Angola
Angola is recovering from more than 40 years of armed conflict. Despite the country’s relative stability, over half of all Angolans live below the international poverty line (US$1.25 a day) and only 58% of children attend primary school.
What we’re doing
- We’re improving basic healthcare for 280,000 children.
- We’re helping more than 53,000 children access better education.
- We’re saving lives by distributing 16,150 mosquito nets.
- We’re protecting 13,953 children by supporting child protection committees.
Angola's 27 year civil war ended in April 2002. It left nearly 4 million people displaced from their homes and 100,000 children separated from their families. More than 750,000 children lost one or both of their parents. The war devastated basic health and education services. Since the ceasefire people have started returning to their communities but most areas have virtually no basic services.
60% of Angola's population is under 18 years old and half of these are out of school. Selestina, 14, missed many years of schooling during the war. Her father was killed in the civil war and her family were on the run from rebels. Before school each day, Selestina carries out household chores - making breakfast washing the dishes and the floor. When she gets home at 6pm, she has to grind mandicoa (a root vegetable) into flour in a large mortar, before she can do her homework.
Selestina is one of the brightest in her class. She says, "Studying is the most important thing in my life. I will not slave away in the field like my mother and earn very little. I want to be a doctor so I can help a whole lot of people and my family."
In the village of Culo the school only goes up to Grade 4. Once they reach Grade 5 the older pupils must walk 10km to get to school in another village.
Many of the children have spent much of their childhood hiding in the bush and living in fear of assaults by soldiers. As well as formal schooling it is important for children to learn to play. The villagers from Culo, with support from Save the Children, built a playground and a children's club. Figguredo, 10, has been going to the children's club where he is able to dance, sing and play. He also learns about children's rights, HIV/aids and how to avoid landmines.
With your help, Save the Children is supporting villagers in Culo to build a new school for Grades 5 and above. Angola still has large debts, sporadic unrest and ranks as one of the worst places for children to grow up. The government has to spend much of its budget on food and health, leaving little for education. Save the Children is working with the Angolan government to increase the number of children, especially girls, going to school.
Save the Children in Angola
We work in the provinces of Luanda, Huambo, Kwanza Sul, Uige and Zaire. Alongside local communities and the government, we’re protecting children from abuse, violence and exploitation and we’re advocating for children’s rights. Last year, our work directly benefited around 480,000 people and 1.9 million people indirectly.
We’re helping children get a better education
In Angola a quarter of all children aged between 5 and 14 don’t go to school. We’re working to improve access to education for drop-outs, girls, and other children missing out, and we’re setting up accelerated learning programmes.
Alongside the Ministry of Education, we’ve trained hundreds of teachers and headteachers in child-centred teaching, accelerated learning and positive discipline techniques and last year, our Rewrite the Future programme benefited 53,133 children.
We’re saving children’s lives
Despite efforts being made to improve health services destroyed by the war, many children still die from treatable diseases, such as malaria and diarrhoea.
Our health programmes have benefited 343,508 people directly. We’ve trained and provided essential kits for traditional birth attendants and community health committee members. We’ve also treated 20,375 children for malaria and we’re improving hygiene by building latrines and special water points.
We’re protecting children from harm
We’ve found that almost half of children have been subject to violence, either at home or in school.
We’re protecting children from harm, exploitation and abuse by establishing community-based child protection committees. We train them to identify and deal with cases of abuse and liaise with the relevant government authorities.
Last year, our protection work benefited 13,953 children directly and we continue to focus on influencing national policy and changing attitudes towards violence against children.
We’re protecting children from HIV and AIDS
HIV prevalence in Angola is estimated at 2.1% but the rate is higher among under-18s. We’ve pioneered the promotion of youth-friendly services for sexual health, for example by establishing voluntary testing and counselling centres. We’re increasing access to HIV and AIDS education and prevention services for mothers and children. Last year our activities directly benefited 101,921 people.
Download the full Angola country brief (PDF 88KB) for more information.
Façam o download completo do sumário do país em Português (PDF 115KB)
