Angola`s Children - Bearing the Greatest Cost of War

This 2002 situation report by the Institute for Security Studies details the catastrophic humanitarian crisis facing children in Angola following decades of conflict. It highlights extreme levels of malnutrition, the collapse of education and health systems, the prevalence of landmines, and the psychological trauma of child soldiers and orphans, arguing that urgent international and government intervention is required for reconstruction.

• Angola's children face a severe humanitarian crisis characterized by extreme malnutrition and high mortality. One in three children die before the age of five, and 42% of all children are underweight for their age. In the Huila province, mortality rates have been reported as five times higher than the accepted alert threshold, with malnutrition as the primary cause.
• The education system has been devastated by war, with 80% of schools destroyed or abandoned since 1998. Most children lack basic documentation, as only 5-10% are registered at birth, and the government estimates that 70% of children aged six to fourteen are at risk of being illiterate.
• Public health infrastructure is effectively non-existent outside main centers, leaving provision to NGOs and church groups. There is only one paediatric hospital in the entire country, located in Luanda. Routine immunization is low, with fewer than 40% of children receiving vaccines for preventable diseases, leading to outbreaks of measles and polio.
• Angola is the most landmine-affected country in the world, containing between 8 and 10 million mines. These weapons have caused over 70,000 amputees, primarily women and children, with 70% of those killed or injured last year being civilians.
• Children have suffered profound psychological trauma and exploitation. Approximately 300,000 children were forcibly recruited by government forces and UNITA to serve as mine detectors, human shields, sex slaves, and combatants. Additionally, about one million children have lost one parent and 300,000 have lost both to the war.
• Internal displacement has reached critical levels, with over 4.3 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), representing 30% of the population. Following the April 2002 ceasefire, an additional 300,000 people were expected to seek assistance, straining humanitarian organizations that had only received 30% of their US$233 million consolidated appeal.
• Urban centers, particularly Luanda, have seen a massive influx of street children driven by poverty and war. Luanda's population grew from 300,000 to over three million in 40 years, resulting in sprawling slums without electricity, sewerage, or clean water.

APA

Clover, J. (2002). Angola`s Children - Bearing the Greatest Cost of War. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/research/situation-reports/situation-report-angolas-children-bearing-the-greatest-cost-of-war-jenny-clover

Chicago

Clover, Jenny. Angola`s Children - Bearing the Greatest Cost of War. Institute for Security Studies, 2002. https://issafrica.org/research/situation-reports/situation-report-angolas-children-bearing-the-greatest-cost-of-war-jenny-clover.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Clover |first1=Jenny |title=Angola`s Children - Bearing the Greatest Cost of War |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2002 |url=https://issafrica.org/research/situation-reports/situation-report-angolas-children-bearing-the-greatest-cost-of-war-jenny-clover |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clover2002angolas, author = {Clover, Jenny}, title = {{Angola`s Children - Bearing the Greatest Cost of War}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2002}, url = {https://issafrica.org/research/situation-reports/situation-report-angolas-children-bearing-the-greatest-cost-of-war-jenny-clover}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }