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A leap into the future

The Angola Press Agency (ANGOP), by excellence the only of its kind in the country, enters in year 2000 with a technological and human frame in constant transformation and updating that, it is expected, proves capable of meeting the challenges of the turn of the century.

The enterprise was established in July 1975, under the designation of Agencia Nacional Angola Press (ANAP), whose works were distributed in the form of bulletin. In October the same year, ANGOP adopts its actual and definite designation, Agencia Angola Press, on proposal of the then president Antonio Agostinho Neto, and releases, on 28 October, its first dispatch with the new sigla.

Three years thereafter, on 02 February 1978, the agency was transformed into a state organ of social communication, with the publication of the presidential decree 11/78, of 1 February, in the official Gazette. Since then, the basis for its growth and development was launched, which paved the way for the palmy days of the 80's. That time, ANGOP already employed about 300 workers, mostly journalists, with a daily 24 hour uninterrupted service, throughout the country (18 provinces) and abroad, with five delegations (Portugal, Brazil, UK, Zimbabwe and Congo).

Prizes

This quality in production led the main international agencies to utilize ANGOP as a source of information or set up partnerships. Among these many agencies with which ANGOP has worked over all these years are Reuters, AP, AFP, EFE, ANSA, TANJUG, IPS, Prensa Latina Xinhua, Tass, AIM (Mozambique), ST-Press (Sao Tome), VNA (Vietnam), BTA (Bulgaria), ADN (then East Germany), CTK (ex-Czechoslovakia), PAP (Poland), MTI (Hungary), Romania Press (Romania), ATCC (North Korea), ANN (Nicaragua), APS (Algeria), AZAP (ex-Zaire), ABP (Burundi) and ACI (Congo Brazzaville).

A member of the pool of the Non-Aligned countries news agencies since its foundation, ANGOP even undertook, with great success, its presidency, between 1989 to 1992. This pool gathers within itself more than a hundred countries from the five continents.

As a recognition of the great undertaking along the years, ANGOP saw its effort exaulted with the award, for the first time in 1990, and afterwards in 1992, of the International Golden Star of Quality, from the Business Iniciative Directions, with headquarters in Madrid.

The agency under siege

Following UNITA's rejection of the results of the 1992 elections, alike other structures throughout the country, ANGOP suffered badly the consequences of the war that then started.

The day UNITA started its attempt to seize the countrys capital city, five journalists were retained within the premises of ANGOP's head-office for three days, the time the so-called "Luanda War" lasted.

That was an episode those professionals will never forget, as they maintained, on behalf of the spirit of the true journalism, an obstinacy in remaining at the workplace sending information away, at a time the situation did not encourage anymore.

When the war loomed, workers from every part of the city rushed to reach their homes. Everyone was aware that, at any time, the conflict could break out and that some of the targetted places were the social communication organs. Even though, the ANGOP professionals remained there.

Modernization

With the war, the agency saw its development projects severed, mainly those having to do with its expansion outward, as well as an ambitious personnel training programme that would follow the consolidation of the country's peace process. This process was aggravated with the destruction of some of its infrastructures and death of some officials as a result of the conflict.

However, the effort in keeping the national and international public opinion informed continues, despite the consequences of a fratricide war. Now that it is turning 25 years of existence, the agency moves on to a new phase, in the search for modernization both internal and external, and mainly in the search for closer and hasty contact with the whole planet through its internet web site.

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