Africa-Press – Angola. The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, is expected today in Oslo, where he will pay a state visit to the Kingdom of Norway on the 17th and 18th, Thursday and Friday.
Highlights include a visit to Parliament, where you will be welcomed by its President, Masud Gharhakhani, as well as meetings with the Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Store, and His Majesty King Harald.
The Angolan President’s state visit to Norway will also be marked by the holding of a business forum, where João Lourenço will be the main speaker, to explain to Norwegian businessmen how they can invest in Angola.
Afterwards, the Head of State will receive some local businessmen in separate audiences, always with the same objective. President João Lourenço’s visit to the Kingdom of Norway ends on Friday afternoon.
Dating program
This is the first visit by an Angolan Head of State to the northern European country and is part of the economic diplomacy action, led by President João Lourenço. It is foreseen, after the Business Forum, separate meetings with the leaders of the main companies interested in investing in Angola.
The opportunity generated by the Business Forum should serve for the ministers, members of the presidential delegation, to make contacts and show local investors the opportunities existing in the country, in the various sectors.
In Oslo, the Norwegian capital, are the Ministers of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, and the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Victor Fernandes, in addition to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António.
Norway is among the 13 largest oil producers in the world, extracting 1.7 million barrels/day, according to 2020 data, after having exported 1.25 million barrels/day in 2018, thus being the fourteenth largest exporter in the world.
Regarding domestic consumption, in 2019, it was 207,000 barrels/day, figures that made the country only the 55th largest consumer in the world. Between April and June of this year, the worldwide profits of the Norwegian oil giant – Equinor (formerly Statoil) tripled to 6.8 billion dollars, compared to the same period of 2021.
Norwegian Equinor operates in Angola in Block 17, in partnership with other companies, with investments of billions of dollars.
The most recent data on the turnover between Angola and Norway was estimated at US$3 billion, most of which is dominated by Equinor, which, in 2017, invested, for example, US$1 billion in the country.
Despite all the oil potential, Norway also develops and strongly invests in industries, specifically in the production of machinery and in the fishing sector.
Expectations of the Angolan community in the Nordic country
The Angolan community in Oslo, Norway, is looking forward to the state visit of President João Lourenço.
This is also the first time that an Angolan Head of State travels to the Scandinavian mountainous region.
Norway is a country in Northern Europe, where approximate numbers estimate that there is a community of just over 500 Angolans.
Despite being far from the land and habits, the Angolans in Oslo try to keep the present memories and challenges alive.
Restaurant worker Nelson Francisco, from Cazenga, Luanda, said that, as this is the first time an Angolan President has been in Norway, the gesture signals “good friendship” between the countries.
The Angolan-Norwegian, who was married in 2007 in Luanda to a local citizen, told Radio Nacional de Angola (RNA) in Oslo that adapting necessarily comes down to food and the rather cold climate.
Language is another factor, but overcome by itself, through a course of three and a half months, aided by mastering English.
In turn, Henrique Costa arrived in the Norwegian capital recently. He hasn’t been more than a year old yet, but his job in the Fashion and Clothing sector has made it easier for him to adapt. Half unnoticed during the visit, he tried to find out from the Jornal de Angola the reason for non-usual Angolans in Oslo.
The young man, from Maianga, admitted that living in the capital of Norway is quite challenging, but acknowledged that the monthly salary also serves as an incentive.
Henrique Costa is, after being informed, expectant and also excited about the possibility of strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
In one of the streets of Oslo, Norwegian Maja Nestaker said she had curiosities about Angola. About Africa she only knows about Tanzania, which makes her think that the presence of the Angolan President is a factor of recognition and cooperation between the two States.
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