Luanda- A Sprawling Poverty

Luanda- A Sprawling Poverty


The first thing one notices about this city is its sheer size. A city originally built for 400,000, Luanda is experiencing major challenges in accommodating its 4 million, and growing, population. Urban sprawl is occurring at a much a faster pace than infrastructural provision. Unlike many of Angola’s problems, urban poverty in Luanda is clearly visible in all its manifestations. The ad hoc musseques (shanty towns) envelope the original city perimeter, each dwelling fighting for space among hundreds of thousands. Ownership of homes in these areas is virtually unheard of, and is replaced by a large informal rental market. According to the UN, Luanda currently has some 20–25% of the overall national population. In terms of land use, three-quarters of the occupied area in Luanda can be categorised as residential. Of this residential land, 70% is made-up of high-density musseques. A staggering three-quarters of the population live in informal settlement areas or in informal ways within the formal urban areas. It sounds strange, but these figures are unsurprising. All you have to do is look around the city. The musseques are everywhere. The walls of the dwellings are often made of clay bricks, with a small opening for a window (often uncovered), and roofing made from whatever material (tin, plastic, wood) people can obtain. Direct supply of water and electricity is not always guaranteed and areas are often bereft of any boundary between dwellings and rubbish sites. The musseques are always bustling with people, which is unsurprising given the high occupancy rates. On average, there are 3 inhabitants to a room, and between 12 and 15 per dwelling.

But, how did Luanda come to be a city of over 4million? Mass displacement due to the conflict is key in understanding its development. Internally displaced persons (IDPs), or deslocados, from the provinces were forced to flee their homes due to fighting between the MPLA and UNITA. Although, in 2002 the UNHCR reported that close to 4 million deslocados had returned home, following the signing of a peace agreement between the MPLA and UNITA, many still remain in urban centres such as Luanda. The official figure currently stands at 91,000. However, during almost thirty years of conflict, many people who arrived in Luanda as deslocados have settled with family and have no plans to return to their home provinces. What little services there are for people here in Luanda, in the Provinces the camponesos (rural people) are completely bereft of any external support, outside of family and community. Angolans have not been given any incentive to return to their homes. In areas worst affected by the war, there is limited local administrative capacity, infrastructure and basic services are virtually limited, arable land is often inaccessible because of mines, and there is a high proportion of poor and food-insecure families. Furthermore, the vast majority of the 4 million reported returnees have not returned to their homes. Many are staying in nearby villages with family and friends, as they wait for the slow and arduous task of de-mining their only route home. Angola has an estimated 10 million land mines and a population of 70,000 amputees. For those who do manage to make the journey back to their villages, they are left without basic services in health, education, and without the tools and necessary resources to work their land. In this way, urban and rural poverty in Angola are inextricably linked.




The rapid urban growth in Luanda has brought with it many problems for Angolans living here. Between 50 and 60% of the population of Luanda is living in poverty, and between 6 and 15% in extreme poverty. The vast majority of Luanda’s population participate within the informal sector, principally through informal trading networks on the streets and in market places, which makes up 45% of total employment. The dire traffic situation is welcomed by those trying to carve out an existence as street vendors. A rainbow of colour, the zunguneiras (female traders) float elegantly up and down the streets, balancing heavy loads of fish, fruit, bikinis, and many other items, announcing their presence melodically as they pass. A treat for the foreign eye, but a sad reality of income insecurity for many.

Other problems, which are less visible, plague the musseques. The high occupancy rates, together with the generally very low provision of infrastructure, lead to very unhealthy conditions. Problems with the water network, which is estimated to cover a mere 25% of the musseques, means that people are forced to buy water from large tankers, at expensive prices. The water is often taken from sources, such as the River Bengo, and leaves people susceptible to diseases such as cholera. Over the last ten years, frequent outbreaks of cholera have been reported in the musseques, the most recent being April of this year. There are also severe problems of storm-water drainage. The areas of standing water are a major malarial health risk, and also provoke water-borne diseases.

The sad irony is that just as Angola’s urban poverty problems are on the rise, much international assistance has become increasingly scarce, as donors expect the government to make use of its oil revenues, an expectation that, as of yet, has failed to be realised. In fact, the growing wealth and standard of living of the few who enjoy the benefits of Angola’s oil-rich economy, has only served to highlight further the extreme poverty of the majority of Luanda’s residents. But the situation isn’t bad for all of Luanda’s residents. Between 1995 and 1998, alone, the incomes of the richest 10% of the population rose 43% while those of the poorest households dropped 59% in this period, a figure which has most certainly risen since the opening up of the oil sector.

Despite the increased economic progress of the country, Angolans continue to face serious challenges to their economic, social and political development. As the population in Luanda continues to grow, so too will its many problems. Luanda’s poverty is a sprawling one.