Africa-Press – Angola. A former stronghold of UNITA, which controlled parts of southern and eastern Angola during the civil war, Mavinga has become the capital of the new province of Cuando and is expected to re-emerge as a megacity if the government’s plans are fulfilled.
For now, all that exists is a large vacant lot on the left bank of the Cubia River, where a few cattle graze among scattered maboqueiros and improvised fences.
It is there that a large-scale urban development project is planned for the newly created capital of the province of Cuando, which currently lacks infrastructure and, above all, access.
“The baby who was born on December 28th of last year is already taking steps,” summarizes Américo Tarcísio, director of the provincial governor’s office, in an interview given to Lusa at the site where the capital of the new province will be built — split from the former province of Cuando Cubango in the new political-administrative division of December 2024.
Cuando covers an area of 92,300 square kilometers, an area equivalent to Portugal, and has an estimated population of between 140,000 (current) and 350,000 inhabitants within 25 years.
While presenting the projects, which include residential and administrative buildings, a hospital—which will be the first construction to move forward—business parks and industrial zones, the leader emphasizes that everything will be done “without erasing the history” of old Mavinga.
The old village, currently without running water and with intermittent electricity, will be maintained and refurbished, he guarantees.
“The classic, to the extent that it bears the traces of the war, of those who passed through here, will not be demolished. What is happening here is the requalification of this city,” he states.
The redevelopment plan envisions a new city developed in three phases: the first will occupy an area of 200 hectares, dedicated to administrative buildings, a hospital, schools, social infrastructure, and multifunctional housing; the second phase will cover 500 hectares for residential and industrial use; and the third, covering 700 hectares, will include mixed housing areas.
In total, the project covers 1,400 hectares, part of a larger 14,000-hectare plan.
But there’s still no definitive timetable or total investment amount. “I won’t give dates so as not to lie. But it’s true that we’ve only just begun,” said Américo Tarcísio, reiterating that contractors are already mobilized to begin the work that President João Lourenço visited in July.
Provincial authorities deny that the project is megalomaniacal and hope that the new city will contribute to territorial cohesion and attract more residents, as Mavinga currently has around 23,000 residents, but demographic projections estimate that the population will grow to 85,000 by 2050, it notes.
The Government says it is committed to ensuring that the new city is inhabited by the citizens of Mavinga themselves, with urban solutions that respect the local reality.
“The buildings here won’t be more than two stories high. […] It seems like we’re surrounded by people living in mud houses. If we put a huge building there, it will be a mismatch. No,” he explains, adding that “the people who will also live in that new city are those people from the old city.”
Historically associated with UNITA, rich in gold and diamonds, Mavinga was a strategic area for Jonas Savimbi, leader of the guerrilla movement that fought government forces for almost 30 years, immediately after independence in 1975.
In 1990, it was the scene of intense clashes during the Último Assalto offensive, launched by FAPLA — the armed wing of the MPLA — to take the town and open the way to Jamba, the former UNITA headquarters.
Today, however, little remains of the memory of those times in this small and remote town, located more than a thousand kilometers from the capital, Luanda, and which can only be accessed via difficult sandy trails, where it is sometimes only possible to travel at 10 kilometers per hour.
In addition to transportation difficulties, residents also lack running water and continue to have to fetch water from the river, despite the recent creation of a supply tank that only operates when there is electricity.
“During the President’s visit, one of the issues discussed here with the Ministry of Energy and Water was creating sustainability projects to ensure the population has access to water and electricity,” Américo Tarcísio revealed, adding that “agreements” already exist for the construction of a fuel station, a commodity that currently has to be transported over long distances.
When asked whether the new city project will erase the past linked to UNITA, the leader rejects the hypothesis: “What is old is part of history and we only have to improve our history. And that history will be improved. […] This new city is to improve this old one, but the old historic city remains.”
When asked about Mavinga, UNITA provincial secretary Bastos Ngangwe said the difficulties facing those living in the region were “enormous,” emphasizing that this had nothing to do with Savimbi’s time: “There were hospitals and schools, and the people lacked absolutely nothing,” he asserted, contrasting this with “the reality of the MPLA” in which “people are dying from the lack of even the most basic medicine.”
“It’s a bit difficult to talk about building a city until we have roads,” he emphasizes. “People who travel from here to Menongue travel by truck [Kamaz, Russian all-terrain vehicles],” he points out, adding that the construction of the new city “is just an idea.”
The leader of Angola’s largest opposition party also spoke of episodes of political intolerance towards UNITA members who identify as such in the municipality of Cuito Cuanavale and stated that he has sought ways to intervene with local authorities to overcome these obstacles.
“But it’s difficult,” he says.
In Mavinga, however, no such situations have been recorded since he took office on April 10, he says, admitting that “there is some care” on the part of both parties to ensure that they do not happen.
Américo Tarcísio confirms that political dialogue has prevailed in the new province. “Since this new province was established, there has been openness. We’ve never had incidents involving party leaders at the top,” he states, adding that UNITA recently requested a meeting with the governor, which has already been scheduled.
“From a dialogue perspective, there is no repulsion,” he assures.
Despite the enthusiasm and promises, building a “21st-century” city in this location remains a dream for now. To what extent it will become a reality is a question that will only be answered in the coming years.
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