Africa-Press – Angola. The industrial sector registered a growth of fifty-one companies, in the province of Benguela, from December 2022 to date.
Speaking to the press, the director of the Provincial Office for Integrated Economic Development, Samuel Maleze, stated that, in December 2022, the province had 795 industries and today it has 846.
“The food sector has 465, the light industry has 312, while in the heavy industry there are 69 registered”, he pointed out.
He made reference to the Catumbela Industrial Development Pole, where 83 industries are operating, sixteen in Uchi, in Benguela, and also in the commune of Canjala, Lobito, where some small industries recovered in the colonial era were handed over to the private sector.
Samuel Maleze stated that the Provincial Government is paying special attention to the sector, with the aim of consolidating Benguela as the second largest industrial park in the country, after Luanda.
“The PDIC still has spaces in phases one and two, with Culango and Biópio having around 249 lots”, he informed.
Still on this aspect, he revealed that there is an Arab bank that recently announced the launch of financing to restructure that area, to attract investors.
“With the relaunch of the Lobito Refinery, we have to look at the industry in the oil derivatives value chain”, he explained.
The industrial sector has been supported by several lines of financing and under Decree 10/19, it has benefited from exemptions, both in the import of equipment and raw materials.
To illustrate this aspect, Samuel Maleze said that, in the third quarter of this year, the State exempted the equivalent of 19,182,700 dollars or 896,296,500.00 kwanzas.
However, he was concerned about the assets that were transferred to private parties, as part of the resizing, and which remain idle.
He gave as an example Seta, Cofiang, Dussol and Mampeza, located in the industrial zone of Calomanga, in Benguela, which at the time already provided more than six thousand jobs.
“We have been making an effort to identify the owners of this equipment to bring them to their senses and put them to work”, he argued.
According to the director, the objective is to provide goods and services to the community and bring some comfort in issues related to employability.
So far, 76 pieces of equipment have been listed and 50 identified, according to Samuel Maleze.
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