Africa’s largest market under threat

Stallholders at the Roque Santeiro market in Luanda, Angola, are getting ready to pack up and leave for good.
The local council has decided to move Africa’s largest market to a site north of the capital.
The market, which helped many Angolans to survive during the civil war, was called Roque Santeiro after the hero of a Brazilian soap opera, broadcast in Angola in 1985, who died defending his city.
Today, this open-air market spans several kilometres and, with almost 200,000 stallholders, is considered to be the largest on the continent. The Angolan writer Pepetela once said: "If you cannot find it at Roque Santeiro, it’s because it hasn’t been invented yet".
The local council of Sambizanga, a district of Luanda under the administration of David da Costa, has decided to redevelop the area where the market is currently located.
Stallholders will be moved to the town of Panguila, 18km north of the capital, where a 250,000m2 commercial complex is to be built.
The Roque Santeiro market will retain 5,300 stalls, but it will also have boutiques, banks, and more hygienic facilities thanks to the construction of cold storage rooms, drinking fountains and toilets. Lastly, security will be improved by the creation of a police station.

France24