INTERNATIONAL

Angola to Privatize Coffee Plantations: The African nation said it will do so in a bid to regain its position as a major producer. Angola’s secretary of state for coffee, Faustino Muteka, said the government will sell 30 large, state-run plantations in the next few months. In 1973, Angola produced a tenth of the world’s coffee and was No. 4 in global exports. When it gained independence from Portugal in 1975, colonial farm owners left and the government took over the plantations. Attacks by U.S.-backed UNITA rebels and mismanagement by the Marxist government led to a rapid decline in coffee production. Only 4,500 tons were produced last year, compared to 241,000 tons in 1973. The government signed peace accords with the rebels May 31, ending a 16-year civil war.