97 / 148
83
Figure 4.7 shows the change in numbers of
threatened species, indicating that this spiked
at 71 in 2003 following the end of the war when
some areas became more accessible and counts
resumed. The 2008 figure shows a reduction in
the number of threatened species to 63.
Elephants have been reduced frommore than
12,000 individuals in Angola in 1981 to 820 in
2006 (SADC and SARDC 2008), largely due to
ivory smuggling during the war years. Angola
is yet to ratify CITES, an international treaty that
restricts the trade in endangered species.
Coastal drainage sites such as the Kunene and
Kwanza rivers on the west coast of Angola contain
species that occur only in that area. However
development activities are not always compatible
with conservation of this diversity and it is poorly
represented in development process due to a lack
of awareness and easily available information.
Access to safe drinking water and improved
sanitation by 2015
Large numbers of people were displaced
during the war and moved to urban areas,
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
Number of species
80
60
40
20
0
Source: UNEP 2002, IUCN 2003, 2008, SADC and SARDC 2008
Change in the number of threatened
species in Angola
Figure 4.7
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
Number of species
80
60
40
20
0
Rural
Urban
Source: AfDB 2010
Access to safe drinking water in Angola
Figure 4.8
living in overcrowded slums, where the
infrastructure did not exist or could not cope
with their influx. The sharp increase in access
to safe drinking water by 2004 (Figure 4.8)
reflects the emergency assistance and
humanitarian resources that flowed in
following the peace agreement, but in some
cases was not sustainable.
Angola has witnessed improved access
to sanitation in the same period. With the
increasing oil revenue and more stability, safe
drinking water and sanitation should become
more accessible in both urban and rural areas.
Improve the lives of slum dwellers by 2020
Following the peace agreement in 2002, rather
than resettling back home where landmines
were an ongoing threat, many people from the
rural areas joined family members in the cities,
thus expanding the already overcrowded
slums. This trend is slowly being reversed
through the development of amenities in rural
areas as well as dedicated programmes to lift
landmines and to help families to resettle in
their home areas.
Low income district of Luanda, Angola.
© Grigory Kubatyan/iStockphoto.com