Lobito is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. It is located in Benguela Province, on the Atlantic Coast north of the Catumbela Estuary. The Lobito municipality had a population of 393,079 in 2014.

History

The city was founded in 1843 and owes its existence to the bay of the same name having been chosen as the sea terminus of the Benguela railway to the far interior, passing through Luau to Katanga in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

. The city is located on the coast of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. The population of the municipality is 393,079 (2014) in an area of 3,648 km². The municipality consists of the communes Canjala, Egipto Praia and Lobito.

Portuguese rule

Lobito, was built on a sandspit and reclaimed land, with one of Africa's finest natural harbours, protected by a 5 km long sandspit. The old

('' concelho'') was created in 1843 by the Portuguese administration. The town was also founded in 1843 by order of Maria II of Portugal, and its harbour works were begun in 1903. It wasn't until 1843 that Maria II of Portugal approved the foundation of the town, which had by then been known as Catumbela das Ostras (''Catumbela of Oysters'') Lobito restinga2

Large developments, however, were not stimulated until the completion in 1928 of the important Benguela Railway, which connected Portuguese Angola with the

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964. Colo ...

. Under Portuguese rule, the port was one of Angola's busiest, exporting

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

produce from the interior and handling transit trade from the mines of southeastern Belgian Congo and of

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in southern Africa, south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-West ...

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

, tourism and services were also important. The

carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

in Lobito was also one of the most renowned and popular in Portuguese Angola.LobitoAnosOuro.wmv
a film of the Lobito in Portuguese Angola, before independence from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Post-independence

After the April 25, 1974

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution ( pt, Revolução dos Cravos), also known as the 25 April ( pt, 25 de Abril, links=no), was a military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the authoritarian Estado Novo regime on 25 April 1974 in Lisbo ...

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

, Angola was offered independence. Lobito's port activities were highly limited by disruptions to railway transit and high insecurity during the Angolan Civil War (1975–2002). With peace and stability, in the 2000s, Lobito started the process of reconstruction and resumed its path to development.

Climate

Lobito experiences a mild tropical

arid climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

with few temperature extremes. The winters are extremely dry and warm, while summers are relatively wet and hotter.

Transportation

Lobito is the terminus of the Benguela Railway

Port

The

Port of Lobito The port of Lobito is an Angolan port located in the city of Lobito, in the province of Benguela. It is connected to the commercial area of the city and the neighborhood of Canata. It is located in Lobito Bay, which is separated from the Atlanti ...

is located in Lobito Bay on a sandspit approximately 4.8 km long. The port is administered by the Empresa Portuaria do Lobito. The Port of Lobito handles 2,000,000 tonnes of cargo and 370 ships annually, and along with economic development in the Benguala region, port facilities are under expansion.

Airports

Lobito does not have its own airport. The city is located from Catumbela Airport and from Benguela Airport.

International Relations

Lobito is twinned with: *

Sintra Sintra (, ) is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 377,835, in an area of . Sintra is one of the most urbanized and densely populated ...

, Portugal *

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

, United States

References

{{Authority control Populated places in Benguela Province Port cities and towns in Angola Municipalities of Angola 1843 establishments in the Portuguese Empire