Namibe Province Explained

Namibe
Settlement Type:Province
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Angola
Seat Type:Capital
Seat:Moçâmedes
Leader Title:Governor
Leader Name:Carlos da Rocha Cruz
Leader Title1:Vice-Governor for the Political, Economic and Social Sector
Leader Name1:Josefa Joana Rebeca Cangombe
Leader Title2:Vice-Governor for Technical Services and Infrastructures
Leader Name2:José Tchindongo António
Area Total Km2:57091
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:495326
Population As Of:2014 census
Population Density Km2:auto
Blank Name Sec1:HDI (2018)
Blank Info Sec1:0.572[2]
· 4th
Iso Code:AO-NAM

Namibe Province is a province of Angola. Under Portuguese rule it was the Moçâmedes District. It has an area of 57,091 km2 and had a 2014 census population of 495,326.[3] The port and city of Moçâmedes is the capital of the province with a population of 250,000 in 2014. Iona National Park lies within the province.

History

From its foundation by the Portuguese in 1840 and until 1985, the area was known as Moçâmedes (also spelled "Mossâmedes").[4] The current name of the province is derived from the Namib Desert, lying predominantly in Namibia; the northernmost part, however, extended into the province of Namibe.Extensive flooding in the province occurred on April 5, 2001, with the Bero and Giraul River severely affecting roads and people in Namibe, Huila and Benguela provinces.[5] A reported 20 people in Namibe Province lost their lives during the flood.[6]

Geography and wildlife

Namibe Province covers an area of 57,091 km2, much of which is desert. The capital of the province is the city of Moçâmedes, with the second city being Tômbua or Tómbwa (formerly Porto Alexandre). In the Namib Desert can be seen the rare Welwitschia mirabilis, "a strange plant with a giant root", and also the Iona National Park.[7] Lake Arco, a fresh-water oasis, is a stunning sight in the middle of the desert. Near the coast of the Bentiaba desert and in Iona National Park, Late Cretaceous fossils of sharks, turtles, mosasaurs,[8] plesiosaurs and sauropods have been discovered.[9]

Municipalities

The province of Namibe consists of five municipalities (Portuguese: municípios):[10]

Communes

The province of Namibe contains the following communes (Portuguese: comunas); sorted by their respective municipalities:

Demographics

Namibe Province had a population of 495,326 according to the 2014 census.[11] The desert is sparsely inhabited, but is inhabited by Herero groups (vaKuval, Ova-Himba) and small Khoisan groups (Kwisi, Kwepe).[4]

Economy

Agriculture is the main source of income in Namibe Province, the principal crops being citrus fruits, olives, guava, millet, and livestock, including the rearing of sheep and goats. Fishing is another means of livelihood for the people of Namibe Province, Tômbua being the main market.The province has significant reserves of gold, copper,[12] manganese, chromium, tin, lignite and marble. The Yuri Gagarin Airport and the Commercial Port of Moçâmedes, are the two main centres for transport for the import and export of products.

List of governors of Namibe

Pre-independence period

Post-independence period

Name Years in office
Amândio José Rogado 1975–1976
António Lopes da Câmara 1976–1978
José Ilídio Chilecasse Manjenje 1978–1979
Marcelino Dias 1979
Rafael Sapilinha Sambalanga 1979–1983
1983–1988
Domingos José 1988–1991
Joaquim da Silva Matias 1991–1999
Salomão José Luheto Xirimbimbi 1999–2002
Álvaro Manuel de Boavida Neto 2002–2009
Cândida Celeste da Silva 2009–2012
Isaac Francisco Maria dos Anjos 2012–2013
Rui Luís Falcão Pinto de Andrade 2013–2017
Carlos da Rocha Cruz 2017–2019
Augusto Archer de Sousa Mangueira2019–
[13]

External links

-15.1953°N 12.1508°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Resultados Definitivos Recenseamento Geral da População e Habitação - 2014 . 3 May 2020 . Instituto Nacional de Estatística, República de Angola. dmy .
  2. Web site: Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab. hdi.globaldatalab.org. en. 2018-09-13.
  3. Web site: Resultados Definitivos Recenseamento Geral da População e Habitação - 2014 . 3 May 2020 . Instituto Nacional de Estatística, República de Angola. dmy .
  4. Book: Silva, Elisete Marques da. Impactos da ocupação colonial nas sociedades rurais do sul de Angola. 1 May 2003. Centro de Estudos Internacionais do Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL). pt. 978-972-8335-08-3. 5.
  5. Book: Popular Mechanics. July 2001. Hearst Magazines. 22. 0032-4558.
  6. Web site: IRI Climate Digest May 2001. Iri.columbia.edu. 22 September 2014.
  7. Book: Nature's last strongholds: an encyclopedia of habitats and conservation. 1991. Time-Life Books. 195. 9780705411127 .
  8. Polcyn. Michael J.. Jacobs. Louis L.. Schulp. Anne S.. Mateus. Octávio. March 2010. The North African Mosasaur Globidens phosphaticus from the Maastrichtian of Angola. Historical Biology. en. 22. 1–3. 175–185. 10.1080/08912961003754978. 2010HBio...22..175P . 62882332 . 0891-2963.
  9. Book: James, W. Martin. Historical Dictionary of Angola. 5 May 2011. Scarecrow Press. 978-0-8108-7458-9. 181.
  10. Web site: Angola. Geohive. 22 September 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160930004212/http://www.geohive.com/cntry/angola.aspx. 30 September 2016.
  11. Web site: Resultados Definitivos Recenseamento Geral da População e Habitação - 2014 . 3 May 2020 . Instituto Nacional de Estatística, República de Angola. dmy .
  12. Book: Africa South of the Sahara 2004. 2003. Europa Publications, Psychology Press. 978-1-85743-183-4. 52.
  13. Web site: Histórico dos Governadores . namibe.gov.ao . 6 Mar 2019 . pt.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Namibe Province".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.