Country Description:

CARE started its operations in Angola in 1989, mainly focusing on emergency interventions including food, health, water, and sanitation, and one urban development program. In 2002, when the 30-year civil war ended, CARE’s programs shifted, and eight years later more than 80 percent of the programs are rights-based and focus on good governance and decentralization in both urban and rural areas. Out of Angola’s 18 provinces, CARE Angola now works in Luanda, Bie, Kuando Kubango, Cabinda, Benguela, Cunene, Huambo, and Huila. The resource-rich country has a strong potential to become independent from foreign aid, but it will be a challenge to ensure those resources benefit all Angolans. In light of this, CARE Angola focuses on two main areas: promoting good governance and the government’s decentralization program; and livelihood programs for poverty reduction among the most vulnerable populations—particularly women and children.