Angola is an oil-rich nation located in southern Africa, on the Atlantic coast of Africa, and bordered by Namibia, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. President Jose Eduardo dos Santos’ ruling party, the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), holds a strong majority, having taken 72 percent at the August 2012 polls. The country has come a long way since its civil war ended in 2002. In 12 years, Angola has managed to transform its war-torn economy into the fifth biggest in Africa. This growth has been mainly fuelled by a doubling of oil production, turning Angola into Sub-Saharan Africa’s second largest oil producer after Nigeria. Rising oil revenues have allowed for large-scale state investments, mainly in the construction and rehabilitation of public infrastructures, leading to a massive construction boom and double digit GDP growth rates which reached 23.4 percent in 2007 up from 3.3 in 2003.
