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afrol News, 25 January - For the first time since the end of the Angolan civil war, poverty is mapped in the country. New national statistics have shown that between 68 and 69 percent of Angolans live in poverty, although it was expected that real numbers could be even higher. According to Angola's Planning Minister, Ana Dias Lourenco, the level of poverty in the country had reached about 68 to 69 percent. She based her assertion on the recently released partial figures from the National Institute for Statistics (INE). The results of the estimate had been based on a survey over "spending and income" of the population. The estimate is however not final, as the survey still was ongoing. It was also uncertain whether the institute had been able to achieve data from the districts that were worst hit by the civil war and whether the large part of Angola's population that remains internally displaced had been reached. Thus, the real poverty level could reach over 70 percent. A strategy to reduce poverty in the country only was presented in September last year. This strategy focused on the development of the Angolan fisheries and environmental improvements, to be implemented in the 2003-05 period. The strategy is however yet to become full-fledged. When it exists, the Angolan government can use it to obtain international credits and grants. The government however first needs thorough documentation of the level of poverty in the country in addition to its causes and local dimensions. In this aspect, the National Institute for Statistics has been slow in delivering the necessary data, the government holds. Planning Minister Lourenco thus was making a point of "checking the performance" of the institute. The statistical institute had "an obligation" to provide statistic information on main government policies in terms of the country's development, she explained. Prime Minister Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos recently visited the
institute, underlining government's interest in the development of this
vital service. The director of the institution, Flavio Couto, was reported
to be "encouraged" by the new government interest.
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