
| 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 markets |
| 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]; UNITA-Renovada [Secretary General:
Jorge VALENTIM], party officially reunited with UNITA in October
2002
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, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, 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 is an economy in disarray because of a quarter century
of nearly continuous warfare. 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 90% of exports. Violence continues, millions
of land mines remain, and many farmers are reluctant to return
to their fields. As a result, 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 end its conflict
and continue reforming government policies. Internal strife discourages
investment outside of the petroleum sector, which is producing
roughly 800,000 barrels of oil per day. While Angola made progress
in bringing inflation down further, from over 300% in 2000 to
about 110% in 2001, 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. Angola's GDP could be among the world's fastest
growing in 2002 if oil production from the Girassol field, which
began production in December 2001, reaches 200,000 barrels per
day as expected. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $13.3 billion (2001 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
5.4% (2001 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $1,330 (2001 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 70%
services:
24% (2000 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
110% (2001 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 (2001 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $928 million
expenditures: $2.5
billion, including capital expenditures of $963 million |
| 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: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
1.19 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel: 40%
hydro: 60%
other:
0% (2000)
nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
1.107 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (2000) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (2000) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca),
tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish
|
| Exports: |
$7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
crude oil 90%, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee,
sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton |
| Exports
- partners: |
US 44.5%, EU 17.3%, China 22.7%, South Korea 8.1% (2000) |
| Imports: |
$2.7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts;
medicines, food, textiles, military goods |
| Imports
- partners: |
EU 47.4%, South Korea 16%, South Africa 15.9%, US 11.3%, Brazil
5.5% (2000) |
| Debt
- external: |
$10.4 billion (2001 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$383.5 million (1999) |
| Currency: |
kwanza (AOA) |
| Currency
code: |
AOA |
| Exchange
rates: |
kwanza per US dollar - 32.8716 (January 2002), 22.058 (2001),
10.041 (2000), 2.791 (1999), 0.393 (1998), 0.229 (1997); note
- in December 1999 the kwanza was revalued with six zeroes dropped
off the old value |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year
|
| Railways: |
total: 2,771 km (inland, much of the track is unusable
because of land mines still in place from the civil war)
narrow gauge: 2,648 km 1.067-m gauge; 123 km 0.600-m gauge
(2000 est.) |
| 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: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 39,305
GRT/63,528 DWT
ships by type: cargo 8, petroleum tanker
1 (2002 est.) |
| Airports: |
244 (2001) |
| 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)
|
|
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