Map

Background

Angola is a country in Southern Africa, and shares borders with Namibia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia. The country is in the process of rebuilding ever since the civil war of nearly three decades ended in 2002. It is estimated thatthere have been 1.5 million casualties and 4 million were people displaced during that period.

Economy

Angola’s economy depends mainly on oil production and supporting activities, which constitute about 85% of the country’s GDP. Increase in oil production has supported the country’s growth averaging during the past decade. While subsistence agriculture is a main source of livelihood for most of the population, half of the country’s food is imported. In addition, the rising development in construction and agriculture has been largely due to resettlement of displaced Angolans and reconstruction.
Angola’s economic growth was temporarily hindered by the 2008 global recession, with decreased oil and diamond pricing, as well a and many construction projects the accumulation of debt to foreign construction companies.

Health

Angola faces many challenges in the health care sector, with a very low rating worldwide.Angola lies in the yellow fever endemic zone. Only a large portion of the population is given basic medical attention. The ratio of physicians per person was estimated at 7.9 per 300,000 in 2004, and the average life expectancy is one of the lowest in the world, while annual infant morality is among the highest.
A low percentage of the population have access to safe drinking water and- less than half- to adequate sanitation.

Major infectious diseases:
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness)

Malaria Status

There are approximately 3.4 million cases of malaria annually in Angola, mainly due to infection by Plasmodium falciparum. Malaria transmission occurs all year round, but is highest in northern areas, while the southern regions suffer from highly seasonal or epidemic malaria. Here, malaria is thought to be responsible for 35% of mortality in children under the age of five, 25% of maternal mortality, and 60% of hospital admissions for children under five.
The current national guidelines for malaria control include indoor residual spraying (IRS) in certain urban districts, free distribution of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs), and free ACT at public health facilities.A reduction of nearly 60% in malaria mortality cases has been achieved by these efforts in the past decade. However, there are still many difficulties and challenges in the control and elimination of malaria.