The breadth of Angola’s “informal sector”—and its role in the lives of most Angolans— cannot be overstated. Throughout the vast urban musseques of peri-urban Luanda in which approximately 1 in 3 Angolans currently reside, essential services — such as water, food, fuel and transport — are provided largely through private initiative in the informal sector. Moreover, Developmet Workshop research has shown, for most Angolans land has been obtained through informal mechanisms. Notably this is not only the case in rural communities where customary legal practices prevail, but is also the case for the overwhelming majority of Angola’s rapidly growing urban population.
The informal sector grew during the conflict years and in the capital city of Luanda alone was estimated to employ 37% of the entire country’s labour force in 1998, justifying the assessment at the end of the war, in a 2002 UNDP report that “Luanda has become the largest laboratory for survival strategies in the world.” In Luanda strategically-sited urban marketplaces are linked to dozens of smaller satellite markets and eventually street sellers—and dominate the wholesale and retail trade, serving as both a distribution outlet for rural produce and the major source of imported and national products for urban consumers and rural traders alike.
Government policies have often excluded the poor by legislating against the informal sector. Colonial era city bye-laws have been resurrected to prohibit street trading and close down the large informal urban markets. Such policies run counter to the aims of the Government’s own Poverty Reduction Strategies. Policies have been enacted based on prejudice, no contextual investigation and little debate.
DW’s research has provided basic baseline information about the informal market’s structural profile, as well as in-depth knowledge about the dynamics of informal peri-urban markets. DW aims to provide a comprehensive documentation and analysis of the Angolan informal economy and advocate for how it can be transformed in light of the new challenges and opportunities, potentially affecting the livelihoods of the millions of Angolans whose livelihoods depend upon it.
Scavenging Review in Luanda 2005 Final Report
The 2005 DW Scavenger Study was conducted in August of 2005 and set out to examine whether scavenging still occurs in urban Luanda and on its periphery. While illustrating that …
Read moreLuanda Peri-Urban Gender & Household Profile Final Report
This study presents quantitative and qualitative findings gathered in the peri-urban areas of Luanda from December 2001 to January 2002 by Development Workshop. The study aimed to trace the profile …
Read moreScavenging Study in Luanda 1997 Final Report
In July 1997 Development Workshop carried out a study on scavenging activities in the city of Luanda. The study was performed to gather concrete and accurate information on scavenging activities …
Read moreWomen’s Enterprise Development Programme Evaluation Report
The present progect report is situated within the context of DW’s Luanda Women’s Enterprise Development Programme which is a micro-enterprise pilot programme using a participatory subsector approach within the informal …
Read moreEconomic Reintegration: Women Focused Family Survival Strategies Proposal
The present progect proposal is situated within the context of DW’s Luanda Women’s Enterprise Development Programme which is a micro-enterprise pilot programme using a participatory subsector approach within the informal …
Read moreWomen’s Peri-Urban Enterprise Development Project Fish Market Sub-Sector Study
This report is the first component of the Women’s Enterprise Development Project and uses a participatory sub-sector approach. The purpose of the research component is to determine interventions that will …
Read moreScoping Study: target group assessment for Women’s Enterprise Development
The target group analysis for the present project focuses on a group of thirty women entrepreneurs from the informal sector working and living in the district of N’Gola Kiluange, which …
Read moreNgola Kiluanje: Report on Micro-Enterprise 1992
Ngola Kiluanje, one of the administrative areas in the municipality of Sambizanga, is 8 km from the centre of Luanda on the main road north of the city. Before independence …
Read moreAngola Country Gender Analysis 1991
Contrary to the situation in other SADCC countries, there exist virtually no reports or documentation about gender aspects and their relations to the developments taking place in Angola. Rural women …
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