On Monday, the prime minister will begin a visit to Angola, during which more than a dozen bilateral cooperation agreements will be signed, including a new strategic cooperation program and a strengthened credit line.
During his second official visit to Angola (the first was in 2018), which will end on Tuesday, António Costa will be accompanied by Ministers of Finance Fernando Medina, Foreign Affairs, João Gomes Cravinho, Economy, António Costa Silva, Agriculture Maria do Seu Antunes and Foreign Minister Francisco Andre.
Shortly after arriving in Luanda on Monday morning, the Portuguese Prime Minister is received by Angolan President João Lourenço.
According to the Lisbon leader, after just one meeting between the Angolan head of state and António Costa, “more than a dozen bilateral cooperation documents are expected to be signed, of which the Strategic Cooperation Program (PEC) 2023.-2027 stands out, strengthening the Portugal-Angola credit line from 1.5 to two billion euros, as well as a memorandum of understanding between the Sines and Algarve Port Authority and the Sociedade de Desenvolvimento da Barra do Dande.
In relation to this memorandum, it is supposed to create a “green and digital logistics corridor between ports, strengthening supply chains and strategic reserves, especially in the agricultural and food sector.”
Among the dozen agreements to be signed at a ceremony chaired by João Lourenço de Antônio Costa, the Portuguese chief executive emphasizes that PEC 2023-27 is the document that will define all bilateral cooperation between Portugal and Angola for the next five years.
“The new PEC will strengthen the financial package of the previous period” and “should continue to prioritize areas such as education, health, justice and security, and promote cooperation in new areas such as tourism, administrative modernization, cooperation with the private sector and human capital,” the Portuguese government said in a note.
Also according to the same note, the last PEC for 2018-2022 with a financial package of 535 million euros had an overall execution rate of 122%.
The Portuguese government also stresses the importance of the agreement reached by the Minister of Finance to strengthen the credit line between the two countries, which was highly appreciated by the President of Angola in a recent interview with the Agência Lusa agency and the Expresso newspaper.
The extension of the credit line to 2 billion euros is considered by the national party as an important step towards “financing Portuguese companies, especially in the face of foreign competition.”
Bilateral agreements will also cover the areas of economy, higher education, infrastructure, media and defense.
During this visit, the Prime Minister should emphasize the goal of promoting the diversification of the Angolan economy – a priority identified by the Luanda authorities – with a commitment to new areas such as water and energy, engineering and construction, agribusiness, tourism. , pharmaceutical industry, education or textiles.
“Contacts are planned with representatives of more than a hundred Portuguese companies from the sectors of infrastructure and construction, banking, financial sector, retail, energy, agri-food, technology and communications and services. Economic Forum 2023 in Porto, 17 May,” added the representative of Lisbon.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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