Update on a Princess Diana's Angola Landmine Victim

(Mail Online, Luanda) Pictured 16 years on: The brave girl who won Diana's heart after losing leg in an Angolan landmine blast.

She was 13 and about to receive a prosthetic leg when Princess Diana visited her.

Poignant images of Sandra Tigica’s 1997 meeting with the Princess of Wales were beamed around the globe, highlighting the appalling problems in Angola, which had the world’s highest rate of death and disability caused by landmines.

Sandra’s left leg had been blown off by a landmine three years earlier as she fled from fighting in her country’s civil war. Diana, who died in a Paris car crash later that year, was in the Angolan capital, Luanda, to publicize her support for the Red Cross campaign for an end to the use of landmines.

Now Sandra is a married mother of three – and dreams that one day Prince William’s wife will carry on his mother’s good work.

She said: ‘Princess Diana helped our country. It is a much safer place thanks to her. I would like to meet “Princess Kate”. I have heard that she is doing a lot of charity work and I think she must continue what Princess Diana started. She should come to Angola.’ Sandra, who watched Kate’s wedding to Prince William on the internet and was delighted by news of her pregnancy, added: ‘I cried a lot, for many hours, when Diana died.

‘She brought hope to Angola. With the humanitarian support from foreign countries, the mines are disappearing little by little. But since she’s been gone, people have started to forget.’

According to the latest figures, 89 casualties from mine or explosive remnants of war devices were reported in Angola in 2011 – at least six of which were children. Total casualty estimates over the years range from 23,000 to 80,000.

It was on January 14, 1997, that Sandra chatted to Diana as they sat on a dusty wall at the Neves Bendinha Orthopaedic Workshop on the outskirts of Luanda.

Sandra recalled: ‘She stroked my face and told me lots of nice things including how she was looking forward to improving conditions in my country.’

Sandra got a prosthetic leg, but she shuns her current one – choosing instead to use crutches. ‘The legs made here are too heavy and I can’t move properly,’ she said.

She earns £130 a month writing letters for the local government, while her husband is in the military. They live in a 20ft x 40ft hut with a corrugated iron roof in Angola’s rural Lunda Sul province with their three children, aged four, six and eight, and Sandra’s 13-year-old sister.

Inside, the photograph of Sandra and Diana takes pride of place on a wall. It is also used in schoolbooks in Angola, and Sandra is recognized wherever she goes because of it. She is looking forward to seeing the meeting recreated in the forthcoming film about Diana’s final years, starring Naomi Watts.

‘I can’t believe I will feature in a big film – I will be played by an actress!’ Sandra said. ‘I don’t have a TV so cannot watch it. But I would like to come to the UK and see it.’ (www.dailymail.co.uk)

Angola on Track to Leave List of Least Developed Countries

The Committee for Development Policy of the Social Council of the United Nations (UNCTAD) announced in September that Angola became a candidate for the graduation process of the Group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), on a list that will be approved in 2015.
Angola was recommended by the UNCTAD to work to get out of the LDCs, taking into account the advances in macro-economic and social achievements.

Least developed country (LDC) is the name given to a country which, according to the United Nations,  exhibits the lowest indicators of socioeconomic development, with the lowest Human Development Index ratings of all the countries in the world. The concept of LDCs originated in the late 1960s and the first group of LDCs was listed by the UN in November 1971. A country is classified as a Least Developed Country if it meets three criteria:

• Poverty (three-year average GNP per capita of less than US $905, which must exceed $1,086 to leave the list)
• Human resource weakness HCI ( based on indicators of nutrition, health, education and adult literacy) and
• Economic vulnerability IVE (based on instability of agricultural production, instability of exports of goods and services, economic importance of non-traditional activities, merchandise export concentration, handicap of economic smallness, and the percentage of population displaced by natural disasters).

For the countries classified with this distinction, potential benefits fall into four main areas: (a) preferential market access, (b) special treatment regarding World Trade Organization-related obligations, (c) official development assistance and other forms of developmental financing, and (d) technical cooperation and other forms of assistance. The majority of LDCs are in Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the UN rules, the LDCs must meet two of the three criteria in the upper limits established for inclusion, or having a high level of GNP per capita which is twice that of the value stipulated for inclusion.  Angola's GNP is sufficient for exclusion for the list, even though the country has not reached the required values in any of the other criteria, considering that following the end of the war in 2002 the Angolan GDP grew at an average of 12%.

In the last three decades, only three countries left the group of LDCs, namely Botswana, Cape Verde and Maldives.  (Angola Njango, UNCTAD, wikipedia)

State of Angola's Disastrous Drought

Angola is now in the midst of a disastrous drought.  This is current report just released by the International Red Cross.

Drought is currently affecting 10 coastal and central highland provinces of Angola. Agricultural production has dramatically decreased and increasing water shortages have been reported. It is estimated that agricultural production will decrease by more than 400,000 tons nationally and an estimated 366,780 households (1,833,900 people) will be affected  by food security across the 10 of the 18 provinces.

The rapid assessment conducted by the Angolan National Department of Nutrition in May 2012 confirmed that most of the population, especially in rural areas, is affected by the drought. The total number of acutely malnourished children in the ten affected provinces is currently estimated at 533,000.

The assessment carried out by the Red Cross team confirmed that the situation is serious and requires immediate attention before it escalates out of hand in the coming 3-4 months. In some areas, families are sharing with livestock, few water sources that are also highly contaminated. Consequently, the possibility of outbreak of water related diseases are very high.

The Ministry of Agriculture reported a 60% decrease of average rainfall amount over the planting season resulting in 30% drop in crop production especially of cereals like maize. Total crop failure reported was recorded in some regions especially of bean crops and other drought tolerant tubers. With more than 70% of the population living below the poverty datum line, the impact will be devastating. (ICRC Nov 2012)

Housing Luanda's Street Children

Luanda (Agenzia Fides) - In Luanda, Angola, there are many children who sleep in the streets, in deserted houses or in parks, inhale gasoline to try to cope with hunger and to give themselves courage to survive on the streets. Thanks to a new initiative of the Salesian missionaries, for some of these young children a new life begins. 
The new St. Kizito home, a reception center that functions as a day and night center, children can wash themselves, eat, play and sleep. At the moment there are 600 children and young people, and every week more than 250 adolescents go to the center.

With its five million inhabitants and high crime rates Angola’s capital, Luanda, is regarded as one of the world’s most dangerous and expensive cities. The twenty-seven year civil war that ended in 2002 left over 40% of the population below the poverty line. Estimates put the number of street children in Luanda at around 5,000. The chances of any their dreams coming true often lies in the hands of the Salesian and Verbist priests and the centers they run. 

The war orphaned countless children. However not only war and aids-orphans live on the streets: the number also includes children who flee their homes because of alcoholism, domestic violence or extreme poverty leading to a lack of even the most basic means of survival. An additional problem children face is being charged with witchcraft. Seemingly absurd, these cases are both common and on the rise. When a tragedy – such as death, an illness or unemployment – befalls a family, the search for a guilty party with “evil forces” begins. Often the weakest in the family – old or young – is found guilty. At best they end up on the street; at worst, they are either maimed or murdered. 


AIDS too is spreading, especially amongst children exploited for prostitution. Drugs are a universal problem, ranging from glue and petrol sniffing to alcohol abuse. During the day, young children and teenagers work as baggage porters, cleaners, and market square trade helpers; they wash cars, clean shoes, commit acts of larceny, or beg on the streets.

According to UNICEF about 30% of Angola’s children between the age of 5 and 14 are forced to work. 

“I worked, loaded cars; when I finished loading, the evening came, I sat on the streets and begged”, recounts one of the older boys. Now he wants to save those who have to live on the street, as he once did.

"Open your arms so that no one takes a step back" is the motto of this new center. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 12/11/2012)

Angola's Boy Scouts - "Always Alert"

Luanda - At least 20,000 Boy Scouts are registered in Angolan religious entities and they have been working everyday towards to the Angolan community's well-being.

These remarks were uttered recently by the head of the Angolan National Scouting Movement, António Silvestre Sardinha, when welcoming 2.000 delegates from 21 African countries to attend the 15th African conference on scouting in Angola's capital Luanda,  from June 7-9.  The event was attended by high-ranked figures of scounting, namely the African regional director Frederic Kama-Kama, secretary-general of scouting movement, Luc Panissod and the chairman of the world scouting committee, Simon Rhee.

The 15th African Conference on Scouting in Luanda was focused on the theme “Scouting, a vehicle for Africa’s development”, and debated the implementation of policies and guidelines defined in the World Conference for National Associations of Scouting. The conference also debated the goals and programmes for the coming mandate, as well as training actions under the programme of the Angolan government. 

Angolan Scouting was widespread in colonial years, working closely with Portugal's Catholic Corpo National de Escutas.  When Angola gained its independence in 1975 and came under Marxist rule, Scouting was banned by that government.  Scouting was officially started again in February 1991.  In 1994, the inter-religious Associação National de Escuteiros and the Catholic Associação de Escuteiros Católicas de Angola merged forming the AEA.  Scouting includes an inter-religious pastoral commission which brings together the main religions represented by the members of the Scout Association. 

Scouting in Angola enjoys special support from the Catholic Church and some groups are closely linked to the church, and excellent relations exist with UN agencies. Together with UNICEF, Scouting has been in the forefront of the campaign for children's immunization against polio. Scouting activities focus on improving the quality of life in local communities. These include humanitarian assistance to those who have fled armed conflict, working with UNICEF on Oral Rehydration Therapy programs, and an anti-polio campaign led by the Ministry of Health. (ANGOP, Google)

Chinese Populations in Angola

The number of Chinese residents in Angola, subject of frequent speculation, is approximately 259,000 as stated by Beijing Angolan director of the Office of Migration and Foreigners, Freitas Neto.


Speaking to the official news agency Angop, Freitas Neto stated that "there are currently 258,920 Chinese in Angola", with almost 98% of these as construction workers helping to rebuild the country.

China is Angola's biggest trade partner and export destination as well as the fourth-largest importer. Bilateral trade reached $27.67 billion in 2011, up 11.5 percent year-on-year. China’s imports, mainly crude oil and diamonds, increased 9.1 percent to $24.89 billion while China’s exports, including mechanical and electrical products, machinery parts and construction materials, surged 38.8 percent, according to China’s General Administration of Customs.

Angola embarked on fast development after the end of a civil war in 2002. It was China’s second-largest trade partner in Africa in 2011 and the second-largest crude oil provider.

Trade in diamonds, China’s other major import from Angola, will continue to surge owing to strong investment demand in the second-largest market for the diamonds.

China's investments in Angola, mainly centered in infrastructure, social development including schools and hospitals, and agriculture, also help to expand bilateral trade since the investments lead to the purchase of engineering materials from China. (Angop, China Daily)

Defining Angola's Poverty

(Capital Press Report)  Recent reports reveal that more than 30% of the Angolan population is relegated to the status of a 'poor condition', under defined parameters which evaluate the capabilities of ordinary citizens policy to purchase a common meal, translated into a simple dish of rice and beans, have adequate access to basic social services and live in a decent home. 

Analysts for Catholic University of Angola's research center say two in three Angolans still live on $2 or less a day.  In a study by the Institute of National Statistics which focuses on a series of social variables, 37% of Angola's population is poor, living with an average monthly income below 4,739 Kwanzas (approximately USD$50), an amount defined as the national poverty line in Angola.

The Statistics Institute reports that inadequate access to food and deprivation of some dimensions of well-being are factors that cause 37% of the Angolan population to be referred to as being in a situation of poverty and only surviving on one meal per day.

Available data indicates that one in three Angolans revealed have an inadequate consumption of goods services. The analytical report of the data on this survey also reveals that every person in Angola has a monthly consumption of 6.449 Kwanzas (approximately USD$70), which corresponds to the amount of consumable income needed to meet the consumption needs of food and non-food items as well as wellness and comfort. (Angonoticias)

Renaissance of Angolan Art

Following their country’s emergence from decades of strife, Angola’s artists are making their unique contribution to the wider contemporary art scene of southern Africa. The interest in Angolan art is growing rapidly.  This interest is fueled by the creative output of the local artists who are now beginning to appear, and reappear, and also by the global interest being shown in all art coming from Africa through exhibitions such as the highly successful Africa Remix, just concluding its tour to Europe and Japan.

Trienal of Luanda, is an art 'mega-project' with a budget around $6 million, was recently with a continental-focused African Imagery Observatory. The main objective of the Trienal is to build a new Center of Contemporary Art in Luanda which houses an art collection of 500 items representing 25 African countries.

An example of one Angolan artists’ exposition at the Art Center is entitled Angola Combatente, which opened in Luanda’s Soso gallery. This is a project to promote young Angolan artists and to give them an opportunity to determine the cultural and political contours of their country. The show was a big success and demonstrated different approaches of the Angolano combatente (Angolano combatante means Angolan soldier, a term created to show that in time of war the Angolan population were all soldiers and patriots). In the provinces and in collaboration with the local administrative bodies, the Trienal will be presented as an open-air cinema show, projecting the events as they happen in Luanda.

Meanwhile, Africa Remix features the work of several leading Angolan artists: Fernando Alvim, Paulo Capela, António Ole, Frank Lundangi and N’dilo Mutima.

Born in Luanda in 1963, Fernando Alvim is a leading influence in Angolan contemporary art. He has created several art-related projects in Europe, the United States and Africa. Fernando Alvim has participated in art exhibitions all over the world including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Biennale of Sidney, Australia, the Art Museum of La Rochelle, France, the Contemporary Art Centre of Calouste Gulbenkian, Portugal, La Louviere, Brussels, and also in Dakar, Senegal.

Paulo Capela, a self-taught artist and fervent Catholic, places his own paintings and drawings alongside objects in private shrines to represent an ideal world in which communism and capitalism co-exist.

António Ole, a famous Luanda-born painter and philosopher, is admired by collectors the world over. He has as one of his long-term projects the creation of a series of photo-walls featuring museque dwellings which, through images of decay, destruction and war, speak of the will to survive and thus of Angola’s past, present and future.

Born in  Maquela do Zombo in 1950, Frank Lundangi left the country to become footballer in France, but found his way through painting and sculpture, and now lives in Paris – one of the most sought-after African artists there.

N’dilo Mutima , another young artist and photographer is also gaining a strong reputation in Europe.

The influence of these five and whose inspiration has been shaped by the recent past, will have a significant effect on the art of southern Africa during the next decade at least. (Taken from Sonangol Magazine)

Emigration Role Reversal

During the height of Angola's civil war, many Angolans fled for safety to Portugal, the African country's old colonialist and imperial power.  Given the commonality of language, burgeoning economy and job opportunities in Portugal during the 70's to 90's, many Angolans prospered well.

Now in a reversal of traditional migration patterns, thousands of young unemployed professionals are escaping Portugal's crippling economic crisis by finding jobs in the former colony of Angola.  In the midst of national economic restructuring, Portugal's youth unemployment rate is 26.8%, with more than 95,000 people jobless between the ages of 16 and 25; many of the migrating, skilled youth have masters and PhD degrees that are valuable in a developing Angola that needs skilled people to rebuild its infrastructure.

Portugal’s foreign ministry says it registered 45,000 Portuguese citizens as resident in Angola in 2007-08. A year later the figure had jumped to 92,000. Today over 3,000 Portuguese companies operate in Angola and many of the Portuguese building companies such as Teixeira Duarte, Soares de Costa and Mota Engil have been switching from the home market to Angola’s to take advantage of Angola’s burgeoning economy.

In another reversal, an economic one, now Angolan state and private investors are eyeing Portugal’s assets recently freed up through Portugal’s privatization plans.  Recently, the IMF made the sale of BPN, a national bank, a condition for Portugal to get its recent financial bail-out. Other large Portuguese energy, mining and banking firms are under scrutiny for purchase by wealthy Angolan state and private investors. (Excerpts from BBC Report and The Economist)