The Nitista plot shook the Neto regime severely and was
a stark
reminder of the young government's vulnerability in the
face of
internal factionalism and South African destabilization
efforts. In
the aftermath of the failed coup attempt, the government
came to
the realization that its survival depended on continued
support
from the Soviet Union and its allies. Consequently, the
government's reliance on Soviet and Cuban military support
increased, as did its commitment to Marxist-Leninist
ideology.
A new phase of Angola's formal relationship with the
Soviet
Union had already begun in October 1976, when Neto signed
the
Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation with the Soviet Union
pledging
both signatories to mutual military cooperation. The
treaty was
significant in global terms in that it gave the Soviet
Union the
right to use Angolan airports and Luanda harbor for
military
purposes, enabling the Soviet Union to project its forces
throughout the South Atlantic region.
For the Soviet Union, its intervention in Angola was a
major
foreign policy coup. Soviet leaders correctly judged that
the
United States, because of its recent Vietnam experience,
would be
reluctant to intervene heavily in a distant, low-priority
area.
Conditions would thus be created in which the Soviet Union
could
exert its influence and gain a firm foothold in southern
Africa. In
addition, South African involvement in Angola convinced
most
members of the OAU that Soviet support for the Angolan
government
was a necessary counterweight to South African
destabilization
efforts. Furthermore, United States support for UNITA
during the
civil war had tainted the United States in the eyes of the
OAU and
many Western governments, which perceived a South
African-American
link.
Beginning in 1978, periodic South African incursions
into
southern Angola, coupled with UNITA's northward expansion
in the
east, forced the Angolan government to increase
expenditures on
Soviet military aid and to depend even more on military
personnel
from the Soviet Union, the German Democratic Republic
(East
Germany), and Cuba.
The Angolan government's relationships with the Soviet
Union
and Cuba were linked in some ways but distinct in other
respects.
Clearly, the Soviets and Cubans were both attracted to the
Angolan
government's Marxist-Leninist orientation, and Cuba
generally
followed the Soviet Union's lead in the latter's quest for
international influence. Nonetheless, Cuba had its own
agenda in
Angola, where Cuban leader Fidel Castro believed that by
supporting
an ideologically compatible revolutionary movement he
could acquire
international status independent of the Soviet Union.
Although Soviet and Cuban interests in Angola usually
converged, there were also disagreements, mostly because
of the
factionalism within the MPLA-PT. On the one hand, the
Soviet Union
seemed to have favored Minister of Interior Alves's more
radical
viewpoints over those of Neto and probably supported the
Nitista
coup attempt in 1977. The Cubans, on the other hand,
played an
active military role in foiling the coup attempt and
increased
their troop presence in Angola shortly thereafter in
support of the
Neto regime.
Background | | Angola is rebuilding its country after the end of a 27-year civil war in 2002. Fighting between the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), led by Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS, and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), led by Jonas SAVIMBI, followed independence from Portugal in 1975. Peace seemed imminent in 1992 when Angola held national elections, but fighting picked up again by 1996. Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost - and 4 million people displaced - in the quarter century of fighting. SAVIMBI's death in 2002 ended UNITA's insurgency and strengthened the MPLA's hold on power. President DOS SANTOS held legislative elections in September 2008 and, despite promising to hold presidential elections in 2009, has since made a presidential poll contingent on the drafting of a new constitution.
|
Location | | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo
|
Area(sq km) | | total: 1,246,700 sq km land: 1,246,700 sq km water: 0 sq km
|
Geographic coordinates | | 12 30 S, 18 30 E
|
Land boundaries(km) | | 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(km) | | 1,600 km
|
Climate | | semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April)
|
Elevation extremes(m) | | 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: 2.65% permanent crops: 0.23% other: 97.12% (2005)
|
Irrigated land(sq km) | | 800 sq km (2003)
|
Total renewable water resources(cu km) | | 184 cu km (1987)
|
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) | | total: 0.35 cu km/yr (23%/17%/60%) per capita: 22 cu m/yr (2000)
|
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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, 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 | | 12,799,293 (July 2009 est.)
|
Age structure(%) | | 0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,812,359/female 2,759,047) 15-64 years: 53.7% (male 3,496,726/female 3,382,440) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 153,678/female 195,043) (2009 est.)
|
Median age(years) | | total: 18 years male: 18 years female: 18 years (2009 est.)
|
Population growth rate(%) | | 2.095% (2009 est.)
|
Birth rate(births/1,000 population) | | 43.69 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
|
Death rate(deaths/1,000 population) | | 24.08 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
|
Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population) | | 1.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
|
Urbanization(%) | | urban population: 57% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 4.4% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
|
Sex ratio(male(s)/female) | | 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: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
|
Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births) | | total: 180.21 deaths/1,000 live births male: 192.24 deaths/1,000 live births female: 167.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
|
Life expectancy at birth(years) | | total population: 38.2 years male: 37.24 years female: 39.22 years (2009 est.)
|
Total fertility rate(children born/woman) | | 6.12 children born/woman (2009 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
|
Country name | | conventional long form: Republic of Angola conventional short form: Angola local long form: Republica de Angola local short form: Angola former: People's Republic of Angola
|
Government type | | republic; multiparty presidential regime
|
Capital | | name: Luanda geographic coordinates: 8 50 S, 13 14 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
|
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
|
Constitution | | adopted by People's Assembly 25 August 1992
|
Legal system | | based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law; modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of free markets; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
|
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); Antonio Paulo KASSOMA was named prime minister by MPLA on 26 September 2008 cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by universal ballot for a five-year term (eligible for a second consecutive or discontinuous term) under the 1992 constitution; President DOS SANTOS was selected by the party to take over after the death of former President Augustino NETO(1979) under a one-party system and stood for reelection in Angola's first multiparty elections 29-30 September 1992 (next were to be held in September 2009 but have been postponed) election results: Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS 49.6%, Jonas SAVIMBI 40.1%, making a run-off election necessary; the run-off was never held leaving DOS SANTOS in his current position as the president
|
Legislative branch | | unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (220 seats; members elected by proportional vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5-6 September 2008 (next to be held in September 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - MPLA 81.6%, UNITA 10.4%, PRS 3.2%, ND 1.2%, FNLA 1.1%, other 2.5%; seats by party - MPLA 191, UNITA 16, PRS 8, FNLA 3, ND 2
|
Judicial branch | | Supreme Court and separate provincial courts (judges are appointed by the president)
|
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's small-scale armed struggle for the independence of Cabinda Province persists despite the signing of a peace accord with the government in August 2006
|
International organization participation | | ACP, AfDB, AU, CPLP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OPEC, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
|
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); red represents liberty, black the African continent, the symbols characterize workers and peasants
|
Economy - overview | | Angola's high growth rate is driven by its oil sector, which has taken advantage of high international oil prices. Oil production and its supporting activities contribute about 85% of GDP. Increased oil production supported growth averaging more than 15% per year from 2004 to 2007. A postwar reconstruction boom and resettlement of displaced persons has led to high rates of growth in construction and agriculture as well. Much of the country's infrastructure is still damaged or undeveloped from the 27-year-long civil war. Remnants of the conflict such as widespread land mines still mar the countryside even though an apparently durable peace was established after the death of rebel leader Jonas SAVIMBI in February 2002. Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for most of the people, but half of the country's food must still be imported. In 2005, the government started using a $2 billion line of credit, since increased to $7 billion, from China to rebuild Angola's public infrastructure, and several large-scale projects were completed in 2006. Angola also has large credit lines from Brazil, Portugal, Germany, Spain, and the EU. The central bank in 2003 implemented an exchange rate stabilization program using foreign exchange reserves to buy kwanzas out of circulation. This policy became more sustainable in 2005 because of strong oil export earnings; it has significantly reduced inflation. Although consumer inflation declined from 325% in 2000 to under 13% in 2008, the stabilization policy has put pressure on international net liquidity. Angola became a member of OPEC in late 2006 and in late 2007 was assigned a production quota of 1.9 million barrels a day, somewhat less than the 2-2.5 million bbl Angola's government had wanted. To fully take advantage of its rich national resources - gold, diamonds, extensive forests, Atlantic fisheries, and large oil deposits - Angola will need to implement government reforms, increase transparency, and reduce corruption. The government has rejected a formal IMF monitored program, although it continues Article IV consultations and ad hoc cooperation. Corruption, especially in the extractive sectors, and the negative effects of large inflows of foreign exchange, are major challenges facing Angola.
|
GDP (purchasing power parity) | | $112.8 billion (2008 est.) $100.5 billion (2007 est.) $82.94 billion (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
|
GDP (official exchange rate) | | $84.95 billion (2008 est.)
|
GDP - real growth rate(%) | | 12.3% (2008 est.) 21.1% (2007 est.) 18.6% (2006 est.)
|
GDP - per capita (PPP) | | $9,000 (2008 est.) $8,200 (2007 est.) $6,900 (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
|
GDP - composition by sector(%) | | agriculture: 9.2% industry: 65.8% services: 24.6% (2008 est.)
|
Labor force | | 7.569 million (2008 est.)
|
Labor force - by occupation(%) | | agriculture: 85% industry and services: 15% (2003 est.)
|
Unemployment rate(%) | | NA
|
Population below poverty line(%) | | 40.5% (2006 est.)
|
Household income or consumption by percentage share(%) | | lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
|
Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP) | | 9% of GDP (2008 est.)
|
Budget | | revenues: $28.99 billion expenditures: $21.44 billion (2008 est.)
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%) | | 12.5% (2008 est.) 12.2% (2007 est.)
|
Stock of money | | $8.446 billion (31 December 2008) $4.153 billion (31 December 2007)
|
Stock of quasi money | | $10.41 billion (31 December 2008) $7.216 billion (31 December 2007)
|
Stock of domestic credit | | $7.893 billion (31 December 2008) $1.166 billion (31 December 2007)
|
Economic aid - recipient | | $441.8 million (2005)
|
Public debt(% of GDP) | | 15.5% of GDP (2008 est.) 12% of GDP (2007 est.)
|
Agriculture - products | | bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish
|
Industries | | petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing, brewing, tobacco products, sugar; textiles; ship repair
|
Industrial production growth rate(%) | | 14.3% (2008 est.)
|
Current account balance | | $17.11 billion (2008 est.) $9.402 billion (2007 est.)
|
Exports | | $66.3 billion (2008 est.) $44.4 billion (2007 est.)
|
Exports - commodities(%) | | crude oil, diamonds, refined petroleum products, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton
|
Exports - partners(%) | | China 33%, US 28.7%, France 6%, South Africa 4.6%, Canada 4.1% (2008)
|
Imports | | $17.08 billion (2008 est.) $13.66 billion (2007 est.)
|
Imports - commodities(%) | | machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods
|
Imports - partners(%) | | Portugal 17.6%, China 15.7%, US 11.3%, Brazil 7.6%, South Korea 6.8%, South Africa 4.8% (2008)
|
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | | $18.36 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $11.2 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
|
Debt - external | | $14.09 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $8.357 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
|
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | | $16.36 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $14.51 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
|
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | | $2.477 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
|
Exchange rates | | kwanza (AOA) per US dollar - 75.023 (2008 est.), 76.6 (2007), 80.4 (2006), 88.6 (2005), 83.541 (2004)
|
Currency (code) | | kwanza (AOA)
|
Telephones - main lines in use | | 114,300 (2008)
|
Telephones - mobile cellular | | 6.773 million (2008)
|
Telephone system | | general assessment: system inadequate; fewer than one fixed-line per 100 persons; combined fixed line and mobile telephone density exceeded 50 telephones per 100 persons in 2008 domestic: state-owned telecom had monopoly for fixed-lines until 2005; demand outstripped capacity, prices were high, and services poor; Telecom Namibia, through an Angolan company, became the first private licensed operator in Angola's fixed-line telephone network; Angola Telecom established mobile-cellular service in Luanda in 1993 and the network has been extended to larger towns; a privately-owned, mobile-cellular service provider began operations in 2001 international: country code - 244; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 29 (2008)
|
Internet country code | | .ao
|
Internet users | | 550,000 (2008)
|
Airports | | 192 (2009)
|
Pipelines(km) | | gas 2 km; oil 87 km (2008)
|
Roadways(km) | | total: 51,429 km paved: 5,349 km unpaved: 46,080 km (2001)
|
Ports and terminals | | Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Namibe
|
Military branches | | Angolan Armed Forces (FAA): Army, Navy (Marinha de Guerra Angola, MGA), Angolan National Air Force (Forca Aerea Nacional Angolana, FANA) (2009)
|
Military service age and obligation(years of age) | | 22-24 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years; Angolan citizenship required (2009)
|
Manpower available for military service | | males age 16-49: 2,856,492 females age 16-49: 2,755,864 (2008 est.)
|
Manpower fit for military service | | males age 16-49: 1,467,833 females age 16-49: 1,411,468 (2009 est.)
|
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually | | male: 146,738 female: 143,478 (2009 est.)
|
Military expenditures(% of GDP) | | 5.7% of GDP (2006)
|
Disputes - international | | Cabindan separatists continue to return to the Angolan exclave from exile in neighboring states and Europe since the 2006 ceasefire and peace agreement
|
Refugees and internally displaced persons | | refugees (country of origin): 12,615 (Democratic Republic of Congo) IDPs: 61,700 (27-year civil war ending in 2002; 4 million IDPs already have returned) (2007)
|
Electricity - production(kWh) | | 3.722 billion kWh (2007 est.)
|
Electricity - production by source(%) | | fossil fuel: 36.4% hydro: 63.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
|
Electricity - consumption(kWh) | | 3.173 billion kWh (2007 est.)
|
Electricity - exports(kWh) | | 0 kWh (2008 est.)
|
Electricity - imports(kWh) | | 0 kWh (2008 est.)
|
Oil - production(bbl/day) | | 2.015 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
Oil - consumption(bbl/day) | | 64,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
Oil - exports(bbl/day) | | 1.407 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
|
Oil - imports(bbl/day) | | 28,090 bbl/day (2007 est.)
|
Oil - proved reserves(bbl) | | 9.04 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
|
Natural gas - production(cu m) | | 680 million cu m (2008 est.)
|
Natural gas - consumption(cu m) | | 680 million cu m (2008 est.)
|
Natural gas - exports(cu m) | | 0 cu m (2008)
|
Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m) | | 269.8 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%) | | 2.1% (2007 est.)
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | | 190,000 (2007 est.)
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths | | 11,000 (2007 est.)
|
Major infectious diseases | | degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2009)
|
Literacy(%) | | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 67.4% male: 82.9% female: 54.2% (2001 est.)
|
Education expenditures(% of GDP) | | 2.4% of GDP (2005)
|