“The ongoing war has exacted a terrible toll on Angola and its people. Potentially one of Africa’s richest countries, with diverse natural resources and agro-ecological zones suited to the growing of a wide range of food and cash crops, it has been
reduced to abject poverty. For ordinary Angolans, real peace therefore cannot
start soon enough. The challenge for reconstruction and development will be enormous in the short, medium and long terms. Social and physical infrastructure will need rehabilitation, reconstruction and much new construction; the reestablishment
of basic health and sanitation services
and education in war-affected areas is a major priority. The whole spectrum of civil society will have to be re-established and strengthened.Given the centrality of peace and security, this Update focuses on progress to date with the much delayed
process of demobilisation and disarmament
in terms of the Lusaka Protocol, signed in
November 1994.”
