Angola: The Economy Falls Like Garbage from a High-Rise

I’d like to turn now to Southern Africa, where I moved (to Johannesburg) after my stint in Nairobi covering East Africa. And I’d like to dwell at some length on Angola, which I first visited in October 1996. As I noted at the time, Angola's economy had been ravaged by 20-years of civil war and political instability. Then, as an internationally-backed peace process neared its final phase, economic conditions had worsened, threatening the political and military reconciliation effort between the government and its former rebel rivals in the UNITA movement. I reported from Luanda:

The 17-story pastel-hued high-rise apartment building sits just off the palm-lined shorefront boulevard leading to the port of Luanda. Residents leaning on their windowsills can stare far out to sea, past the ships anchored in the harbor. In other places, it would be luxury property, situated in a prime location.

But Luanda is no pristine tropical beachfront resort city -- and the high rise, though not an old building, is a dilapidated eyesore. Residents of the Angolan capital have nicknamed the structure "shake-shake" -- a reflection of its fragility. The concrete is cracked and stained. Window casings are bent and broken. Glass is shattered and a roof running along one side of the building has collapsed. Garbage lies piled along the street right outside -- much of it tossed there by the apartment dwellers above.

Like the household debris from "shake-shake", Angola's economy has been plummeting downward.

“The Angolan economy, regrettably, has been in a free-fall for several years now.”

That is US Ambassador Donald Steinberg. He says economic conditions in Angola are so bad they represent a serious threat to the multi-million dollar international effort to promote a lasting peace in the country, after two decades of civil war.

“The inflation rate, the unemployment rate, the balance of payments problems that this country faces are severe and they impose a very, very strong pressure not only on the economy, (or) the social status of people, but on the peace process itself.”

The American envoy says there is deep concern, despite progress in the peace process, the whole effort could unravel because of the worsening economic situation. Mr. Steinberg says that is one good reason why Angola's government and its rivals in the former rebel UNITA movement should step up the pace of the political and military reconciliation process.

“There is a very deep concern that despite movement in the peace process, we could see an unraveling of the situation because of the very strong economic pressures that have built up. We also believe that is the strongest argument for accelerating the peace process. The lack of free circulation of people and goods around this country is a very strong element in the decline of the economy, the inability to exploit diamond, cattle and fishing resources and to fully exploit the oil industry as well is a direct result of 20 years of civil War.”

There was a government re-organization earlier this year, specifically designed to meet the economic challenge. More recently, senior Angolan cabinet ministers traveled to Washington for consultations with both the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Now the Director-General of the IMF is expected in Luanda shortly to meet with authorities to talk about fresh economic reform and stabilization measures. Analysts say they hope these exchanges will lead to a new program for fundamental economic change, one that will also be accompanied by continued steps toward a lasting peace.

They say then Angola, with all its oil, mineral and agricultural resources, can perhaps fulfill its promise to become one of africa's richest countries.

(Some Background on Angola from the World Factbook: Angola is rebuilding country after the end of a 27-year civil war in 2002. Fighting between the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), led by Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS, and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), led by Jonas SAVIMBI, followed independence from Portugal in 1975. Peace seemed imminent in 1992 when Angola held national elections, but UNITA renewed fighting after being beaten by the MPLA at the polls. Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost - and 4 million people displaced - in the quarter century of fighting. SAVIMBI's death in 2002 ended UNITA's insurgency and strengthened the MPLA's hold on power. While President DOS SANTOS had pledged to hold legislative elections in 2007, he has since announced that legislative elections will be held in 2008, with Presidential elections planned for 2009. A specific election timetable has yet to be established.)