Angola will do its “due homework” to expand bilateral cooperation with the United States of America (US), which is experiencing a new moment and offering new opportunities for the Angolan business class, an official source said on Thursday.
According to the State Minister for Economic Coordination of Angola, José de Lima Massano, who spoke at the end of the meeting led by Angolan President João Lourenço and which discussed the path of relations between Angola and the United States, both countries are “living in a new moment in relations, which should be marked by deepening cooperation.”
Massano, quoted by the press secretariat of the President of the Republic of Angola, said at the end of the meeting that new opportunities are opening up for the Angolan business community to export more products to the United States, in addition to traditional oil and gas.
“We need to know how to take advantage of this new moment, how to prepare,” the official said, adding that he believes in the benefits for the Angolan economy as this new cycle of cooperation begins.
North American institutions will be able to finance more projects in Angola, namely the Lobito corridor, according to an Angolan minister.
Joao Lourenco was received a week ago by his counterpart Joe Biden as part of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The two officials discussed next steps to deepen bilateral cooperation on trade, investment, climate and energy, as well as the development of President Biden’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI) for the Lobito Corridor, rail infrastructure that will connect Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) ) and Zambia to world markets through the Angolan port of Lobito.
US Ambassador to Angola Tulinabo Muchingi recalled at a press conference in Luanda on Wednesday the discussions between the two heads of state, saying that the meeting was an opportunity to talk about the future of the partnership, which includes: He stressed that more than a billion had been invested in the Corredor do Lobito transformer dollars (924 million euros).
The diplomat stressed that this is “the largest rail investment in US history in sub-Saharan Africa,” adding that in the energy area, approaches point to more than $2 billion (€1.8 billion) in investment in projects.
This Thursday, João Lourenço, who chaired a meeting with members of his executive branch on relations between Angola and the United States, also chaired the second regular meeting of the Council of Local Government (CGL), which brings together the 18 governors of Angolan provinces. and other persons in the government apparatus.
The CGL is a collegial body that assists the President of Angola in formulating and monitoring the implementation of public administration policies at the local level.