Country Angola: official language, symbols of the state, history, political system, population, economy and foreign policy

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:48

A former colony of Portugal, and now a free country, Angola for a long time could not achieve its own independence. Only in 1975 did it cease to be a colony and achieved its current status. Now Angola is a country in Africa, located in the southern part of the mainland, not far from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its location in two latitudes at once (subequatorial and tropical) led to the fact that Angola is a country divided into two climatic zones at once.

Historical background

To correctly understand what country Angola is in the past and now, you need to delve into its history. As archeological finds show, the first people settled in this territory in the Neolithic times. These were the ancestors of the still-existing Bushmen tribes. Gradually, the first state formation was formed here, which received the name Congo in the 13th century (over the following years it changed periodically). It existed until the 19th century and was considered one of the most developed states in this part of the world.

But you can'tto deny that the colonial period of history had the greatest influence on the formation of Angola. The first expeditions of the Portuguese landed on its shores at the end of the 15th century. In 1484, the first treaty was concluded between the ruler of the country - the manikongo - and the leader of the expedition, Diogo Kahn. Gradually, relations between the two countries strengthened, but only at the highest level. The indigenous population periodically tried to oust foreigners, in different years there were several uprisings.

Relations between Ndongo and Portugal finally deteriorated only in the 17th century. Queen Anne formed an alliance with Holland and for three decades the country gained independence, preventing the Portuguese from penetrating deep into the territory. However, Portugal was able to seize the initiative in the war and subjugate the rebellious colony.

By the middle of the 18th century, Ndongo had become the place where the Portuguese brought their slaves from. It was the slave trade, which became legal by decree of the king, that led to a significant enrichment of the colonialists. Such a policy led to enormous damage to the natural economy of the country, so by the thirties of the 19th century, the slave trade was banned.

At the Berlin Conference in 1884, when European countries divided the colonies of Africa among themselves, the current borders of the country were determined. In Angola, the Portuguese continued their attempts to deepen into the interior, but the constant unrest of the Africans, which, although ruthlessly suppressed, helped to delay the colonialists. In 1910, the monarchical power in Portugal fell, but the exploitationthe colony became even stronger. Oppression continued until the 1960s, when several movements began to actively operate at once, the goal of which was to gain the status of independence. However, the country finally became independent only after 1975, when an agreement was signed between the new government of Portugal and the leaders of the movements.

On the basis of this treaty, the creation of a completely new state was first proclaimed - the independent People's Republic of Angola under the presidency of A. Neto.

Population

At the time of the last census, held in 2005, 25 million people is the official population of the country. In Angola, there is a big problem with child mortality and low life expectancy. Adults generally do not live beyond 37 years. In addition, the population density is one of the highest: 20.69 people per square kilometer.

This is a multi-ethnic country. Angola has a very diverse population, with more than 110 ethnic groups living there. Almost the entire population belongs to one language family - the Bantu, which, in turn, is divided into many different groups. In addition to the Bantu, the Bushmen and the Twa Pygmies are of great importance. Only about 1% of the inhabitants remained from Europeans here.

Religion

Almost half of the country's population is Christian: the Catholic and Protestant branches of religion predominate. However, this does not prevent a large number of the indigenous population from adhering to traditional cults and beliefs. Africa, like the cult of ancestors, animalism. The number of sects is striking: more than 90 entities are officially registered.

Although the authorities of Angola do not officially prohibit practicing Islam, there is a law passed by the president to close all mosques in the country.

Political structure

The country of Angola is a republic headed by a president who is elected every 5 years. The current head of state is Juan Lourenço, who has been in office since 2017. It is he who forms the Government.

The legislature is a unicameral parliament or People's Assembly, consisting of 220 deputies elected by direct secret ballot for 4 years.

Territorial device - administrative. The whole state is divided into 18 provinces. Each of them delegates five of its deputies to parliament, all the rest are elected according to a national list.

The judiciary is also separate, with military tribunals, local and provincial civil and criminal courts, and Arbitration and Supreme Courts.

Foreign policy

Angola is a country with peculiarities in the manner of implementing foreign policy. Despite good relations with the Russian Federation, which began in 1975 and joining the UN a year later, the authorities practice a policy of non-alignment.

Besides Russia, Angola maintains close diplomatic relations withUS, especially in terms of oil and diamond imports. A similar dichotomy formed during the years of the civil war, when the United States and Russia took sides with two different factions. The war continued for 27 years, which led to the strengthening of relations between the two trading associates.

State symbols

Like any state, Angola has its own official symbols. The flag is a rectangular two-color canvas with horizontal stripes of red and black. A machete is depicted in the very center, and next to it is a five-pointed star and half of a geared machine wheel.

The coat of arms also has a machete, a star, and half a wheel, but you can also see a book and a hoe. The country's official motto is "Unity makes strength" and the anthem is "Forward Angola".

The official language of Angola is Portuguese, but African dialects of Bantu, Mbunda, Chokwe, etc. are also common.

Economy

The basis of the economy of Angola are its oil fields. The export of oil and diamonds has led to the fact that the country is the fastest growing of all that are located in southern Africa. New plants are constantly being built, and recently the country has begun exporting liquefied natural gas.

However, most of the population of Angola is still engaged in agricultural activities, although most of the fertile land is not cultivated due to mines that were planted during the civil war. Bananas, coffee and tobacco are mainly grown. Cattle breeding practicallynot developed, but fishing is popular.

It is noteworthy that Angola is a country with a relatively good level of GDP. It is three times higher than that of neighboring states. Exports significantly exceed imports, but the state must return very large loans taken from Hong Kong and China.