118/119 Biodiversity and Tropical Forest Assessment for Angola
118/119 Biodiversity and Tropical Forest Assessment for Angola
118/119 Biodiversity and Tropical Forest Assessment for Angola
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SECTION B. COUNTRY PROFILE<strong>Angola</strong>’s varied ecosystems render the country one of the most biodiverse in Africa.This section describes key features of <strong>Angola</strong>’s environment. It provides thebackground <strong>for</strong> the ensuing discussions on threats, root causes, <strong>and</strong> opportunities <strong>for</strong>interventions that will help conserve biodiversity <strong>and</strong> tropical <strong>for</strong>ests.B1. PhysiographyB1a. Location <strong>and</strong> Administrative Divisions<strong>Angola</strong> covers 1,256,700 km 2 . It is situated on the west coast of Africa between 4° 22’<strong>and</strong> 18° 02’ south latitude <strong>and</strong> 11º 41’ <strong>and</strong> 24 º 05’ west longitudes (Exhibit 1). Thecountry borders Namibia in the south (1,376 km), the Democratic Republic of Congo(2,511 km) <strong>and</strong> the Republic of the Congo (201 km) in the north, <strong>and</strong> Zambia (1,110km) in the east. <strong>Angola</strong>’s coast extends 1,650 km. <strong>Angola</strong> is divided into 18 provinces.Exhibit 1. Administrative map of <strong>Angola</strong>B1b. ClimateTwo factors have a strong effect on <strong>Angola</strong>’s climate: the South Atlantic high-pressurecell <strong>and</strong> the cold northward flowing Benguela current. The high-pressure cell limits thesouthward migration of the inter-tropical convergence zone; the Benguela currentgenerates a strong temperature inversion along the coast that has a pronounced<strong>118</strong>/<strong>119</strong> BIODIVERSITY AND TROPICAL FOREST ASSESSMENT FOR ANGOLA 5
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