Following a 27-year civil war, Angola is one of the most contaminated countries in the world – the Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) has identified 1,968 communities in all 18 provinces as impacted by landmines.
Whilst estimates vary, Angola is generally considered to have approximately two landmines for every single person, and 2.4 million individuals are affected daily by the scourge.
Twinned and inter-related with this contamination, the vast majority of the population is desperately poor with the country having a UN Human Development Index ranking of 161 out of 177; life expectancy at birth of just 41 years; an under-five mortality rate of 260 (per thousand live births); and 38 percent of the population being undernourished.
MAG's area of operations, Moxico Province in eastern Angola, has been gravely affected by fighting – the region was the birthplace and once the relative stronghold of rebel leader Jonas Savimbi and his National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). Whilst the war finally came to an end with the signing of a ceasefire in April 2002, the legacy of the conflict continues to live on for many civilians residing in Moxico.
MAG Angola's fundamental aim is to provide continual and much-needed community rehabilitation and poverty alleviation for long-term residents and returning refugees. Such activities, over the forthcoming four years, will strive to produce a climate whereby the long-term development of sustainable livelihoods can be established in an environment where the risk of landmines and explosive remnants of conflict has been significantly reduced.
Why Moxico Province?
Levels of contamination in Moxico: Moxico remains the most heavily contaminated province within Angola and also the province with the greatest number of recent victims. Over 170,000 individuals are threatened on a daily basis by landmines and there remains a significant lack of access to, for example, education and health centres as a direct consequence of landmines. The distinct lack of general socio-economic services and sustainable development within the remote province further extenuates the overall suffering of the population, resulting in a continued deterioration of livelihoods. By removing such threats to life and limb, in addition to providing the opportune environment for development, MAG is a major stakeholder in relieving suffering and providing conflict recovery for those most in need.
Sustainable aid to returnees: The repatriation process by UNHCR since the cessation of conflict has resulted in the return of approximately 410,000 former Angolan refugees. A significant number of these – 206,696, over 50% of the total number repatriated – have been resettled in Moxico Province, thus putting additional strain on the already limited available land.
As Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, concluded in March 2007, Moxico still has "a lot of landmines… and is recovering at a very slow pace; basic social services are very limited, and (returnees’) capacity to participate in the national economic activities of the country is also very limited….the scale of the problem and the difficulties involved are huge, and so massive investment…will be essential for the sustainability of these returning refugees". MAG Angola is determined to provide a safe long-term environment within Moxico for these returnees to adequately (re)settle in their former communities.
Access and elections: See 'Vote in Safety' is MAG's election message. By supplying safe access to many remote locations in Eastern Angola, MAG helps facilitate good governance well beyond election day.
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