To understand the purpose of the Kunene hydro‐electic schemes in Angola one must examine the pattern of land settlement in Namibia established during the Herero‐German war of 1904-1908. At that time the White groups settled on the rich central pastoral land and also controlled the coast line. However the White south has three missing commodities which must be imported from the north: water, electricity, and labour. Thus it is the White groups who benefit most from the Kunene schemes. The profits from mining are accumulated in Johannesburg, New York, and London, while White mine workers receive high returns and Black workers receive low returns. The White farmers no longer face competition from the mines for water. The fishing and secondary industries receive relatively cheap power and water. Black farmers and herdsmen receive water, but the problem of irrigated farming in the ‘home‐lands’ has still to be solved.