Business
Angola: A country on the rise
The government is using its oil revenues to build new cities and hire more teachers, but hundreds of people are taking to the streets calling for political change.
The bay of Luanda is being transformed. New pedestrian- and jogger friendly pathways weave past patches of lush green grass, and a giant concrete flyover has thinned the once-notorious traffic jams that clogged the entrance onto the peninsula known as the Ilha.
After dark, wealthy Angolans and expatriates flock to waterside restaurants to sip overpriced cocktails and enjoy the view of the ever-expanding skyline.
In the decade since the end of its 27-year civil war and with help from its main export, oil, Angola has poured billions of dollars into reconstruction.
The country has new and rehabilitated roads, bridges, railways, schools, hospitals and airports. Vast housing estates are springing up on the edges of nearly every town and city.
The numbers of teachers, doctors and nurses are all up, while illiteracy and child and maternal mortality rates are down. The once productive and long-moribund agriculture and manufacturing sectors are slowing coming back to life.