Luanda – Angola’s head of State João Lourenço has been the main promoter of the country’s economic diplomacy, the minister of Foreign Affairs said, recalling the president’s State visits to various parts of the world.
Téte António was speaking during a debate entitled “Economic Diplomacy: Balance and Perspectives”, promoted by the Press Center of the President of the Republic (CIPRA) on Friday in Luanda.
The event called “CaféCIPRA” is an open, direct and not moderated dialogue gathering government officials and representatives from different areas of civil society.
To him, the Head of State is the number one diplomat and all his official trips over the last four years have also served to attract foreign investments.
According to the minister, Angola has invested in two fronts of economic diplomacy – internal and external ones.
He said that the first was limited to a set of administrative reforms, and the second served to convey to the world a message that Angola is a safe country open to investment.
He also mentioned the strategic partnerships the African continent has established, namely in the China-Africa, Turkey-Africa, European Union-Africa, United States-Africa forums, where Angola has given and received its contribution in this field.
The official explained that the country has been adapting to this new strategy, which will serve to diversify economic relations, seeking national interests and stop limiting traditional partnerships.
He recognised that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not do diplomacy alone, it counts on the contribution of a set of sectors, which must be aligned and follow the strategies outlined by the Executive.
In turn, the CEO of the Private Investment and Export Promotion Agency (AIPEX), António Henriques da Silva, said that, since 2018, the institution has received 444 projects.
The figure corresponds to more than four billion dollars, an indication that he considered to be positive, due to the greater impact of activities on the non-oil sector.
Regarding the Luanda / Bengo Special Economic Zone, he said that some companies based there have already started exporting their products to African countries.
Source: Angola Press News Agency