The decolonization of angola

Name of Territory Before Independence:

occupation of territory

• Angola had the status of a Portuguese colony
• Colonization began from 1655
• Early incursion was punctuated by war, treaties, and disputes
• Benguela, a Portuguese fort and later, town, was an important settlement

Major Exports

• Cotton
• Slaves
• Sugar
• Coffee

year of INDEPENDENCE: 1975

How Angola gained freedom: when the Belgian Congo achieved independence in 1960, anti-colonial movements developed in Angola. Unfortunately for the colony, liberation movements (armed revolutions and prolonged civil war) were supported by opposing sides of the Cold War: American for UNITA and Russia for MPLA. Angola finally gained its independence on November 11, 1975 with the Alvor Agreement.

Holden Roberto

• Leader of the Union of Peoples of Angola (UPA)
• Founded the Revolutionary Government of Angola in Exile (GRAE)
• Established a political alliance with Zairian President Mobutu Sese Seko
• Launched an incursion into Angola from its base in Zaïre

Jones Savimbi

• Appointed to the position of Foreign Minister of GRAE
• Founded the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA)

Major Problems still exist today.

• Only about 67.4% of the total population above age 15 can read/write
• Rampant deforestation
• At least 55% of its people live below the poverty line
• The life expectancy is around 38 years - one of the worst in Africa
• HIV/AIDS