Where is Angola's Oil Money

Oil has driven Angola's booming economy over the last decade, helping the resource-rich country emerge from the wreckage of a long, vicious war to become one Africa's major economic players.

One of the biggest producers of black gold in the continent, the southwestern African country has seen its GDP surge by several hundred percent in recent years as the hangover from long conflicts turned into a hunger for profits.

More than 90% of Angola's revenue comes from oil production, but despite its oil wealth, Angola remains largely impoverished.

In Luanda, the vibrant capital of Angola, shiny new boardwalks, luxury properties and an influx of Portuguese expats are all signs of oil money in a city that was last year named as the world's most expensive for expats.

But despite the numerous new developments and Luanda's shiny facade, inequality prevails

Next to the sleek skyscrapers and luxury apartments, ramshackle shantytowns and crowded slums spread for miles in every direction, housing millions of people living on less than $2 a day.

In many cases, even basic necessities like water and electricity are lacking.

Activists like Elias Isaac say the much-vaunted oil wealth bypasses ordinary people in the country, run by President Jose Eduardo dos Santos since 1979.

"We don't see the money that is being generated from oil having direct impact on people's livelihoods," said Isaac, Angola program manager of the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa.

"Angola makes a lot of money out of oil, there is no doubt about this," he added. "Angola is one of the few countries that can really pay its national budget without any donor funding, which is great. But where this money goes, that's the biggest issue.