Pungo Andongo

Pungo Andongo
Pungo Andongo
Coordinates	9 ° 40 ′  S , 15 ° 35 ′  E Coordinates: 9 ° 40 ′  S , 15 ° 35 ′  E
Basic data
Country	Angola
province	Malanje
Município	Cacuso
Comuna	Pungo Andongo
surface	2024 km²
Residents	5200 (2011)
density	2.6  Ew. / km²
politics
mayor	Paulo Hebo
Old stone house in Pungo Andongo where David Livingstone spent some time in 1855

The black stones of Pungo Andongo

Pungo Andongo (also Pungo-Andongo ) is a village in Angola .

history

Due to its location and the nature of the high and rocky terrain, Pungo N`dongo (English: high stones) was for a long time the fortified capital of the kingdom of N`dongo . In the course of the expansion of the Portuguese colonial power inland, the Portuguese also subjugated the Kingdom of Ndongo in 1671, and they built the fortress Forte de Pungo Andongo here . This represented an extension of the Portuguese fortress line along the Cuanzas , in particular with Ambaca , Cambambe , Massangano and Muxima .

Attractions

Pungo Andongo is known for its rock formation, the black stones of Pungo Andongo . A footprint of the legendary Queen Nzinga of Ndongo and Matamba (Ana de Sousa, 1583–1663) is said to be visible here.

With the Capanda Dam , the country's largest reservoir is located in the municipality of Pungo Andongo.

Only ruins can be seen of the Portuguese fortress Fortaleza de Pungo Andongo , built in 1671 , which was used to monitor the local trade routes and to secure the Portuguese sovereignty in the area.

The Aloenart of Aloe andongensis owes Pungo Andongo its name, according to their local deposits.

administration

Pungo Andongo is the seat of a municipality of the same name (Comuna) in the district ( Município ) of Cacuso , in the province of Malanje . The municipality covers an area of ​​2024 km² and has about 5200 inhabitants (2011 estimate). From now on, the 2014 census should provide reliable population data.

The place Capanda is one of the most important localities in the municipality, along with the parish seat.

economy

The municipality is traditionally strongly characterized by agriculture. Cassava , corn , beans, peanuts , sesame and, on a small scale, rice are the most important crops of the predominantly small-scale agriculture, which is used for self-sufficiency. Some of the farmers have come together in the community's 23 cooperatives. But large-scale agriculture is now also practiced here, partly after clearing by Chinese companies. For example, the cultivation of sugar cane was recently resumed, and the energy from the nearby power plant of the Capanda dam also enabled industrial plants to settle here. Also called Kapanda, the dam is the largest in Angola. In 2011, the Brazilian-Angolan company Biocom announced the cultivation of sugar cane and the construction of factories for the production of sugar, biofuel , ethanol and cachaça in Pungo Andongo , initially partly from Brazilian imported sugar cane. At that time there were already facilities for processing maize and other grain in the community.

In May 2014, the former Brazilian President Lula da Silva visited Pungo Adongo and expressed his satisfaction with the progress made in agricultural production, which he said will soon make Angola independent of any food imports. He also visited Capanda, where Biocom will also produce electricity from production waste. After an initial phase from June 2014 with 117 MW, the Biocom power plant is expected to produce electricity with a total output of 340 MW from 2018. By then, the entire needs of all Biocom plants should be covered from Angolan sugar cane. A production of 260 tons of sugar and 30 million liters of ethanol is targeted. From 2020, production will then be increased further in a second phase in order to produce for export.

Biocom is a joint venture between the Brazilian Odebrecht Group , the Angolan company Damer, and the Angolan state-owned mineral oil company Sonangol ( Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola ).

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Article of July 1, 2011 about new factories of the company Biocom , state news agency ANGOP , accessed on May 7, 2014
2. ↑ Entry of the fortress Forte de Pungo Andongo on www.fortalezas.org (port.), Accessed on June 4, 2014
3. ↑ Article from May 7, 2014 on Lula da Silva's visit to Pungo Andongo , state news agency ANGOP, accessed on May 7, 2014
4. ↑ Article from May 7, 2014 on Lula da Silva's visit to Capanda , state news agency ANGOP, accessed on May 7, 2014