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| Introduction | Angola |
| 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. |
| People | Angola |
| Population: | 10,978,552 (July 2004 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,410,326; female 2,363,368) 15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,998,892; female 2,897,837) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 137,340; female 170,789) (2004 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 18.1 years male: 18.1 years female: 18.1 years (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 1.93% (2004 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 45.14 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Death rate: | 25.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 192.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 179.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 204.97 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 36.79 years male: 36.06 years female: 37.55 years (2004 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 6.33 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 3.9% (2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 240,000 (2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 21,000 (2003 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases: | typhoid fever, malaria, trypanosomiasis, schistosomiasis overall degree of risk: very high (2004) |
| 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 | Angola |
| 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; note - new constitution has not yet been approved |
| 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 [Isaias SAMAKUVA], 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, AU, 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), 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: 2108 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 |
| 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) |
| Communications | Angola |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 96,300 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 130,000 (2002) |
| 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: country code - 244; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 21, FM 6, shortwave 7 (2000) |
| Radios: | 815,000 (2000) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 6 (2000) |
| Televisions: | 196,000 (2000) |
| Internet country code: | .ao |
| Internet hosts: | 17 (2003) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 1 (2000) |
| Internet users: | 41,000 (2002) |
| Transportation | Angola |
| Railways: | total: 2,761 km narrow gauge: 2,638 km 1.067-m gauge; 123 km 0.600-m gauge (2003) |
| Highways: | total: 51,429 km paved: 5,349 km unpaved: 46,080 km (1999) |
| Waterways: | 1,300 km (2004) |
| Pipelines: | gas 214 km; liquid natural gas 14 km; liquid petroleum gas 30 km; oil 837 km; refined products 56 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: | Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Namibe (Mocamedes), Porto Amboim, Soyo |
| Merchant marine: | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 26,123 GRT/42,879 DWT by type: cargo 6, petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 4 (2003 est.) |
| Airports: | 244 (2003 est.) |
| 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 (2004 est.) |
| 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 (2004 est.) |
| Military | Angola |
| Military branches: | Army, Navy (Marinha de Guerra, MdG), Air and Air Defense Forces (FANA) |
| Military manpower - military age and obligation: | 17 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years plus time for training (2001) |
| Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 2,620,219 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 1,317,328 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: | males: 113,103 (2004 est.) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $265.1 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 1.9% (2003) |
| Transnational Issues | Angola |
| Disputes - international: | continues to give shelter to refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo while many Angolan refugees and Cabinda exclave secessionists reside in neighboring states |
| Refugees and internally displaced persons: | IDPs: 40,000 - 60,000 (27-year civil war ending in 2002; 4 million IDPs already have returned) (2004) |
| Illicit drugs: | used as a transshipment point for cocaine destined for Western Europe and other African states |
| This page was last updated on 16 December, 2004 |
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