The Country

Angola is situated on the Western coast of Southern Africa and was a Portuguese colony till 11 Novemeber 1975, when it won independence. It has an area of 1,246,700 km².

The country is divided into 18 provinces, and its capital city is Luanda. Its periphery comprises 4,837 kilometres, bordering on Congo Brazzaville, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (ex-Zaire), Zambia, and Namibia. Its coast, washed by the Atlantic Ocean, has 1,650 kilometres.

Luanda, Lobito and Namibe are its main ports. The countrys highest peak is Monte Moco (2,620 metres), situated in Huambo, with its main rivers being Kwanza, Zaire, Cunene and Cubango. Its currency is Kwanza (Kz).

The estimated number of inhabitants in 1995 was 11 million, with an estimated growth to 16 million by the year 2010.It was also estimated in 1995 that the population was distributed as follows: 49,3% (males) 50,7% (females). Out of that, 32% lived in urban areas and 53% being economically active. The population of Luanda alone was estimated in 1995 at 3 million inhabitants. Angolas official language is Portuguese, but the country counts with various vernacular languages such as Kikongo, Kimbundo, Umbundu, Chokwe, Mbunda and Oxikwanyama. The population is predominantly Christian, with the Catholic religion being the most expanded one.

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