Saurimo is the capital of the Lunda Sul

Lunda Sul

Lunda Sul is a province of Angola. It has an area of 77,637 km² and a population of approximately 125,000. Saurimo is the capital of the province. Other municipalities include Cacolo, Dala and Muconda. This region is rich with diamonds....

 province of Angola

Angola

Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...

, Saurimo has a population of approximately 200,000. The population has increased due to migrants fleeing areas affected by the civil war.

Overview

Formerly the town was known as Henrique De Carvalho, after the Portuguese explorer, Henrique de Carvalho, who visited the region in 1884 and contacted the local (historically powerful) Lunda people. It is located in northeastern Angola at an elevation of 3,557 feet (1,081 m) above sea level. It is a garrison town and local market centre.

The main economic activities nowadays are agriculture and diamonds. The main foodstuffs are mandioc, corn, sweet potato and yam. Other activities are handicraft, fishing, and diamond panning.