Africa-Press – Angola. The Minister of Culture and Tourism, Filipe Zau, said this Friday in this city that the entry into operation of the new international airport in Mbanza Kongo, province of Zaire, will boost cultural tourism in the region.
Named by Nimi a Lukeni, the new airport infrastructure for Mbanza Kongo has been under construction since October 2022, in the town of Nkiende II, 42 kilometers from this World Heritage city.
He added that the construction of this project is part of compliance with the recommendations of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) when Mbanza Kongo was elevated to a World Heritage Site.
According to the minister, the construction of the new international airport aims not only to relaunch cultural tourism, but also to contribute to the generation of more revenue for the State coffers.
Filipe Zau was satisfied with the level of physical execution of the works on the new Mbanza Kongo international airport estimated at 33 percent.
The minister was speaking to the press at the end of a visit to the enterprise, as part of his 48-hour working day in Zaire.
In turn, the director of the project at Sociedade Gestora de Aeroportos (SGA), José Coelho, at the moment, the work is limited to the earthworks of the 3,500 meters long and 45 meters wide runway.
He assured that in architectural terms, the decorative landscape aspects of this airport infrastructure are safeguarded, in accordance with the cultural reality of the region.
With completion scheduled within 15 months, the works are being carried out by the Chinese company Sinohydro and employ 177 workers, of which 33 are expatriates. The works are valued at US$154 million.
The governor of Zaire, Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, who accompanied the minister, assured that the new airport will project the image of the province, in general, and the city of Mbanza Kongo, in particular, across borders.
The ministerial delegation returned early this Friday afternoon to the country’s capital, Luanda.
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