Forbes recently named Isabel José dos Santos (Angolan President, José Eduardo dos Santos’ daughter) the richest woman in Africa and Africa’s first female billionaire. She made her money investing in Angolan resources and has an estimated net worth of US$1 billion.
Nearly 80% of the government’s fiscal revenue comes from oil which is Angola’s main export, representing around 98% of all exports. It unsurprisingly relies on its main source of funding, which is from foreign investment. China is the biggest receiver of Angola’s products, accepting 40% of exports, with the US coming second with 18.9%.
China sees the huge economic potential in Angola and as such, has granted loans of over US$5 billion and is helping with the country’s development by financing the construction of roads, stadiums and housing.
Aside from oil and gas reserves, diamonds are also plentiful and Angola is the world’s fifth best diamond producer. Iron ore, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite and uranium are also resources that are in abundance. Some of the lesser known industries and under-exploited sectors that have economic development potential are hydroelectricity, fishing, forestry and agriculture.
Angola’s major imports are machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles and military goods. Angola’s import partners are Portugal (14.3%), The Netherlands (11.3%), China (10%), and the United States (9.2%).