Angola Industry Sectors

Petroleum and diamond are the major Angola industry sectors. They contribute more than 90% to the country’s GDP and export volume. Agriculture and fishing industries are also popular as they engage majority of the Angolan population.[br]

Petroleum and diamond are the major Angola industry sectors. They contribute more than 90% to the country’s GDP and export volume. Agriculture and fishing industries are also popular as they engage majority of the Angolan population.[br]

Angola Industry Sectors: History

Angola was the popular slave trade market for the Portuguese and Dutch during the colonial era. Portugal administration discovered oil reserves in Angola in 1955. Large-scale oil and coffee production helped the country in achieving sustainable economic growth. Angola also had industries for food processing, electrical products, construction material, chemical, vehicle assembly and metallurgy. After attaining independence in 1975, the country entered into 26 long years of civil war that left Angola’s economy in a state of jeopardy.

 

In the year 2000, the government initiated major economic reforms to restructure the industrial sector of the country. The IMF and World Bank also funded strategic reforms to strengthen the infrastructure and business environment in Angola.

 

Major Angola Industry Sectors

The major Angola industry sectors are:

 

• Oil: Angola is one of the biggest oil producers in Africa, second only to Nigeria. In 2007, the petroleum industry contributed for more than 60% of the country’s GDP. The country ranks 18^th in terms of total oil exports (1.407 million bbl/day). Sonangol, a state-owned firm, governs the petroleum sectors. Foreign firms also have joint venture on the basis of production sharing agreement.[br] 

 

Diamond: Angola is sometimes referred to as the ‘land of conflicting diamonds’. The country has rich deposits of diamonds, one of the prime reasons for the 1975-2002 civil war. During this period, a large portion of diamonds produced was sold to the black market. After 2003, the diamond mining sector was regularized and opened for private investment as well. 

 

• Agriculture: Angola’s climate is favorable for tropical and semi-tropical crops. This, coupled with the fertile land of the region allows the growth of several cash crops. Coffee, tobacco, sunflower, timber and banana are the major crops of the country. Although, the GDP share of the agriculture has decreased since 2003, it engages more than half of the population. 

• Fishing: Angola has a developed fishing industry with considerable foreign investment. The fishing industry is completely liberalized and the government no longer regulates the pricing policy.

 

Angola is still recovering from the aftereffects of the civil war. With financial support from the UN, IMF and the World Bank, the Angola economy plans to diversify in terms of industry sectors.