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Angola scores low on human development indexes despite, using
its large oil reserves to rebuild since the end of a 27-year
civil war in 2002. Fighting between the Popular Movement for
the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), led by Jose Eduardo Dos Santos,
and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola
(UNITA), led by Jonas Savimbi, followed independence from
Portugal in 1975. Peace seemed imminent in 1992 when Angola
held national elections, but fighting picked up again in 1993.
Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost – and 4 million
people displaced – during the more than a quarter-century
of fighting. Savimbi's death in 2002 ended UNITA's insurgency
and cemented the MPLA's hold on power. Dos Santos stepped
down from the presidency in 2017, having led the country since
1979. He pushed through a new constitution in 2010. Joao Lourenco
was elected president in August 2017 and became president
of the MPLA in September 2018.
Location: Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic
Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the
Congo.
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