Zaire Province Explained

Zaire
Native Name:Nzadi
Settlement Type:Province
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Angola
Seat Type:Capital
Seat:M'Banza Kongo
Leader Title:Governor
Leader Name:Pedro Makita Armando Júlia
Leader Title1:Vice-Governor for the Political, Economic and Social Sector
Leader Name1:António Félix Kialunguila
Leader Title2:Vice-Governor for Technical Services and Infrastructures
Leader Name2:Ângela Maria Botelho de Carvalho Diogo
Area Total Km2:40130
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:594428
Population As Of:2014 census
Population Density Km2:15
Blank Name Sec1:HDI (2018)
Blank Info Sec1:0.601[2]
· 3rd
Iso Code:AO-ZAI

Zaire (Portuguese: Zaire, French: Zaïre, Kongo: Nzadi[3] [4] [5] [6]) is one of the 18 provinces of Angola. It occupies 40130km2 in the north west of the country and had a population of 594,428 inhabitants in 2014.[7] It is bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the east by the Uíge Province, and on the south by the Bengo Province.[8]

History

The Kongo people (or Bakongo) occupied the valley of the Congo (or Zaire) River in the mid-thirteenth century, and formed the Kingdom of Kongo, which existed from 1390 until 1891 as an independent state, and until 1914 as a vassal state of the Kingdom of Portugal.[9] In 1914, the Kongo monarchy was abolished after Portuguese suppression of several revolts.[10] From 1885, Portuguese Angola included the District of Congo, which was split in 1919 into the districts of Cabinda and Zaire, respectively north and south of the Congo/Zaire River.[11]

During the 1961–1974 Angolan War of Independence, a large fraction of the Bakongo fled to the Republic of Zaire. Many of these refugees and their offspring returned after the Alvor Agreement recognised Angolan independence.[9]

Monuments

Historical and cultural monuments include:[12]

Capital

M'Banza Congo (formerly São Salvador do Congo) is the provincial capital. The city is located around 481km (299miles) of Luanda and 314km (195miles) of Uíge.

Municipalities

The province of Cuanza Norte contains six municipalities (Portuguese: municípios):

Communes

The province of Cuanza Norte contains the following communes (Portuguese: comunas); sorted by their respective municipalities:[13]

Geography

Zaire Province has two seasons: from November to May, the rainy season; and from June to October, the dry season. The predominant types of weather in the province are tropical wet climate and semi-arid. The temperature in the area varies between 24 °C and 26 °C.[14]

Fauna and Flora of the region are very varied, with savannah and dense rainforests.[15] The main rivers of Zaire Province are: Congo, Mbridge, Lufunde, Zadi, Cuilo and Buenga.[16]

Demography

The national language spoken in the province is Kikongo and the predominant ethnic group in the region is Bakongo.[8]

According to preliminary data from the General Census of Population and Housing conducted in May 2014, Zaire Province has currently 567,225 inhabitants, corresponding to 2.3 percent of the Angolan population. In this province, reside 285,333 women and 281,892 men, with 26.1% of the population living in rural areas and the majority, 73.9%, living in urban areas. The data also point to a population density of 15PD/sqkm.[17]

Politics

The Zaire Provincial Government consists of Governor José Joana André, and 3 Deputy Governors. Ângela Maria Botelho de Carvalho Diogo is the Deputy Governor for the area of Technical Services and Infrastructures; Alberto Maria Sabino is the Deputy Governor for the Economic Sector; and Rogério Eduardo Zabila is the Deputy Governor for Political and Social Sector.[18]

Industries

Transportation

Airports

Zaire Province is served by three airports. Soyo Airport and Mbanza Congo Airport have paved runways and regular flights to Luanda. N'zeto Airport has a grass strip runway and is used for private flights.

Culture

The city celebrations take place on July 25 in M’'Banza Congo, and on April 5 in Soyo.[8]

Province typical dishes are sacafolha (made with cassava leaves), dishes made with fresh and dried fish accompanied by bombó funge, and dishes with game meat.[8]

Tourism

Zaire Province has several natural points of interest, namely:[8]

List of governors of Zaire

Name Years in office
Adolfo José Pedro 1976–1977
Gomes Almirante Dias 1977–1982
Jorge Barros Tchimpuati 1982–1984
Artur Vidal Gomes Kumbi Diezabo 1984–1987
Domingos Mutaleno 1987–1988
1988–1991
Zeferino Estêvão Juliana 1991–1995
Ludy Kissassunda 1995–2004
Pedro Sebastião 2004–2012
José Joanes André 2012–2018
Pedro Makita Armando Júlia 2018–
[19]

Further reading

External links

-6.2667°N 28°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 . 14 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191214215245/https://www.ine.gov.ao/images/Populacao_Sociedade/Estudos_tematicos/PUBLICACAO_RESULTADOS_DEFINITIVOS_DO_CENSO_2014.pdf . dead .
  2. Web site: Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab. hdi.globaldatalab.org. en. 2018-09-13.
  3. Peter Forbath, The River Congo, Harper & Row, Publishers; First American Edition, 1977, p.19
  4. René Lemarchand, Political Awakening in the Belgian Congo, 1988, University of California Press, p. 25.
  5. Ghislain C. Kabwit, Zaïre: the Roots of the Continuing Crisis, Cambridge University Press, 1979
  6. Jean-Jacques Arthur Malu-Malu, Le Congo Kinshasa, KARTHALA Editions, 2014, .
  7. Web site: Resultados Definitivos Recenseamento Geral da População e Habitação - 2014 . 3 May 2020 . Instituto Nacional de Estatística, República de Angola . dmy . 14 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191214215245/https://www.ine.gov.ao/images/Populacao_Sociedade/Estudos_tematicos/PUBLICACAO_RESULTADOS_DEFINITIVOS_DO_CENSO_2014.pdf . dead .
  8. Web site: Province/Zaire. Welcome to Angola.
  9. Web site: Who are the Angolans. pt. Carlos Alberto Jr.. August 20, 2008. Diário da África. May 14, 2015. May 18, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150518084348/http://www.diariodaafrica.com/2008/08/quem-so-os-angolanos.html. dead.
  10. Web site: Facts and Historical Documents Relating to the Kingdom of Kongo in the Early Twentieth Century. pt. José Carlos de Oliveira. April 7, 2014. Portal do Uíge e da Cultura Kongo.
  11. Partilha do Poder no Enclave Angolano de Cabinda: Modelo e Processo . Doctoral thesis . Miguel César . Domingos Bembe . Lisbon . . 2014 . PDF . 42–43 . pt.
  12. Web site: Zaire/Tourism/Monuments. pt. Info-Angola. 2015-05-14. 2011-08-20. https://web.archive.org/web/20110820125047/http://info-angola.ao/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=591&Itemid=1723. dead.
  13. Web site: Zaire. pt. Info-Angola. 2015-05-14. 2015-02-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20150219052745/http://info-angola.ao/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=25&Itemid=1694. dead.
  14. Web site: Zaire/Resources/Climate. pt. Info-Angola. 2016-01-05. 2011-04-05. https://web.archive.org/web/20110405160438/http://info-angola.ao/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=589&Itemid=1700. dead.
  15. Web site: Zaire/Resources/Flora. pt. Info-Angola. 2016-01-05. 2011-04-05. https://web.archive.org/web/20110405150511/http://info-angola.ao/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=588&Itemid=1701. dead.
  16. Web site: Zaire/Resources/Hidrography. pt. Info-Angola. 2016-01-05. 2011-04-03. https://web.archive.org/web/20110403174635/http://info-angola.ao/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=586&Itemid=1703. dead.
  17. Web site: Province has more than 500,000 inhabitants. pt. October 21, 2014. Angola Press Agency.
  18. Web site: Governor Profile. pt. Governo Provincial do Zaire. 2015-08-04. 2015-06-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20150607135958/http://www.zaire.gov.ao/Institucionais/Perfil.aspx. dead.
  19. Web site: Histórico dos Governadores . uige.gov.ao . 6 Mar 2019 . pt.

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

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