Sanitation and Wastewater Atlas of Africa

Urban coverage of Luanda in 1995

Urban expansion of Luanda over the last 3 decades

2018 2009

10 km

Luanda is one of Africa’s fastest growing cities, with an annual urbanization rate of 7 per cent. In 2016, the city’s population reached 7 million (Cain 2018), and is currently estimated at 8.2 million (World Bank 2020). Half the city’s population resides in musseques (informal settlements) (Cain 2018), with limited services, including safe drinking water and sanitation provision. In order to serve the housing needs of the

growing population, Luanda continues to witness rapid expansion in area.

water from vendors, the quality of which is often not good. The situation is compounded by the poor management of solid waste. People’s health is greatly affected with outbreaks of cholera being common. For example, in 2006 more than 17,500 residents of Luanda contracted cholera (Médecins Sans Frontières 2006).

About one third of Luanda’s population is not served with adequate sanitation facilities, and the majority of such people reside in informal settlements where open defecation is widely practiced. About 70 per cent of the residents of informal settlements buy

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SANITATION AND WASTEWATER ATLAS OF AFRICA