Ovakuvale near Virei

In the Namibe province, in South Eastern Angola, the area around Virei is inhabited by the Ovakuvale. They are Bantu transhumant shepherds. The women wear a characteristic large headdress and a string over their naked breasts, called an oyonduthi. It is a matrilineal society in which the inheritance follows the maternal line. The social status depends on the number of cattle that one owns. In this very dry landscape, a lot of the life takes place at the water well, the structure made of concrete.