General information about Angola
The official name is the Republic of Angola (Republica de Angola, Republic of Angola).
Located in southwest Africa. The area is 1246.7 thousand km2, the population is 10.593 million people. (2002 estimate). The official language is Portuguese. The capital is Luanda (3.6 million people, 2003). Public holiday – Independence Day November 11 (since 1975). The monetary unit is the kwanza.
Member of 36 international organizations, incl. UN (since 1975), AU (since 2000), SADC (since 1992).
Geography of Angola
Located between 13° and 23°36′ E, 4°21′ and 18°02′ S; in the west it is washed by the Atlantic Ocean, its cold Benguela Current. The coast is slightly indented, there are few harbors convenient for ships. It borders Namibia to the south, Zambia to the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the east and north, and the Republic of the Congo (ROC) to the north. The province of Cabinda is separated from the main part of Angola by the territory of the DRC.
According to allcitycodes, most of Angola is a plateau 1000 m high, elevated in the western and central parts of the country up to 2000 m and lowering to the north and southeast, where the main rivers of Angola flow – tributaries of the Congo and Okavango. Almost all rivers are rapids and non-navigable. The highest point in the country is Mount Moka (2620 m). In the west, the plateau is bordered by a lowland stretching 50–200 km wide along the entire ocean coast.
The soils are very diverse: black tropical, red ferruginous, humus-ferrallitic, sandy red-brown, etc. The vegetation of most of Angola is a savannah. In the north of the coastal strip there is a shrub savanna, to the south it is replaced by a grassy, and then deserted savanna, and in the very south of the coast it passes into the Namib Desert. In the interior of the territory of Angola, savannah dominates with tall grasses and separately growing trees or forest islands. Tropical rain forests grow in the Mayombe mountains and along the valleys of the tributaries of the Congo. The animal world is diverse, elephants, lions, buffaloes, zebras, white and black rhinos, various types of antelopes are found in the savannah. Monkeys, leopards live in dense forests, hippos, crocodiles live in rivers. Diverse world of birds.
The bowels are rich in minerals. Oil, diamonds, iron and copper ores, phosphates, bauxites, gold, and uranium have been found. Explored oil reserves of Angola – 5.4 billion barrels. (1997) – almost doubled by April 2000 due to the discovery of new deposits.
The climate of Angola is tropical, dry on the coast and wet on the plateau. Up to 50 mm of precipitation per year falls on the coast, while in the south of the plateau 600-800 mm, and in the north up to 1500 mm. The average temperature in September is +21°С, in July +16°С.
The population of Angola
Population growth 2.18% (2002 est.). Birth rate 46.18%, mortality 24.35%, infant mortality 191.66 people. per 1000 newborns (2002). Average life expectancy is 38.87 years (40.18 for women, 37.62 for men) (2002). Gender and age structure: 0-14 years – 43.3% (2,318,326 men and 2,272,726 women), 15-64 years – 53.9% (respectively 2,904,595 and 2,806,430), 65 years and older – 2.8% (131,316 and 159,778) (2002). 70% of the population lives in rural areas. Adult literacy is 42%.
St. 99% of the population belong to the Niger-Congo ethnic group: the peoples of Kimbundu (25%), Ovimbundu (37%), Bakongo (13%), etc. In addition, 40 thousand Portuguese, 40 thousand mulattos live in the country, 10 thousand Bushmen (san), 2 thousand British. After 1975, Angola left approx. 500 thousand Portuguese. The neighboring countries are home to 400,000-500,000 Angolans who left their homeland as a result of the civil war.
47% of the population adhere to local beliefs, 38% are Catholics, 15% are Protestants (1998).
