BEIJING, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will visit Angola on June 20-21 as part of his seven-nation Africa tour. The following is a series of key facts about the sub-Saharancountry in southwest Africa.
Bordering Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on the north, Zambia on the east, Namibia on the south and the Atlantic Ocean on the west, Angola covers a land area of 1,246,700square km with a population of 13.1 million.
Portuguese is the official language, but Umbundu, Kimbundu, Kikongo, Tchokwe and Ovambo are the national languages.
As Portugal's colony, the Angolans launched a struggle for independence in the 1950s. In 1975, Angola declared independence after the People's Liberation Movement of Angola (MPLA), the Angolan National Liberation Front (FNLA) and the National Union for Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) reached agreements with the Portuguese government.
After independence, the southwestern African country was plunged into a 27-year civil war, which was only brought to an end in April 2002 when the Angolan government signed a truce deal with UNITA.
Angola is rich in resources, such as crude oil, natural gas, diamonds, iron, copper, gold, quartz and marble. Oil is the mainstay of Angola's economy, with a daily output of about 1.2 million barrels in 2004.
Coffee, sugar cane, cotton, sisal and peanuts are Angola's major cash crops, while maize, cassava, rice, wheat and peas are the country's main agricultural crops.
Angola established diplomatic ties with China on Jan. 12, 1983.Bilateral trade volume reached 6.95 billion U.S. dollars in 2005. Enditem
