The Cold War played a crucial role in the development of the Angolan state. Despite the fact that Angola is not a big country in terms of size and population, the battle for influence was related particularly to the strategy of the Cold War and that of the strategic zones in the world. There are several issues to be taken into account when addressing the perspectives of the society as opposed to that of the government in reference to the future of Angola. The first one is the constant and ongoing civil disruptions over the diamond trade.

The UN sanctions imposed on UNITA, the ones responsible for most of the illegal trade diamond had no consistent effect because the trade embargo was not respected, as the Canadian Ambassador mentioned on one occasion

. In this sense, the social constraints of the blood diamonds trade cannot be stopped, regardless of the sanctions and embargo imposed.

The second aspect is related to the actual UN sanctions imposed on the UNITA. There have been numerous UN sanctions and resolutions imposed on the UNITA, and yet, they failed dramatically. The UN has, from 1997, "Strongly deploring the failure by UNITA to comply fully with its obligations under the "Acordos de Paz," the Lusaka Protocol and with relevant Security Council resolutions, in particular resolution 1127 (1997) of 28 August 1997"

. Yet UNITA is considered to be responsible for the ongoing diamond trade which in turn finances the maintenance of army supplies as well as keeps the intention of rebellion vivid.

In this context it is rather difficult to make a proper assessment of the situation in the country. However, it must be pointed out that the government fails to have full control of the territories in Angola. From this point-of-view, the government can be considered to have a weak presence in the territories. In particular, these territories include the sides of the rivers that are usually controlled by the UNITA because they offer the less important, but precious river diamonds. These in turn are the easiest to send across the Kimberly Process, the customs, or the governmental control.

The vision on the future is rather split. At this moment the government is considered to function better than in the past as it received the Ibrahim Index of African Governance

. At the same time however, there are those who argue that the score is not an eloquent description of the events in the country, as corruption and mismanagement is widespread. Furthermore, recent allegations of rapes in Angola among the Congo refugees worsen the situation even more. In this case, Angola may be accused of not being involved in the protection of refugees and thus the government is viewed as inefficient

. Therefore, it can be argued that from an external point-of-view, the future is not an optimistic one.

From the point-of-view of the society, the constant work that is being done in the process of reconstruction, especially in the capital can provide a new feeling to the Angola population. This is not necessarily due to the precise developments in the country, but rather to the fact that the conditions in Africa are slowly changing. They succeeded in introducing the positive legislation on the public private partnerships. Even if there are armed conflicts around the country, the Angolan state seems to have at its disposal the necessary assistance. In turn this leads to a different type of social appreciation.

The civil war represented a catastrophic hit for Angola. Although the country benefits from important diamond and oil resources it is to this day one of the poorest countries in Africa, Furthermore, the society is split from the government and the state is too weak to address the issue in a stronger voice. The possibilities...

However, the difference is not necessarily between the opinions of the government and the society, but rather between the government and the international community.
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