Frontline Social Sciences and History Journal
FRONTLINE JOURNALS
21
The Development Trend and Advantages of Fishery in Angola
Qiu Xiangyu, Male,25 years old
，
Master, Institute of African Studies, Zhejiang Normal University.
Yin Kaiyang, Male,25 years old,
Master,Institute of African Studies , Zhejiang Normal University.
:yinkaiyang72@163.com
A R T I C L E I N f
О
Article history:
Submission Date: 22 April 2025
Accepted Date: 14 May 2025
Published Date: 13 June 2025
VOLUME:
Vol.05 Issue06
Page No. 21-26
DOI: -
https://doi.org/10.37547/social-
A B S T R A C T
Angola is an important maritime country in southern Africa with abundant
fishery resources. For a long time, the Angolan government has regarded
fishery as a pillar to promote national economic development, increase
employment and ensure food security. Since its independence, the Angolan
fishery has experienced a long period of low tide due to the domestic
political situation. With the end of the civil war and the improvement of
national policies, the Angolan fishery has shown new development trends
in recent years. Influenced by factors such as rich fishery resources, a vast
consumer market and national policies, the Angolan fishery has significant
development advantages and broad prospects.
Keywords:
Angola; Fishery; Development Potential; Aquaculture
Fishery
INTRODUCTION
1.The Development Trend of Fisheries in Angola
In 2023, the Angolan government adopted the long-term
development
strategy
"Angola
2050",
setting
development goals for promoting the fishery industry in
2030 and 2050 (see Table 1). In addition, the "National
Development Plan 2023-2027" released in 2023, as a
concrete practice of the long-term development
strategy, has made plans for the phased development of
the fishery industry. These comprehensive and medium
- to long-term plans and strategies not only reflect
Angola's emphasis on fishery production, but also the
development goals set for the fishery and the promotion
of aquaculture fishery development demonstrate the
development trend of Angola's fishery.
Table 1 The fishery development goals of Angola
Year
2022
2030
2050
Total output of catch and aquaculture fishery
(thousand tons)
596
815
1234
Frontline Social Sciences and History Journal
ISSN: 2752-7018
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FRONTLINE JOURNALS
22
Extractive fishing (thousand tons)
593
695
375
Aquaculture (percentage of total output)
0%
15%
70%
Marine aquaculture (thousand tons)
0
40
304
Continental aquaculture (thousand tons)
3
80
555
The contribution of the fishery sector to GDP (1
billion US dollars)
5
7.8
15.9
The contribution of the fishery sector to GDP (as a
percentage of GDP)
4.1%
4.6%
5.5%
Source of Data
：《
Angola 2050
》，
https://mep.gov.ao/bo/api/getDoc/b74775bd00a93260a46450c0b1afb38a-2.pdf.
（
1
）
The trend of sustainable development in the
fishery industry is becoming increasingly prominent
Fish is the main source of animal protein for the Angolan
people. To meet the basic needs of the people, the
Angolan government's management of fishery resources
has been chaotic, and the country has been in a state of
overfishing for a long time
，
1
this has led to the
destruction of its own Marine fishery resources and
frequent ecological problems. Based on the sustainable
development predicament faced by the fishery industry,
the Angolan government intends to build a sustainable
fishery
。
In 2023, Angola held its first Blue Economy
Expo, attracting nearly 60 exhibitors
，
2
it involves
multiple fishery companies and aims to enhance the
sustainability of Marine fishery. In April 2024, Minister of
Fisheries and Marine Resources Carmen DOS Santos
attended the United Nations Decade of the Ocean
Conference held in Barcelona, Spain, aiming to lay a new
foundation for strengthening sustainable ocean
management and promoting science-based innovation.
Furthermore, Angola actively strengthens international
cooperation to promote the development of the blue
economy. On July 23, 2024, Angola and Portugal signed
a Protocol on cooperation in the blue economy. The
sustainable development of the fishery industry is an
1
Vepa, V., & Urbandale, I. A. Angola: The Benefits of Improved
Aquaculture and Stopping Overfishing.
2
“Primeira edição da Expo Economia azul”
，
Ministério da
economia e Planeamento
，
2023-11-
27
，
https://minpermar.gov.ao/web/noticias/primeira-edicao-da-expo-
economia-azul
，
Accessed 2025-3-29.
3
“Ambassador Zhang Bin to Angola paid a visit to the Minister of
Fisheries and Marine Resources of Angola”
，
Website of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of
important area of cooperation between the two sides.
On October 29, 2024, Zhang Bin paid a visit to Angola's
Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, DOS Santos.
DOS Santos expressed his hope that more Chinese
enterprises would invest in Angola's aquaculture and
fishery infrastructure to promote the sustainable
development of Angola's fishery.
3
In February 2025,
Angola issued Presidential Decree No. 56/25, authorizing
the use of technologies such as Automatic Identification
systems (AIS), vessel monitoring systems (VMS), and
unmanned aerial vehicles to supervise and manage
fishing vessels, in order to enhance the protection of
Marine fishery resources.
4
The series of measures taken
by the Angolan government departments demonstrate
its intention to guide the sustainable development of the
fishery industry and facilitate the transformation and
upgrading of the industry.
（
2
）
The status of aquaculture has gradually increased
Although the aquaculture industry in Angola is generally
in its infancy, it has received increasing attention from
the Angolan government in recent years. In 2022, the
proportion of aquaculture production in Angola's total
fishery output was almost zero. However, in its long-
term plan, the Angolan government plans to increase the
proportion of aquaculture production to 70% of the total
China
，
2024-10-
31,https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/web/gjhdq_676201/gj_676203/fz_6773
16/1206_677390/1206x2_677410/202412/t20241218_11499229.sht
ml
，
Accessed2025-3-30.
4
“The new legislation ensures strengthened supervision and
sustainable management of Marine resources”
，
The Government of
Angola
，
2025-3-
13
，
https://governo.gov.ao/noticias/2306/governo/frota-
pesqueira/nova-legislacao-garante-maior-fiscalizacao-e-gestao-
sustentavel-dos-recursos-marinhos
，
Accessed 2025-3-29.
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FRONTLINE JOURNALS
23
fishery output by 2050, setting the general tone for the
future development of Angola's aquaculture industry. In
addition, promoting the development of freshwater and
Marine aquaculture is one of Angola's ten major goals for
2023-2027.
5
In 2014, Angola launched the "Spatial
Planning of Aquaculture Zones in the Republic of
Angola", the aim is to enable stakeholders to collaborate
and participate in ultimately determining the most
promising aquaculture development areas.
6
By the end
of 2023, there were approximately 400 enterprises
engaged in aquaculture in Angola. The aquaculture
fishery production activities were concentrated in
Cabinda, Uige and Lunda Sul. Among them, about 90% of
the aquaculture enterprises used land (by digging ponds)
as the main aquaculture site, while less than 10% of the
aquaculture enterprises carried out aquaculture in
natural and artificial ponds and reservoirs
，
7
the
utilization of domestic freshwater aquaculture space is
insufficient. In addition, freshwater aquaculture is an
important direction for Angola's aquaculture industry. It
is estimated that by 2050, the output of Angola's
aquaculture industry will account for 70% of the total
fishery output. At that time, the output of freshwater
aquaculture industry will reach 555,000 tons, becoming
an important pillar of the country's fishery. In the latest
national development plan, Angola plans to implement
829 continental aquaculture projects to enhance the
production capacity of aquaculture fishery, including 751
small-scale aquaculture projects, 67 medium-sized
aquaculture projects and 11 large-scale aquaculture
projects.
8
Driven by a series of policies, the output of
aquaculture in Angola has continued to grow in recent
years, rising from 1,339 tons in 2017 to 2,808 tons in
2021. In 2023, the output of aquaculture exceeded
10,000 tons, showing a strong growth trend.
2.The advantages of fishery development in Angola
5
“National Fisheries Promotion Program”
，
Ministry of Economy
and Planning
，
January
2022
，
p.7
，
https://mep.gov.ao/bo/api/getDoc/d76ed13a91d35b754c
6e07d37e114622.pdf.
6
Aguilar-Manjarrez
，
J., Scott, P., & Dombaxe, M. (2016). Angola
committed to growing sustainable aquaculture.
FAO Aquaculture
Newsletter
, (54), 40.
7
“Result reports of agricultural and aquaculture
enterprises”
，
National Institute of Statistics of
Angola
，
P.57.https://www.ine.gov.ao/Arquivos/arquivosCarregados/
/Carregados/Publicacao_638097190203119643.pdf.
Fishery is a pillar industry in Angola and has played a
significant role in enhancing national food security,
eliminating hunger and promoting employment. Since
the end of the Angolan civil war in 2002, the Angolan
government departments have long been committed to
the recovery of the fishery industry, stabilizing social
employment and ensuring national food security.
Nowadays, with the in-depth advancement of Angola's
economic diversification strategy and the effective
implementation of various development plans, coupled
with the fishery and spatial resources within Angola, as
well as the potential fish product consumption market
and other factors, these factors interweave with each
other, forming a significant advantage for the
development of Angola's fishery.
（
1
）
Abundant fishery resources lay the foundation
for development
Angola is located in the southern part of the Gulf of
Guinea. Along its coast, cold and warm currents
converge, and it is influenced by the southeast trade
wind, with prevailing upwelling. The conditions for the
growth of Marine fish are excellent. Research shows that
the Benguerra Current region is rich in middle, upper and
lower fish resources. Most of the important fishery
resources are shared among neighboring countries or
migrated across national jurisdictions, including
sardines, anchovies, cod, bamboo mackerel, sardine, big-
eyed toothfish, deep-sea red crabs and west coast rock
lobsters. The multi-species bottom trawling fishery from
southern to northern Angola mainly catches bottom-
dwelling fish populations, involving more than 30 species
of fish, including snapper, yellow croaker, grouper and
cod, etc.
9
The fishery department of Angola once
estimated that its fishery catch potential exceeded
700,000 tons,
10
it laid the resource foundation for the
development of fishing fishery. Meanwhile, Angola is
8
“National Development Plan (PDN) 2023-2027”
，
The Government
of Angola
，
2025-3-
14
，
https://governo.gov.ao/noticias/2316/governo/dinamizacao-da-
aquicultura/fabricas-de-racao-e-centros-de-producao-de-alevinos-
vao-ser-potencializados
，
Accessed 2025-4-1.
9
Kirkman, S.P. and Nsingi, K.K.
，
“Marine biodiversity of Angola:
biogeography and conservation”
，
Biodiversity of Angola: Science &
Conservation: A Modern Synthesis
，
2019
，
p.45.
10
Konda, F.D.M.
，
“Present status of fisheries wealth in
Angola”
，
Journal of Marine Bioscience and
Biotechnology
，
2008
，
3(1)
，
p.1.
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FRONTLINE JOURNALS
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crisscrossed by a dense network of waterways, with
approximately 30 major rivers, including the Congo
River, the Cunene River, the Kwanza River, the Cubongo
River, etc. The degree of development is relatively low,
11
the abundant freshwater resources provide spatial
support for the development of freshwater aquaculture
fishery.
（
2
）
Domestic demand is strong and the market
conditions are favorable
Fish is one of the traditional diets of Angolan residents,
so the demand for fish products among the people of this
country is relatively high. In 2021, the per capita
consumption of aquatic animal food in African countries
was 9.4 kilograms,
12
but from 2017 to 2021, the per
capita consumption of fish products in Angola was
roughly between 11 kilograms and 20 kilograms,
exceeding the average consumption of fish products in
African countries. During this period, the export of fish
products decreased from 33,718 tons to 20,060 tons,
and the import of fish products dropped from 60,573
tons to 3,530 tons. Fishery products were mainly sold
domestically, with a self-sufficiency rate exceeding 90%,
and the demand for fish products was also expanding day
by day.
13
On the other hand, fish products play an
important role in alleviating issues such as food security
in Angola. The issue of food security in Angola remains
rather prominent. At present, Angola's domestic grain
output can meet 40% of its domestic demand, while the
rest needs to be imported. The Angolan government still
has to pay 2 to 3 billion US dollars for grain imports every
year.
14
The fishery sector is the third largest sector in
Angola's national economy, providing approximately
25% of the country's population with animal protein
intake. Moreover, the fishery plays a crucial role in
helping Angola eliminate hunger and poverty and
11
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of
China
，《
Guide to Foreign Investment and Cooperation Countries
(Regions) : Angola (2024)
》，
p.2.
12
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
，《
The
State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture in 2024: Blue
Transformation in
Action
》，
p.73.https://openknowledge.fao.org/bitstreams/bb50d985-
f951-4548-8ed8-c687ef54f4d9/download.
13
“National Fisheries Promotion Program”
，
Ministry of Economy
and Planning
，
January
2022
，
p.9
，
https://mep.gov.ao/bo/api/getDoc/d76ed13a91d35b754c
6e07d37e114622.pdf.
safeguard national food security.
15
（
3
）
The aquaculture industry has great growth
potential
Aquaculture has become a key direction for the future
development of Angola's fishery and holds huge growth
potential. First of all, the strong support of national
policies provides a solid guarantee for this field. The
"Angola 2050" vision development strategy clearly
places aquaculture at the strategic priority and provides
systematic policy guidance for it, demonstrating the high
level of attention paid to aquaculture at the national
level. Secondly, the transformation of the national
fishery development concept has had a profound impact
on this field. Angola is striving to reduce the output of
traditional fishing fishery and gradually lower its reliance
on extractive fishery, thereby promoting the sustainable
development of the fishery industry. This has created an
era opportunity for the development of aquaculture
fishery in Angola. Meanwhile, the domestic demand for
fish products has been continuously increasing, while the
domestic supply of fish is relatively insufficient. This
contradiction between supply and demand further
highlights the urgency of the development of
aquaculture. In addition, the natural conditions of
Angola's Marine and inland waters are superior,
providing a favorable growth environment for
aquaculture,
16
it has further enhanced the future
potential of aquaculture. Finally, as Angola's
international cooperation in the fishery sector deepens
increasingly,
the
introduction
of
technological
innovation and financial support will effectively break
through the current bottlenecks and promote the
development of aquaculture to a higher level. Overall,
aquaculture not only meets the needs of Angola's fishery
transformation, but also has great development
potential and advantages under the influence of factors
14
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of
China
，《
Guide to Foreign Investment and Cooperation Countries
(Regions) : Angola (2024)
》，
p.14.
15
Faria, S., Macuéria, M., Mosley, B. A., Teodósio, M. A., &
Baptista, V.
，
“Characterization of small-scale fishing activity in
Luanda Bay (Angola)”,
Journal of Spatial and Organizational
Dynamics
，
2021
，
9
(3), pp.225-238.
16
Silva, E. J., Oddsson, G., & Gunnarsson, V. I.
，
“Planning and
management for sustainable development of inland aquaculture in
Angola”
，
The United Nations University. Fisheries training
program. Final project PO Box
,
1390
.
Frontline Social Sciences and History Journal
FRONTLINE JOURNALS
25
such as national policies and domestic market demands.
3.CONCLUSION
Fishery is a pillar industry of Angola's economy. In
response to the needs of the country's economic
structure adjustment and transformation, Angola's
fishery has gradually shown a trend of sustainability and
strengthening
aquaculture.
With
the
effective
implementation of a series of policies and measures
formulated by the government for the fishery industry,
the new trends in fishery development have become
more prominent. At present, Angola still has a
considerable gap from the set development goals in
terms of the output of fish products, production
structure and the contribution of fishery to the economy.
However, with the steady advancement of fishery
development policies, coupled with the advantages of
abundant fishery resources, strong demand for fish
products and superior conditions of aquaculture fishery,
it is conducive to the adjustment of the fishery structure
and the enhancement of sustainability in Angola. It has a
broader development prospect.
REFERENCES
1.
Vepa, V., & Urbandale, I. A. Angola: The Benefits of
Improved Aquaculture and Stopping Overfishing.
2.
“Primeira edição da Expo Economia azul”
，
Ministério da economia e Planeamento
，
2023-11-
27
，
https://minpermar.gov.ao/web/noticias/primeira-
edicao-da-expo-economia-azul
，
Accessed 2025-3-
29.
3.
“Ambassador Zhang Bin to Angola paid a visit to the
Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources of
Angola”
，
Website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of the People's Republic of China
，
2024-10-
31,https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/web/gjhdq_676201/
gj_676203/fz_677316/1206_677390/1206x2_67741
0/202412/t20241218_11499229.shtml
，
Accessed2025-3-30.
4.
“The new legislation ensures strengthened
supervision and sustainable management of Marine
resources”
，
The Government of Angola
，
2025-3-
13
，
https://governo.gov.ao/noticias/2306/governo/frot
a-pesqueira/nova-legislacao-garante-maior-
fiscalizacao-e-gestao-sustentavel-dos-recursos-
marinhos
，
Accessed 2025-3-29.
5.
“National Fisheries Promotion Program”
，
Ministry
of Economy and Planning
，
January 2022
，
p.7
，
https://mep.gov.ao/bo/api/getDoc/d76ed13a91d35
b754c6e07d37e114622.pdf.
6.
Aguilar-Manjarrez
，
J., Scott, P., & Dombaxe, M.
(2016). Angola committed to growing sustainable
aquaculture.
FAO Aquaculture Newsletter
, (54), 40.
7.
“Result reports of agricultural and aquaculture
enterprises”
，
National Institute of Statistics of
Angola
，
P.57.https://www.ine.gov.ao/Arquivos/arquivosCar
regados//Carregados/Publicacao_63809719020311
9643.pdf.
8.
“National Development Plan (PDN) 2023
-
2027”
，
The
Government
of
Angola
，
2025-3-14
，
https://governo.gov.ao/noticias/2316/governo/din
amizacao-da-aquicultura/fabricas-de-racao-e-
centros-de-producao-de-alevinos-vao-ser-
potencializados
，
Accessed 2025-4-1.
9.
Kirkman, S.P. and Nsingi, K.K.
，
“Marine biodiversity
of Ango
la: biogeography and conservation”
，
Biodiversity of Angola: Science & Conservation: A
Modern Synthesis
，
2019
，
p.45.
10.
Konda, F.D.M.
，
“Present status of fisheries wealth
in Angola”
，
Journal of Marine Bioscience and
Biotechnology
，
2008
，
3(1)
，
p.1.
11.
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of
China
，《
Guide to Foreign Investment and
Cooperation Countries (Regions) : Angola (2024)
》
，
p.2.
12.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations
，《
The State of World Fisheries and
Aquaculture in 2024: Blue Transformation in Action
》，
p.73.https://openknowledge.fao.org/bitstreams/bb
50d985-f951-4548-8ed8-c687ef54f4d9/download.
13.
“National Fisheries Promotion Program”
，
Ministry
of Economy and Planning
，
January 2022
，
p.9
，
https://mep.gov.ao/bo/api/getDoc/d76ed13a91d35
b754c6e07d37e114622.pdf.
Frontline Social Sciences and History Journal
FRONTLINE JOURNALS
26
14.
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of
China
，《
Guide to Foreign Investment and
Cooperation Countries (Regions) : Angola (2024)
》
，
p.14.
15.
Faria, S., Macuéria, M., Mosley, B. A., Teodósio, M.
A., & Baptista, V.
，
“Characterization of small
-scale
fi
shing activity in Luanda Bay (Angola)”,
Journal of
Spatial and Organizational Dynamics
，
2021
，
9
(3),
pp.225-238.
16.
Silva, E. J., Oddsson, G., & Gunnarsson, V. I.
，
“Planning and management for sustainable
development of inland aquacul
ture in Angola”
，
The
United Nations University. Fisheries training
program. Final project PO Box
,
1390
.
