Geography
Area: 1,246,700 sq. km. (481,400 sq. mi), about twice the size of
Texas.
Cities: Capital--Luanda (pop. 4.0 million); Huambo (750,000);
Benguela (600,000).
Terrain: A narrow, dry coastal strip extending from Luanda to Namibia;
well-watered agricultural highlands; savanna in the far east and
south; and rain forest in the north and Cabinda.
Climate: Tropical and tropical highland.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Angolan(s).
Population (December 2003 est.): 14,300,000.
Annual population growth rate (2002): 2.9%.
Ethnic groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mixed racial
2%, European 1%.
Christian singles note-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 (2003
est.)--primary school 55%, secondary 30%, and post-secondary 3%. Literacy
(total population over 15 that can read and write, 2002 est.)--42%
(male 56%, female 28%).
Health: Life expectancy (2002 est.)--total population 46.7
years. Infant mortality rate (2003 est.)--154/1,000.
Work force (2003 est. 5.6 million): Agriculture--85%; industry
and commerce--15%; services--6%.
Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: November 11, 1975.
Branches: Executive--elected president (chief of state),
appointed prime minister, and 30 appointed civilian ministers. Legislative--elected
National Assembly (233 seats). Judicial--Supreme Court (a
Constitutional Court, provided for in the 1992 constitution, has never
been established).
Administrative subdivisions: Province, municipality, commune.
Political parties: 123 with legal status; in 1992, 12 won seats in the
National Assembly. Pro-government--Popular Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA). Opposition--National Union for the Total
Independence of Angola (UNITA), Social Renewal Party (PRS), National
Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), Party for Democratic
Progress - Angola National Alliance (PDP-ANA), Democratic Renewal
Party (PRD), Party of the Alliance of Youth, Workers, and Peasants (PAJOCA),
Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), Democratic Alliance (AD), Angolan
Democratic Forum (FDA), Social Democratic Party (PSD), and the Angolan
National Democratic Party (PNDA).
Suffrage: Universal age 18 and over.
Economy
GDP (2004 est. using purchasing power parity): $35.1 billion.
GDP (2004 est. using Atlas method): $14.3 billion.
Annual real GDP growth rate (2004 est.): 11.4%.
Per capita GDP (2004 est. using purchasing power parity): $2,525.
Per capita GDP (2004 est. using Atlas method): $951.
Avg. inflation rate (2003): 95.2%
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 (2003 est.)--$9.8 billion: crude oil (90.3%),
diamonds (8.4%), refined petroleum products (1.0%), gas (0.2%),
coffee, sisal, fish and fisheries products, timber, cotton. Major
markets (2002)--U.S. (35.8%), China (11.6%), France (6.9%),
Belgium (5.4%), South Korea. Imports (2003 est.)--$4.1 billion,
machinery, electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts, medicines,
food, textiles. Major sources (2002)--Portugal (26%), U.S.
(17.9%), South Africa (15.9%), France (8.6%), South Korea, Brazil.
GEOGRAPHY
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 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
Zambezi River 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 Peru or 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.
Elevations generally range from 3,000 to 6,000 feet. The far north and
Cabinda enjoy rain throughout much of the year.
PEOPLE
Christian singles note-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.
Christian
dating in An
