Luanda – Angola and Portugal are working to make operational the observatory for the flow of investments in the two countries, an agreement signed in 2015, as part of the strengthening bilateral cooperation.
Agreement on the creation of the Investment Observatory, coordinated by the Ministries of Economy of both governments, was also approved in Presidential Decree no. 316/18, to which ANGOP had access.
As part of the implementation of this diploma, the Secretaries of State for the Economy of Angola and Portugal, Ivan dos Santos and João Neves, respectively, met this Monday to review the business activity of both countries.
The initiative aims to account for the flows of bilateral investments, monitoring the processes of analysis of Angolan investment applications and projects in Portugal and Portuguese investments in Angola.
The document also provides for the identification of obstacles that may hamper its analysis in good time and the selection of the most efficient ways and instruments to overcome possible constraints.
The Secretary of State for the Economy of Angola Ivan dos Santos admitted that the process was at a standstill due to the issues on the agenda of the two countries and the emergence of the covid-19 pandemic.
“Without prejudice to that, it is our intention to resume the technical teams so that Angola can benefit from this relationship it has with Portugal and with Europe”, he said.
He added that work at the technical level will begin in November and December, so that the higher level can continue in 2023, the period scheduled for the end of the process and the beginning of the operation of the Angola and Portugal Investment Observatory.
Taking advantage of the opportunities, Angola plans to strengthen the export of national production, in addition to oil, in Portugal and, with the support of this country, seek to expand its presence in the European market.
Portugal has 1 300 companies
Ivan dos Santos, who did not provide the figures, considered that the number of Angolan companies in Portugal was still small.
Unlike Angola, Portugal has a considerable presence of companies, with number standing at 1,300 investors with Portuguese and mixed capital.
According to Portugal’s Economy Secretary, João Neves, new investors in the footwear and clothing sectors are expected.
“We have excellent relations, but there is a lot of work that we can do that will allow the economic relations between both countries to be even stronger than they are today”, he noted.
Portuguese companies operate in sectors such as civil construction, agri-food and agro-industrial, banking, insurance, metalworking, information and communication technologies, energy, health, transport and logistics.
Compared to 2021, exports of Portuguese goods to Angola increased by 50.8% in the first eight months of the year.
According to an agreement published by the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP), exports of Portuguese goods to Angola increased by 50.8% in the first eight months of 2022, compared to the previous year, reaching approximately 890 million euros (Kz 423 .5 billion kwanzas).
The figures published at the 5th Angola-Portugal Meeting, organized by the Portugal-Angola Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIPA) also show that imports, trade originating in Angola, increased by 506.4% between January and August, for a total of 438 million euros (Kz 208.4 billion).
Angola is the ninth destination for Portuguese exports, having risen one position compared to 2021, being the 27th supplier of goods to Portugal (48th place in 2021).
Source: Angola Press News Agency