Africa plans many oil refineries, only one likely | Reuters Thu Mar 6, 2008 | 8:31 AM EST Africa plans many oil refineries, only one likely By Margaret Orgill - Analysis | LONDON LONDON A new refinery in South Africa is likely to be the only one to go ahead in the short-term from a slew of projects proposed in sub-Saharan Africa, analysts say. Dozens of developments have been announced in recent years in countries including Angola, Nigeria and Zimbabwe but most will stay on the drawing board due to rising costs, political instability and difficulty obtaining finance. "There's a lot of talk of refineries going ahead, but until you hear of actual investment you have to be cautious," said Tom Pearmain, an analyst at Global Insight. Africa, an increasingly important oil exporter, is a major importer of refined products due to growing demand for fuel and a lack of refining capacity. In Nigeria, the world's eight-biggest crude oil exporter, the government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, issued 18 licenses to private investors in 2003 to build refineries but many have since been revoked as they have not been built.

Investors agreed to build the refineries in return for oil licenses but refining is loss-making in Nigeria due to price controls on fuels, so most projects were abandoned. Only a tiny 6,000 barrels per day (bpd) refinery in the southern Akwa Iboe state is under construction in the West African country, where the authorities have tried unsuccessfully to privatize its four ailing refineries. SOUTH AFRICA MOVES AHEAD The one major project that looks set to move forward is South African national oil company PetroSA's plan, announced last year, to build a $5.85 billion refinery at the deep-water port of Coega, near Port Elizabeth on the south coast. The plant, which would have a capacity of 250,000 bpd, would raise South Africa's refining capacity by more than 30 percent. The company has hired U.S. engineers KBR to carry out a prefeasibility study for the plant. An investment decision will be made in 2010 and the refinery is due to come on stream in 2014 or 2015. "Coega is probably the most viable.

It's the seriousness of the project -- they are talking about linking up with other parties and KBR is involved at this stage," Pearmain said. The Coega refinery will provide fuel to meet South Africa's booming energy demand and could also export to neighboring countries, Jorn Falbe, Petro's vice president of new ventures, told Reuters. "There are a lot of (export) opportunities due to unreliable supply," Falbe said. South Africa's own fuel demand is rising fast due to its strong economic growth. Figures from the country's main oil group, the South African Petroleum Industry Association, show diesel consumption climbed 12 percent in 2007. NIGERIA LOOKS AT OTHER OPTIONS In Nigeria, the government is looking at alternative ways of ensuring new refineries are built as part of a review of joint ventures and production sharing agreements with foreign players. One possibility under consideration is to involve oil majors in refining as a condition for their involvement upstream, independent analyst Antony Goldman said. "Offering oil blocks as an incentive has been a disappointment," Goldman said. "The current idea is how to get the majors involved.

Nigeria wouldn't be able to attract them on a commercial basis but would have to link it to upstream." While majors have stayed clear of refining in Africa, energy-hungry Chinese oil companies have signed refinery deals but progress has been patchy. Last year, the Angolan government said it would press ahead on its own with a refinery project at Lobito after it cancelled a deal with China's Sinopec to build the plant. The refinery will initially refine 120,000 barrels a day of oil, rising to 240,000 bpd in a second phase. Angola's state oil firm Sonangol had originally slated first production at Lobito for 2009, but this has been put back to at least 2013. Analysts say there is talk of Japan becoming involved in the project in exchange for emergency crude supplies. Other Chinese downstream projects include an agreement last year by state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation to build a 30,000 bpd refinery in Chad. Elsewhere, projects in sub-Saharan Africa include a 500,000 bpd refinery in Mozambique led by U.S.

firm Ayr Logistics Limited as well as schemes in Ivory Coast and Zimbabwe. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: africa.reuters.com/ ) (Reporting by Margaret Orgill; editing by James Jukwey) ADVERTISEMENT Angola | history - geography | Britannica.com Country Data Overview (PDF) Angola, country located in southwestern Africa. A large country, Angola takes in a broad variety of landscapes, including the semidesert Atlantic littoral bordering Namibia ’s “Skeleton Coast,” the sparsely populated rainforest interior, the rugged highlands of the south, the Cabinda exclave in the north, and the densely settled towns and cities of the northern coast and north-central river valleys. The capital and commercial centre is Luanda , a large port city on the northern coast that blends Portuguese-style colonial landmarks with traditional African housing styles and modern industrial complexes. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Waterfront lined with palm trees, Luanda, Angola.

Jorn Stjerneklar—Impact Photos/Heritage-Images Angola at the beginning of the 21st century was a country ravaged by war and the related effects of land mines and malnutrition , and it was often dependent on the international community for the basics of survival. It is a country that is nevertheless rich in natural resources, including precious gems, metals, and petroleum; indeed, it ranks among the highest of the oil-producing countries in sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest and wealthiest of the Portuguese-speaking African states, and Portuguese influences have been felt for some 500 years, although Angola acquired its present boundaries only in 1891. An anticolonial struggle that began in 1961 finally led to independence in 1975. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

In “ We Must Return, ” a poem he wrote from prison in 1956, the Angolan poet Agostinho Neto , who was also the country’s first president, described Angola as “red with coffee / white with cotton / green with maize” and as “our land, our mother.” Unfortunately, Neto’s happiness with a “liberated Angola—Angola independent” did not last long, and a civil war that went on 27 years left much of the country in ruins. Beginning in 2002, however, with the ending of the war, Angola had more hope for a peaceful future than it had in the previous quarter century. Land Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest Until the late 19th century, parts of Angola were covered with dense rainforest, mainly in the northern part of the Cabinda exclave, the western edge of the Malanje highlands, the northwestern corner of the Bié Plateau, and along some rivers in the northeast.

Much of this forest has been greatly diminished by agriculture and logging, and now most of Angola’s surface is covered with different kinds of savanna (grasslands with scattered trees), ranging from savanna-forest mosaic in the north to thorn scrub in parts of the south. Natural or man-made fires occur frequently in savanna vegetation, and tree species are thus usually resistant to fire. True desert is confined to the Namib in the far southwest, which extends north from Namibia and is the home of a unique plant, the tumboa (Weltwitschia mirabilis), which has a deep taproot and two broad, flat leaves about 10 feet (3 metres) long that lie along the desert floor. Tumboa (Welwitschia mirabilis) Sima Eliovson The fauna is typical of the savanna lands of Africa. Carnivores include leopards, lions, and hyenas, while the plant-eating animals are represented chiefly by elephants, hippopotamuses, giraffes, zebras, buffaloes, gnu (wildebeests) and various other antelopes, and monkeys.

Angola is rich in bird species and has a wide variety of reptiles, including crocodiles. The numerous insects include mosquitoes and tsetse flies, both serious pests that carry disease. There are about a dozen national parks and nature reserves, notably Iona National Park in the southeast corner of the country and Quicama National Park just south of Luanda, but checks on hunting largely broke down with the spread of civil war. The giant sable antelope (Hippotragus niger variani), found in the south, is particularly vulnerable . Other endangered populations include the gorillas and chimpanzees of the Maiombe forest, the black rhinoceros, and the Angolan giraffe. Marine life is particularly rich along the southern coast, because the cold Benguela Current provides nutrients for many temperate-water species. People A residential area in Lubango. Lisannegerstel Demographic trends Angola has never been densely populated, and the export of at least five million slaves between 1500 and 1850 kept the population from growing at a greater rate.

At the beginning of the 21st century, the country’s population density was well below the average for Southern Africa, with vast areas in the semidesert coastal strip and the eastern two-thirds of the country almost empty. During the civil war (1975–2002), it is estimated that warfare killed about a half million people; famine and disease, exacerbated by the conflict, are estimated to have killed an additional half million people as well. However, the population growth rate remained high during this time and later increased after the end of the war. Angola’s birth rate is among the highest in the world; however, so too is the country’s infant mortality rate . Life expectancy is similar to the average for Southern Africa but is among the lowest in the world, and Angola’s population is predominantly young, with about two-fifths under the age of 15 and about one-fourth between the ages of 15 and 29. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

It is estimated that about half a million people fled abroad during the anticolonial war (1961–75), mainly Kongo escaping to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and some Chokwe, Lunda, and Ngangela fleeing to Zambia. There was a renewed outflow of refugees in 1975, with the departure of more than 300,000 Portuguese and an unknown number of Africans. The vagaries of warfare have affected both the number of Angolans living outside the country and their situation within the country. Refugee populations both inside and outside Angola have grown during times of war—such as in the mid- to late 1980s, after the elections of 1992, and from 1998 until the end of the civil war in 2002—and such disruptions have also increased internal migrations to cities, especially Luanda. Economy The Portuguese government regarded Angola as its overseas crown jewel during the colonial period. It made the colony a target of ambitious settlement schemes and encouraged investment in the economy.

As a result of these efforts, the Angolan economy was growing rapidly by the 1970s, with commodities such as coffee, sisal , diamonds, and petroleum the leading exports. Some light industry also developed in the major towns. But this growth was unbalanced, most of the profits being concentrated in the hands of a small settler class, with the majority of the population relegated to forced-labour projects or compelled to sell agricultural goods at artificially low prices to marketing boards. The resultant inequality of income and opportunity played a significant role in the development of the nationalist movements. There was a large exodus of skilled Portuguese workers at national independence in 1975, and, because the colonial state had failed to adequately develop local educational systems and job opportunities, few Angolans were available to take their place. The loss of capital and skills had an immediate negative impact on economic development. In addition, the new government sought to impose socialist development on a Soviet and Cuban model that included a high degree of state participation in the economy, such as collective and state-run agricultural enterprises. Foreign capital was often nationalized, and exchange rates were set artificially high.

The economy was further crippled by a postindependence civil war, which displaced much of the population, ruined physical plants, and disrupted transportation much more than had the earlier guerrilla war. The combination of economic reorganization and warfare caused a virtual economic collapse, which has scarcely abated since then. In the late 1980s, for example, defense spending constituted almost half of the total budget, while the annual rate of inflation exceeded 900 percent in 1994 and more than 2,500 percent the following year. Food production reached such low levels that food was either imported or provided by foreign aid and humanitarian sources, as famine or near-famine conditions prevailed in much of the country from the mid-1980s until after the end of the civil war in 2002. Other agricultural exports such as coffee effectively ceased to be produced until after the end of the war. Only the petroleum industry, which was not nationalized or regulated and was protected from warfare, managed to produce regular income. The petroleum industry, however, still employs few local people and invests little in the Angolan economy, with most of the royalties going to the state.

Diamonds also provided a substantial income, especially to the UNITA forces that controlled many of the diamond mines during the war. Although economic reforms beginning in 1988 eliminated many of the failed socialist experiments, and foreign interests were allowed to invest capital more freely, the war consistently discouraged such investment and hampered the rebuilding of basic infrastructure in most of the country. However, the Angolan government has focused on reconstruction since the end of the war in 2002. The overall state of the economy has improved since then as well, largely owing to the income generated from the country’s petroleum industry. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing Colonial policies favoured the growth of large Portuguese-owned estates producing export crops and discouraged production of any but subsistence crops on the small holdings of the majority of the rural population. Rural people were subjected to various schemes of forced and contract labour to provide workers for the estates. Only about 3 percent of the land area was under cultivation, with less than 1 percent irrigated. Coffee was of greatest importance, with production concentrated in the Malanje highlands and along the northwestern margins of the Bié Plateau near the centre of the country.

Prior to independence, Angola supplied almost one-fifth of world coffee production, with an annual output of more than 200,000 tons in the early 1970s. Cotton, sisal, and corn (maize) were also important cash crops, while cassava (manioc), millet, sorghum , and rice were grown as subsistence crops, and livestock such as goats, pigs, and chickens were also kept for subsistence. Estates were nationalized after independence, and the creation of state farms followed. The contract-labour system was replaced by a similar system of forced labour, called voluntary brigades. The ensuing civil war, however, prevented the implementation of a state-run estate system, and agricultural production faltered. Cooperatives replaced marketing boards for the small holders and proved to be just as inequitable, and the flight of Portuguese petty traders broke the distribution system. The transport network deteriorated; insecurity spread throughout the country; the overvaluation of the currency acted as an increasingly heavy de facto tax on exports; and the collapse of manufacturing removed all incentives to sell agricultural commodities to the towns. As a result, the urban population came to depend on imported food.

Fertile agricultural land is limited to a few favoured locations in the highlands and river valleys, and less than one-tenth of the land area is thought to be arable. The combination of poor soils and insufficient rainfall over most of Angola is a severe limitation to crop growing, although the country does contain both temperate and tropical climates. However, the country’s agricultural potential remains underutilized outside the Bié Plateau, the coastal oases, and the Ovambo floodplain on the Namibian border. Although pastoralism is inhibited by infestations of tsetse flies , poor pastures, and the lack of surface water in the Namib zone, the southwestern quarter of the country has favourable conditions. The main subsistence crop is cassava. Commercial food crops such as coffee and sugar are again being grown; the production of palm oil and tobacco increased in the 1990s; and even cotton production has increased slightly. The greatest impediment to agriculture, whether subsistence or commercial, however, is the number of land mines that were buried throughout the countryside during years of conflict.

Prior to independence, timber extraction from natural forests was concentrated in Maiombe in the Cabinda exclave and in Luso on the eastern stretch of the Benguela Railway. Large eucalyptus plantations along the western stretches of the Benguela Railway provided firewood for the steam locomotives and fed the paper-pulp plant near Benguela. Timber exports ceased at independence, and available resources came to be used primarily for fuel. Timber resources remain significant, however, as nearly one-fifth of the country is forested. The Maiombe forest in the north of the Cabinda exclave contains the most-valuable commercial species, notably white tola (Balsamiferum harms) and limba (Terminalia superba). There are also stands of commercial timber along the rivers of the southeast, especially mussibi (Guibourtia coleosperma). Owing to the beneficial effects of the cold Benguela Current , Angola has some of the richest fishing grounds in Africa, especially along the far southern coast. Sticklebacks , sardines , mackerel , catfish , mullet , and tuna are abundant, as are crabs, lobsters, and prawns.

Before independence, about 700 vessels were active in fishing, employing some 13,000 people; by the early 1980s fewer than one-seventh were operational, because most of the vessels had been owned by Portuguese nationals who sailed them away at independence in 1975. Namibe was the centre of this fishing industry, which stretched from Luanda in the north to the Bay of Tigres in the far south. The great majority of the catch was processed in modern factories (which either were destroyed or ceased operating after independence) and exported to Western markets frozen, canned, or as fish meal, while a local and African regional market was supplied through more-traditional fish drying and curing techniques. Foreign boats overfished the region, and production has declined precipitously since the 1970s. Resources and power Angola’s resources are considerable in comparison with those of most African countries. There are large reserves of petroleum and natural gas, concentrated in the maritime zones off the Cabinda exclave and the Congo River estuary.

Production is largely concentrated off the coast of Cabinda, although there is some onshore production near Soyo and Luanda, and prospecting extends as far south as Kuanza Sul. The quality of the crude oil is generally good, with a low sulfur content. Oil and gas facilities, Angola. Alan Gignoux—Impact Photos/Heritage-Images Petroleum was first discovered in 1955. Angola has become one of the largest exporters of petroleum in sub-Saharan Africa, and production has nearly tripled since independence. Because Angola was not a member of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) until 2007, for many years the country was not subject to any restrictive quotas on its exports. Angola has also benefited from a combination of favourable geologic conditions, a high rate of exploration success, and relatively low operating costs. Natural gas has been found both associated and unassociated with petroleum, but about half of this has been burned off and the rest injected back into oil wells. A state company was set up in 1977 to engage in joint ventures and production-sharing agreements, while management of the oil business was left largely in foreign hands.

Alluvial diamonds occur widely over the northeastern quarter of the country, with a high proportion of gem-quality stones, and there are several kimberlite pipe formations that may be mined. Before independence, Angola was the fourth largest diamond exporter in the world in terms of value, but since that time output has fluctuated. The National Diamond Enterprise of Angola, a parastatal company, is responsible for approving diamond concessions , and it also licenses buyers. In 1992–94 most Angolan diamonds on the market were mined and smuggled from regions controlled by UNITA . The Angolan government gained control of this area in mid-1994 and tried to halt the activities of thousands of illegal diamond prospectors. UNITA retook some diamond regions in the mid- to late 1990s and controlled them until early 2002, when UNITA’s leader, Jonas Savimbi , was killed. There are large reserves of iron ore in the southwestern part of the country, but they are of low grade. Other minerals—copper, manganese, gold, phosphates, uranium, feldspar , and platinum—are known to exist in commercial quantities in Angola, especially in the area of the escarpment.

Angola’s hydroelectric potential is one of the largest in Africa. Most electricity comes from dams on the Cuanza, Cunene, Catumbela, and Dande rivers, at points where they breach the escarpment to reach the coastal plain. Nonetheless, a large share of the country’s total generating facilities remained out of use into the early part of the 21st century because of attacks by UNITA, although repair, renovation, and new construction of such facilities began after the civil war ended in 2002. Manufacturing Manufacturing had expanded rapidly prior to independence, but it was severely disrupted after 1975. Nationalization and the loss of skilled labour hit the manufacturing sector especially hard. Industries in Angola produce construction materials, refined petroleum and equipment for the petroleum industry, processed food, textiles, and electrical goods. Output declined severely during the quarter century after independence because of the continuing threat of warfare, raw material shortages, and disruptions of power and the transportation infrastructure. In the 1990s Angola attempted to counteract these problems by privatizing many businesses and industries and by introducing a new foreign investment code.

The construction industry saw an increase of activity after the end of the civil war, as reconstruction was a priority of the government. Finance The National Bank of Angola, which issues Angola’s currency, the kwanza, acts as the central bank. Banks were nationalized after independence, but in 1985 foreign banks reentered the country, and in 1995 the government allowed the formation of private banks. Most savings are held in informal banking structures outside the cumbersome state system. Foreign investment is highly concentrated in oil, diamonds, and fishing, but it is beginning to spread more widely through the economy as liberalization proceeds and nationalized assets are returned to the private sector. National Bank of Angola, in Luanda. Alan Gignoux—Impact Photos/Heritage-Images Trade Hydrocarbons account for the largest proportion of exports; almost half goes to China, where low-sulfur crude oil is sought by refineries. The economy is thus highly vulnerable to shifts in the price of oil. A small quantity of diamonds are also exported. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Imports come from several countries, with Portugal, China, and the United States among the top sources for imports.

Angola imports consumer goods and capital goods and some transport equipment. It generally has a positive balance of trade. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Services Although Angola has rural beauty and the economic resources to develop a thriving tourist industry, the long-term civil war prevented the development of this sector. Nevertheless, the country does have a national tourist agency, and some 40,000 tourists entered Angola annually in the late 1990s; in the years following the end of the civil war, that number increased dramatically. Labour and taxation Several trade unions operate in Angola. Women form the majority of the rural workforce, and as such they have been disproportionately affected by the numerous land mines found throughout the country. Several national women ’s organizations exist, and women are theoretically guaranteed equal rights, but, in reality, they are still often discriminated against. Many women, especially rural women, belong to the Organization of Angolan Women , which was founded in the 1960s and has established literacy and social programs. National revenue is derived from taxes on income and on petroleum.

Transportation and telecommunications Angola achieved independence with an excellent transport network for an African country so large and thinly populated, in part because of Portuguese military imperatives after 1961. But this sector of the infrastructure has suffered more than any other from the effects of war and the lack of maintenance. A rehabilitation plan, backed by foreign aid, was launched in the last decade of the 20th century. Since the end of the civil war in 2002, other rehabilitation and reconstruction plans have also been initiated to improve the country’s transportation infrastructure. Roads A grid of roads links the major geographic centres of economic activity, although only about one-fourth of these roads are paved. Numerous bridges were destroyed during the civil war, and travel on the roads generally was possible only in convoys with armed escorts. In 1997 a state agency responsible for road construction and maintenance estimated that four-fifths of the roads and bridges needed repair. Another challenge was the lack of spare parts available to repair the country’s limited number of motor vehicles. Both of these issues began to see some improvement after the war ended, although in the case of road repair, the progress was slow moving.

Railways The Benguela Railway is the longest of the country’s railways, extending from Lobito on the coast to the Congolese frontier. Owned partly by foreign interests, it once provided sea access for landlocked Zambia and transported minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo , on which the railway’s profitability depended; but, after the start of the civil war, it did not function east of Huambo and often was completely out of use. The Luanda Railway, which was nationalized in 1918, depended on coffee and cotton for its traffic. The Namibe Railway , which has been owned by the state from the outset, depended on the shipment of iron ore. Both railways have functioned only episodically since independence, owing to disruptions from the civil war. Since the end of the war, sections of all three railways have undergone repairs and some have reopened for use; construction has also been initiated on new railway lines. Ports Lobito is the finest and best-equipped port in the country, but it has been underutilized since corn exports from the Bié Plateau and mineral traffic from the Republic of the Congo ceased, with traffic reduced to about one-fifth of preindependence levels.

Although Luanda has a good harbour, it has been poorly managed and by the end of the 20th century handled less than half the cargo it did before 1975. Following the end of the civil war in 2002, renovation began on Luanda’s port facilities. Since the cessation of iron ore shipments, Namibe ’s activity has been based essentially on its role as the country’s major fishing port. Cabinda is the major port for loading petroleum shipments; Malongo and Soyo have also grown in importance with the oil boom, although they have much poorer natural harbours. The lower Congo River is used by seagoing vessels up to Nóqui on the Congolese frontier, and small craft ply the lower Cuanza River for about 140 miles (225 km). Air travel Travel by air was the only safe means of transport during the civil war, and the network of airfields left by the Portuguese has been intensively used. The national airline (Linhas Aéreas de Angola; TAAG) travels to Africa, Europe, South America , and the Caribbean, while air-cargo services are the main focus of Transafrik International.

There is an international airport in Luanda, and several domestic airports are located throughout the country. Telecommunications Like other parts of the country’s infrastructure, the telephone system was badly damaged by war. In the late 1990s, domestic and foreign investment repaired and expanded Angola’s communications infrastructure. The state monopoly on telecommunications ended in 2001, the same year a new cellular communications system became operational in the country. Mobile cellular phones have existed in Angola since the mid-1990s, and use has skyrocketed. Broadband Internet service has been available in Angola since 2003, although access is extremely limited beyond the city of Luanda. Page 1 of 2 Angola - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) After almost 500 years of Portuguese rule, Angola became an independent country in 1975. The seventh largest country in Africa, Angola lies on the southwestern coast of the continent, bordered to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the far northwest by the Republic of the Congo, to the north and northeast by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the southeast by Zambia, and to the south by Namibia.

In the northwest, a small area of Angola called Cabinda is separated from the rest of the country by the Congo River and the extreme southwestern tip of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital of Angola is Luanda. Area 481,354 square miles (1,246,700 square kilometers). Population (2016 est.) 29,508,000. Article Contributors Africa Map / Map of Africa - Facts, Geography, History of Africa - Worldatlas.com African History African Origin of Modern Humans As for Africa, scientists have formerly concluded that it is the birthplace of mankind, as large numbers of human-like fossils (discovered no where else) were found on the continent, some dating back 3.5 million years. About 1.75 million years ago, early man spread throughout parts of Africa. They became aggressive hunters, lived in caves and used fire and their ability to create stone tools just to survive. The Neanderthals arose some 200,000 years ago and inhabited regions in northern Africa and across parts of southern Europe.

There is also clear evidence that they had control of fire, lived in caves, as well as open-air structures of stone and vegetation. One of the most important developments of primitive man was the creation of stone tools. By 5000 BC farming was somewhat common in the northern areas of Africa, as people were growing crops and herding livestock. During that time the Sahara Desert was a fertile area. Ancient African History In 3200 BC the Egyptian culture emerged along the lower reaches of the Nile River; it was among the earliest civilizations and their tools and weapons were made of bronze. They also pioneered the building of massive pyramids and temples. Egyptians also developed mathematics, an innovative system of medicine, irrigation and agricultural production techniques, writing and the first ships. In short, the Egyptians left a lasting legacy upon the world. Around 600 BC the use of metal tools spread across small population bases and farming groups in North Africa, and their use gradually spread south into what is now called South Africa. The Phoenicians were an enterprising maritime trading culture from Lebanon who spread across the Mediterranean from 1550 BC to 300 BC.

In 814 BC, they founded the city of Carthage in what is now Tunisia in north Africa; only to be destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC. Meanwhile, the Egyptians continued to spread their culture across Northern Africa, and kingdoms were created in Ethiopia and Sudan. The then-growing Roman Empire continued to expand its influence, and in 30 BC Egypt became a province of Rome; Morocco the same in 42 AD. Before the Middle Ages began, the Roman Empire collapsed and the Arabs quickly took their place on the continent. In 698-700 they invaded Tunis and Carthage and soon controlled all of coastal North Africa. The Arabs were Muslims, and most of North Africa converted to Islam; Ethiopia was the exception. Soon kingdoms emerged in Africa; they traded with the Arabs using gold plus a valuable commodity - slaves. One of the first kingdoms was Ghana, located in what is now southeastern Mauritania and western Mali. The empire grew rich from the trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt, but then lost its power in the 11th century. Additional kingdoms developed across the continent, including those in Benin and Mali.

Both became rich by trading in gold, horse salt, and of course, slaves. And like most kingdoms before them on any continent, they were invaded and in the end destroyed. Mogadishu, the now largest city in Somalia, was settled by Arabs who traveled and traded on the east coast of Africa. The Arabs' reach extended to Zanzibar, which was used as a base for voyages between the Middle East and India. As other organized kingdoms were formed in central and southern Africa, the Portuguese began to explore the western coast of Africa. By 1445 they reached the Cape Verde Islands and the coast of Senegal, and the mouth of the River Congo in 1482. They even sailed around the Cape of Good Hope. African Colonization and the Slave Trade The continent-changing 16th Century began with Europeans transporting African slaves to the Americas for profit. A slave purchased on the African coast for the equivalent of 14 English pounds in bartered goods could sell for 45 pounds in the American market. The best-known method of commerce at the time was called the Triangular Trading System.

It involved British and other European countries' manufactured goods which were shipped to Africa, then slaves from there to the West Indies and then sugar and other products back to Europe. At the same time, Barbary pirates along the North African coast captured thousands of ships. From the 16th to 19th century, an estimated 800,000 to 1.25 million people were taken captive as slaves. The pirates' impact on the continent, however, peaked in the early to mid-17th century. As tales of African riches spread north, the Europeans founded their first real colonies in the early 16th century, when the Portuguese settled in what is now Angola. Later, the Dutch founded a colony in what is now South Africa. Strong movements to end slavery began in the late 18th century. France became one of the first countries to abolish slavery in 1794. Britain banned slave trade in 1807, but it was not officially abolished for good until 1848. In some parts of Africa, slave-like practices continue to this day and have proven difficult to eliminate.

Wholesale colonization of Africa by European countries began in 1814 when the British snatched the Dutch Colony of South Africa. Carved up like a large pie, the Brits, Dutch, French, Germans and Portuguese grabbed all of the available pieces. By the end of the 19th century, from Algeria to Zimbabwe, and from Botswana to Niger, the continent was now all but controlled by European powers. In the early 20th century the land grab continued as the British took control of Egypt. By 1920, the forced occupation of African lands began to sour in Europe, and change was in the wind. Africans were also driven by their passionate desire for independence and the movement for same became unstoppable. By mid-century most of the continent was independent, with Angola finally free in 1975. Post-Colonial Africa Self-government brought more than its share of civil wars, coup d'états and ethnic conflicts to the newly emerged countries. Add to that mix some horrible genocides, along with famines and out-of-control disease (HIV/AIDS), and Africa was teetering on the edge, and in many areas still does today.

Although Africa remains the world's poorest inhabited continent, there are many bright spots in this land of over one billion people and its 2,000 + languages. Significant economic and social gains have taken place over the last few years, with South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt leading the way. The largest segments of modern Africa's economies are agriculture and mining, with tourism growing in some areas. Manufacturing industries have grown large enough to ship products across the planet, and the oil export revenues of Angola, Libya and Nigeria have the potential to change the lives of millions. Today the 54 countries of Africa have great potential, but this question must be asked: "Can it change soon enough to meet the needs of its people?" We can only hope so. Africa Geography Facts For additional geography details please use the yellow navigation bar at the top of this page.

Algeria is Africa's largest country The Seychelles are Africa's smallest country Nigeria is Africa's largest country by population The Seychelles are Africa's smallest country by population Africa's highest point is Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania Africa's lowest point is Lake Assal in Djibouti Interesting Facts About Africa Two of Africa's most interesting geographical features are the Nile River System and Sahara Desert; both impressive in so many ways. Nile River System: The Nile is a north-flowing river considered the longest river in the world at 6,650 km (4,130 mi) long. It is shared by and benefits eleven countries. The White Nile and Blue Nile are its major tributaries. The White Nile is longer and rises in the Great Lakes region of central Africa, flowing north from Tanzania to South Sudan . The Blue Nile is the source of most of the water and both rivers join near Khartoum, Sudan The northern section of the river flows almost entirely through desert, from Sudan into Egypt. The Nile ends in a large delta that empties into the Mediterranean Sea.

Sahara Desert: It's the world's hottest desert, the third largest desert after Antarctica and the Arctic, and almost as large as China. Covering almost one-third of the continent, the Sahara is the largest hot desert in the world at approximately 3,500,000 sq. miles (9,065,000 sq. km) in total size. Topography includes areas of rock-strewn plains, rolling sand dunes and numerous sand seas. It ranges in elevation from 100 ft. below sea level, to peaks in the Ahaggar and Tibesti Mountains, that exceed 11,000 ft. (3,350m). Regional deserts include the Libyan, Nubian and the Western desert of Egypt, just to the west of the Nile. Almost completely without rainfall, a few underground rivers flow from the Atlas Mountains, helping to irrigate isolated oases. In the east, the waters of the Nile help fertilize smaller parts of the landscape.

Africa Information Africa weather forecasts and current conditions Maps of Africa Africa, the planet's 2nd largest continent and the second most-populous continent (after Asia) includes (54) individual countries, and Western Sahara, a member state of the African Union whose statehood is disputed by Morocco. Note that South Sudan is the continent's newest country. With a 2011 population of 1,032,532,974, it accounts for just over 14% of the world's human population. It also contains the Nile River system, the world's longest, and the massive Sahara Desert, the world's largest. Africa is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, both the Suez Canal and the Red Sea along the Sinai Peninsula to the northeast, the Indian Ocean to the east and southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Country Map of Africa Outline Outline map of the Africa continent including the disputed territory of Western Sahara World Atlas - About Angola World Atlas Planning a trip to Angola? Find out what visa options are available for your nationality. Access requirements, application forms, and online ordering.

Check Visa Options Economy of Angola Despite a fast-growing economy largely due to a major oil boom, Angola ranks in the bottom 10% of most socioeconomic indicators. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that Angola's real GDP increased by 16% in 2008. However, GDP growth in 2009 was flat due to significantly lower oil prices owing to the global financial crisis. According to the IMF, GDP growth in 2010 was projected at around 2.5%, with a solid pick-up in the pace of growth expected for 2011. Angola is still recovering from 27 years of nearly continuous warfare, and it remains beset by corruption and economic mismanagement. Despite abundant natural resources and rising per capita GDP, it was ranked 157 out of 179 countries on the 2008 UN Development Program's (UNDP) Human Development Index. Subsistence agriculture sustains one-third of the population. The rapidly expanding petroleum industry reached its Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cap of 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2008.

However, Angola’s production was cut to 1.51 million bpd in January 2009 by an OPEC mandate in response to plummeting oil prices. Throughout 2009, Angola never got down to its OPEC quota and produced an average of 1.8 million bpd. As of December 2010, Angola was Africa’s largest oil producer, a position that Angola and Nigeria had traded places on back and forth over the preceding year. Crude oil accounted for roughly 85% of GDP, 95% of exports, and 85% of government revenues in 2009. Angola also produces 40,000 bpd of locally refined oil. Oil production remains largely offshore and has few linkages with other sectors of the economy, though a local content initiative promulgated by the Angolan Government is pressuring oil companies to source from local businesses. The government is also pressuring oil companies to increase the number of Angolan staff. Block 15, located offshore of Soyo, currently provides 30% of Angola's crude oil production.

ExxonMobil, through its subsidiary Esso, is the operator, with a 40% share. In 2005, Block 15's second major sub-field, Kizomba B, came on line, producing about 250,000 bpd. BP, ENI-Agip, and Statoil are partners in the concession. Chevron operates Block 0, offshore of Cabinda, which provides about 20% of Angola's crude oil production. Its partners in Block 0 are Sonangol (the Angolan state oil company), TotalFinaElf, and ENI-Agip. In 2007, Block 0 had a total production of 370,000 bpd, and drilling activity continues at a high level. Chevron also operates Angola's first deepwater section to go into production, Block 14, which started pumping in January 2000 and produced 105,000 bpd in 2006. TotalFinaElf brought the first Kwanza Basin deepwater blocks on line with production from its Block 17 concession that began in February 2002.

Inauguration of the Dalia oilfield in December 2006 combined with the Girassol field already in operation brought Block 17's total production to approximately 500,000 bpd as of July 2007. Total expected to begin drilling in new oilfield Pazflor in 2009, bringing production to a peak of 700,000 bpd by 2011. Exploration is ongoing in ultra-deep water concessions and in deepwater and shallow concessions in the Namibe Basin. BP made the first significant ultra-deepwater find in its Block 31 concession in 2002 and had reached nine significant discoveries by the end of 2005. BP shipped its first crude from the Plutonio oilfield in Block 18 in 2007 and ultimately expects Plutonio to average 200,000 bpd in full production. Marathon also drilled a successful well in its Block 32 ultra-deep water concession.

TotalFinaElf operates Angola's one refinery (in Luanda) for sole owner Sonangol; plans for a second refinery in Lobito with projected production of 200,000 bpd are moving forward, with KBR selected to do the front-end engineering and design work. There are plans to increase capacity of the Luanda refinery from 40,000 bpd to 100,000 bpd. Chevron, Sonangol, BP, Total, and Eni are developing a $4 billion to $5 billion liquefied natural gas plant at Soyo, now under construction by Bechtel, expected to start production in 2012. Exports to Asian countries have grown rapidly in recent years, particularly to China. In late 2004, China's state oil company Sinopec entered the market, offering two separate $1 billion signing bonus offers on two offshore blocks. Sinopec has also formed a partnership with Sonangol to operate Block 3/05 (formerly Block 3/80), whose operation was transferred from Total to Sonangol. Sonangol will seek to expand its operation of onshore and shallow water blocks.

This includes the northern block of Cabinda's onshore concessions, which since the reduction in hostilities with separatist forces is now open to exploration. Sonangol and Sinopec will also be eyeing future concession rounds, particularly for 23 blocks in the Kwanza Basin onshore area and the relinquished parts of Blocks 15, 17, and 18, currently operated by Exxon, Total, and BP. In 2008, Angola was China’s second-leading source country for crude oil by volume, importing 599 million barrels valued at U.S. $59.900 billion, up 19.3% year on year. Diamonds make up most of Angola's remaining exports, with yearly production at 6 million carats. However, the financial crisis severely depressed diamond prices in 2009, sharply curtailing Angola’s diamond exports, and at one point forcing the state diamond authority, Endiama, to buy up production at cost for stockpiling to keep operators going. Diamond sales reached approximately $1.1 billion in 2006.

Despite increased corporate ownership of diamond fields, much production is currently in the hands of small-scale prospectors, often operating illegally. Eight large-scale mines operate out of a total of 145 concessions. In June 2005, De Beers signed a $10 million prospecting contract with the government's diamond parastatal, ending a 4-year investment dispute between De Beers and the government. The government is making an increased effort to register and license prospectors. Legal sales of rough diamonds may occur only through the government's diamond-buying parastatal, although many producers continue to bypass the system to obtain higher prices. The government has established an export certification scheme consistent with the "Kimberley Process" to identify legitimate production and sales. Other mineral resources, including gold, remain largely undeveloped, though granite and marble quarrying has begun. In the last decade of the colonial period, Angola was a major African agricultural exporter. Because of severe wartime conditions, including the massive dislocation of rural people and the extensive laying of landmines throughout the countryside, agricultural activities came to a near standstill, and the country now imports over half of its food.

Small-scale agricultural production has increased several-fold over the last 5 years due to demining efforts, infrastructure improvements, and the ability of returnees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to return safely to agricultural areas, yet production of most crops remains below 1974 levels. Some efforts at commercial agricultural recovery have gone forward, notably in fisheries and tropical fruits, but most of the country's vast potential remains untapped. Recently proposed land reform laws attempt to reconcile overlapping traditional land use rights, colonial-era land claims, and recent land grants to facilitate significant commercial agricultural development. However, the lack of clear title to land tracts and burdensome registration process in Angola continues to be a significant impediment to foreign investment in the agriculture sector. An economic reform effort launched in 1998 was only marginally successful in addressing persistent fiscal mismanagement and corruption. In April 2000, Angola started an IMF staff-monitored program (SMP). The program lapsed in June 2001 over IMF concerns about lack of progress by Angola. Under the program, the Government of Angola did succeed in unifying exchange rates and moving fuel, electricity, and water prices closer to market rates.

In March 2007, the government announced it was not interested in a formally structured IMF program, but would continue to participate in Article IV consultations and other technical assistance on an ad hoc basis. In November 2009, following increased Angolan efforts to make oil revenues more transparent, the IMF approved a 27-month Standby Arrangement (SBA) with Angola in the amount of approximately $1.4 billion to help the country cope with the effects of the global economic crisis. According to a statement released by the IMF, “While the immediate goal is to mitigate the repercussions of the adverse terms of trade shocks linked to the global crisis, the program also includes a reform agenda aimed at medium-term structural issues to foster non-oil sector growth.” The loan was the largest IMF financing package to date for a sub-Saharan African country during the global crisis. In December 2002, President dos Santos named a new economic team to oversee homegrown reform efforts. The new team succeeded in decreasing overall government spending, rationalizing the Kwanza exchange rate, closing regulatory loopholes that allowed off-budget expenditures, and capturing all revenues in the state budget.

New procedures were implemented to track the flow of funds among the Treasury, Banco Nacional de Angola (the central bank), and the state-owned Banco de Poupanca e Credito, which operates the budget. The Angolan Government adopted a new investment code. Concerns remain about quasi-fiscal operations by the state oil company Sonangol, opaque oil-backed concessionary lines of credit that operate outside the budget process, inadequate transparency, oversight in the management of public accounts, and the lack of supervision of the commercial banking sector. A recent Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) report cited Angola for a significant lack of laws and regulations regarding anti-money laundering and counterterrorist financing (AML/CFT). The Angolan commercial code, financial sector law, and telecommunications law all require substantial revision. Angola is the second-largest trading partner of the United States in sub-Saharan Africa, mainly because of its petroleum exports. U.S. exports to Angola primarily consist of industrial goods and services--such as oilfield equipment, mining equipment, chemicals, aircraft, and food. On December 30, 2003, President George W.

Bush approved the designation of Angola as eligible for tariff preferences under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). GDP (2009 est.): $74.4 billion. Annual real GDP growth rate (2010 est.): 2.5%. Per capita GDP (2009): $4,301. Avg. inflation rate (2009): 13.9%. Natural resources: Petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, bauxite, uranium, gold, granite, copper, feldspar. Agriculture: Products--bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc, tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fisheries products. Industry: Types--petroleum drilling and refining, mining, cement, fish processing, food processing, brewing, tobacco products, sugar, textiles, ship repair. Trade: Exports (2009 est.)--$40.8 billion: crude oil, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton. Major markets (2009)--China 36.4%, U.S.

26.9%, EU 19%, South Africa 4.2%, Chile 3.7%. Imports (2009 est.)--$15 billion: machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods. Major sources (2009)--EU 43.1%, China 17.4%, U.S. 8.5%, Brazil 8.3%, South Korea 6.7%, South Africa 4.2%. Geography of Angola Angola is bordered by the Democratic Republic of Congo to the north, Zambia to the east, Namibia to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Mountains rise from the coast, levelling to a plateau which makes up most of the country. The country is increasingly arid towards the south; the far south is on the edge of the Namib Desert. The northern plateau is thickly vegetated. Cabinda is a small enclave to the north of Angola proper, surrounded by the territories of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Congo. The discovery of large oil deposits off the coast of the enclave has led to it becoming the centre of Angola's foreign business interests. The oil industry is based primarily at Malongo.

Official Name: Republic of Angola (Republica de Angola) Capital: Luanda Area: 1,246,700 sq. km. (481,400 sq. mi), about twice the size of Texas. Cities: Capital--Luanda (pop. 3.8 million); Huambo (750,000); Benguela (600,000). Terrain: A narrow, dry coastal strip extending from Luanda to Namibia; well-watered agricultural highlands; savanna in the far east and south; and rain forest in the north and Cabinda. Climate: Tropical and tropical highland. Government of Angola Angola changed from a one-party Marxist-Leninist system ruled by the MPLA to a nominal multiparty democracy following the 1992 elections, in which President dos Santos won the first-round election with 49% of the vote to Jonas Savimbi's 40%; a runoff never took place. The Constitutional Law of 1992 establishes the broad outlines of government structure and delineates the rights and duties of citizens.

The government is based on ordinances, decrees, and decisions issued by a president and his ministers and on legislation produced by the National Assembly and approved by the president. The Assembly is generally subordinate to the executive. Angola is governed by a president, vice president, and 85 appointed ministers and state secretaries. Political power is concentrated in the presidency. The executive branch of the government is composed of the president (head of state and government), the vice president, ministers of state, and the Council of Ministers. The Council of Ministers, composed of all government ministers and secretaries of state, meets regularly to discuss policy issues. The president, the Council of Ministers, and individual ministers in their areas of competence have the ability to legislate by decree. Of the 220 deputies currently seated in the National Assembly, 130 are elected at large, and 5 are elected to represent each of the 18 provinces. The Electoral Law also calls for the election of three additional deputies to represent citizens living abroad; however, those positions have not been filled. Angola held legislative elections on September 5, 2008, Angola’s first since 1992.

Due to technical difficulties on election day, voting was extended through September 6 in some constituencies. The results of the elections were accepted by UNITA and most other opposition parties. The MPLA won 81.6% of the electorate, giving it 191 out of 220 seats in parliament. The remaining 29 parliamentary seats were won by the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) (16), the Social Renewal Party (PRS) (8), National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA) (3), and the New Democracy (ND) coalition (2). Angola enacted a new constitution on February 5, 2010 and on February 8, President dos Santos swore in a new government. The new constitution allows for the direct election of the president, introduces the new office of the vice president, and eliminates the position of prime minister. After signing the new constitution, President dos Santos declared that national elections would take place in 2012. Municipal elections may take place after the next national poll. The central government administers the country through 18 provinces. Governors of the provinces are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the president.

The government has embarked on a program of decentralization, and in August 2007 the Council of Ministers passed a resolution to grant some municipalities control of their own budgets; this measure was extended to all municipalities in 2008. The legal system is based on Portuguese and customary law but is weak and fragmented. Courts operate in only a fraction of the 164 municipalities. A Supreme Court serves as the appellate tribunal; a constitutional court was established in May 2008. The 27-year civil war ravaged the country's political and social institutions. Daily conditions of life throughout the country mirror the inadequate administrative infrastructure as well as inadequate social institutions, for which government support is often weak. Many hospitals are without medicines or basic equipment, schools are without books, and public employees often lack the basic supplies for their daily work. The government estimates that 4.7 million people were internally displaced by the civil war. In March 2007, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Angola jointly celebrated the end of a 5-year organized voluntary repatriation program that returned home more than 400,000 Angolan refugees.

However, over 200,000 refugees remain outside Angola, mainly in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, and Namibia. Principal Government Officials

Question: In which African country is the deep water port of Lobito?
Answer: ANGOLA