A visitor to Quiçama is escourted
in a dugout on the Cuanza River
Angola Overview
| The Republic of Angola covers a geographical area of about 481,353 square miles, (1.247 million square kilometres) which is larger than Texas and California combined. It lies on the south-western coast of Africa and its neighbours include Namibia to the south, Zambia to the east, and Zaire and the Republic of the Congo to the north. |
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Angola’s population is estimated at 11,6 million. The Portuguese arrived in 1583 but colonization really gained momentum in the 20th century with the arrival of 400 000 Portuguese. After a civil war which started in 1961, Angola eventually received independence from Portugal on 11 November 1975 and the MPLA (Movimento Popular de Libertaçao de Angola) , led by Agostinho Neto, took power. During the civil war, with the opposing groups respectively backed by the former USSR and Cuba and the USA and South Africa, thousands were killed. The economy suffered severely and many people were left destitute. |