Following its independence from Portugal in 1975, Angola went through more than 40 years of civil war. Although the war finally ended in 2002, it left the country severely contaminated with landmines and other explosive remnants of war.
A Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) was conducted from 2004 to 2007 and provided the initial contamination baseline of 1,300 km2, which was inaccurate due to various factors at the time. Since then, land release activities conducted by mine action organisations have contributed to better defining the level of contamination in the country.
From 2018-2019, a database reconciliation was performed by the Angola mine action national authorities, which led to a more accurate and reliable country-wide database. Consequently, the estimated contamination in the country was reduced by 70 percent from the initial assessment, raising the expectations for clearing Angola from landmines by December 2025.
Angola still has a high level of mines and explosive ordnance. As of December 2024, the remaining national minefield contamination is estimated at 57 km2. Most of it is mainly in underdeveloped and rural parts of the country. It disproportionally affects the most marginalised communities, including groups affected by chronic food insecurity, and blocks access to water and land for agriculture. Contamination also impacts the everyday life of communities, impeding women, girls, boys and men from safe access to water sources, farmland, markets, education and health facilities.
Angola is a state party to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC), which it signed in 1997 and ratified on 5 July 2002, and is currently obliged to clear all its known minefield contamination by 31 December 2025. However, with the extent of the current remaining contamination, it is again unlikely that the deadline of December 2025 will be met and Angola has submitted another extension request seeking a new completion deadline of December 2030.
Country Programme
NPA has been registered in Angola since 1989, delivering long-term development projects. NPA Mine Action and Disarmament Programme was established in Angola in 1995 and has been one of the country’s most important international demining programmes since then. As requested by the UN in the early 90s, NPA’s initial task in Angola was to map the coastal provinces and other areas pinpointed as camps for demobilised soldiers and clear the main highway between Luanda and Malanje.
Today, NPA’s office and area of operation are in the province of Uige, extending its work to the provinces of Kwanza Norte, Bengo, and Luanda. The continuation of NPA’s work in Angola is essential to support the country in fulfilling its obligations to the APMBC. NPA conducts surveys and explosive ordnance clearance, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), explosive ordnance risk education (EORE), and capacity development of Agência Nacional de Acção Contra Minas (ANAM), which is the National Authority.
Although the programme operations in 2024 were supported with funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, United States Department of State, Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, and Belgian and Japanese governments, in 2025, NPA’s operational capacity will mainly be supported by funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).
The programme will continue operating in Kwanza Norte, Uige and Bengo provinces, aiming to clear approximately 1 km2 of land by deploying a toolbox comprising manual deminers and mechanical assets to ensure the cost-effectiveness of our operations.
NPA will also utilise Norad funding to maintain its capacity development support to ANAM throughout 2025.
Results
To date, NPA has released more than 380 km2 of land and an assortment of more than 16,000 explosive ordnance (EO) in Angola, benefitting tens of thousands of civilians.
Results for 2024
- 0.96 km2 land released
- Removed and destroyed 178 AP mines and 184 other EO (Land Release)
- 9 confirmed hazardous areas completed
- Land release activities impacted 1,917 direct beneficiaries
- 50 EORE sessions delivered, reaching directly 4,776 persons
- 73 EOD Callouts, destroyed 82 EO and 04 AP mines directly benefiting 2,032 persons
- NPA also provides capacity development support to ANAM, which aims to strengthen the national authority’s information management and quality management functions through reviewing policies, developing key mine action standards, and providing on-the-job training and mentoring
Donors
We thank our donors for their generous support of our work to protect civilians from explosive weapons and for the capacity development of the national mine action authorities in Angola.
