Luanda - City of Angola

Luanda (formerly called Loanda) is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and administrative center and has a population of approximately 4.8 million (2007). It is also the capital city of Luanda Province. Luanda is located at 8°50'18" South, 13°14'4" East (-8.83833, 13.23444). The city is currently undergoing a major reconstruction, with many large developments taking place that will alter the cityscape significantly.

By the time of Angolan independence in 1975, Luanda was a modern city and the majority of the city's population was of Portuguese origin. With the advent of independence and the start of the Angolan Civil War (1975-2002), most of the Portuguese left as refugees, principally for Portugal, with many travelling overland to South Africa.

There was an immediate crisis, because the local African population lacked the skills and knowledge needed to run the city and maintain its infrastructure. The large numbers of skilled technicians among the force of Cuban soldiers sent in to support the MPLA government in the Angolan Civil War were able to make a valuable contribution to restoring and maintaining basic services in the city. However, slums called musseques stretched for miles beyond Luanda's former city limits, as a result of the decades-long civil war, and because of the rise of deep social inequalities due to large-scale migration of civil war refugees from other Angolan regions. For decades, Luanda's facilities were not adequately expanded to handle this massive increase in the city's population.

After 2002, with the end of the civil war and high economic growth rates fuelled by the wealth provided by the increasing oil and diamond production, major reconstruction started.

Luanda is the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishop. It is also the location of most of Angola's educational institutions, including the private Catholic University of Angola and the public University of Agostinho Neto. It is also the home of the colonial Governor's Palace and the Estádio da Cidadela (the "Citadel Stadium"), Angola's main stadium.

The climate is hot and humid but surprisingly dry, owing to the cool Benguela Current, which prevents moisture from easily condensing into rain. Frequent fog prevents temperatures from falling at night even during the completely dry months from June to October. Luanda has an annual rainfall of 323 millimetres (12.7 in), but the variability is among the highest in the world, with a co-efficient of variation above 40 percent. The short rainy season in March and April depends on a northerly counter current bringing moisture to the city: it has been shown clearly that weakness in the Benguela current can increase rainfall about sixfold compared with years when that current is strong.

Major reconstruction in Luanda has been in nearly all aspects of society. Major road rehabilitation, including road widening, application of asphalt, and re-routing efforts are all currently being done throughout Luanda. The Brazilian construction firm Odebrechet, are currently constructing two six-lane highways. One highway that will provide speedy access to Cacuaco, Viana, Samba, and the Kilamba Kiaxi district of Luanda to the new airport of Luanda. The other highway will connect the city center of Luanda to Viana, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2008.