Angola

C

Local Government

Angola is divided into 18 provinces—Bengo, Benguela, Bié, Cabinda, Cuando Cubango, Cuanza Norte, Cuanza Sul, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Luanda, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe, Uíge, Zaïre—which are further divided into councils and communes. Each level of local government has a direct representative of the MPLA. However, large areas of the country continue to be controlled by UNITA.

D

Health and Welfare

The country has a limited number of trained medical personnel. There were 23,753 people per doctor in 1990 but 12,500 people per doctor in 2004.

E

Defence

Following the 1991 peace agreement, a new national army numbering some 50,000 personnel was established, consisting of, among others, intended equal proportions of government forces and UNITA members. Demobilization of UNITA forces and their subsequent integration into the national force began in 1992 but met with delays. By 2004 the national force comprised 100,000 army personnel, 2,400 navy personnel, and 6,000 members of the air force, all of which were government forces. UNITA forces were estimated at 62,000 but after the death of Savimbi, and the end of the civil war, some UNITA fighters were being reintegrated into the national force, while others were being trained for civilian jobs.

F

International Organizations

Angola is a member of the United Nations (UN), the South African Development Community (SADC), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the African Union, and the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC).

VI

History

About all that is known of the early history of Angola is that the Stone Age hunters and gatherers of the region were replaced by metalworking Bantu as early as the 7th century ad. The country was on the migration routes of peoples from the north and east, resulting in considerable mixing of populations. For example, the culture of the Lunda, on the River Kasai in the east, merged with that of the Chokwe, to the extent that they are now known as the Lunda-Chokwe; similarly, the Kongo, who migrated into northern Angola, greatly influenced the pre-existing local chiefdoms.