Like the Hemba, they have also been greatly influenced by their contact with the Luba. During the 19th century they cooperated with Moslem slave traders from the eastern coast and helped to establish a trading post at Kabambare. The population has been seriously reduced due to wars, slavery, and sickness, resulting in very few surviving examples of Bangubangu sculpture. Although descended from early hunters, very little hunting is currently carried out by the Bangubangu. They are primarily subsistence farmers, with the women employing slash and burn technology to raise maize, beans, millet, sweet potatoes, peanuts, and rice.
Men contribute to the local economy by raising goats, sheep, chicken, and cows.
Historically, the people in this region sold rubber, palm oil, and cotton on the international market. The current power structure in Bangubangu villages was imposed by the Belgian colonials and consists of a paramount chief, who is assisted in governing by several officials. Many villages do not recognize his power and pay allegiance to leadership selected on the local level. Village leaders are known as Sultani, a word which is obviously of Arabic origin. Extended families claim ownership to land, and inheritance is matrilineal.