Africa-Press – Angola. The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, arrived this Thursday in Beijing, People’s Republic of China, for a three-day state visit, with a view to strengthening cooperation and exchange ties.
At Beijing International Airport, the Angolan statesman, who did not make statements to the press, received greetings from senior Angolan and Chinese individuals present for the purpose, with emphasis on the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António.
João Lourenço steps on the soil of the “Asian giant” for the third time since he was elected President of the Republic, in 2017, for a first term, and in 2022 for the second.
Friday, the first day of the visit, the Angolan Head of State will meet with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and hold talks that could culminate in the signing of several agreements.
Meetings are also scheduled with the Chinese Prime Minister, Li Qiang, and the President of the National People’s Assembly (Parliament), Zhao Leji.
A joint statement should be released following the Angolan President’s talks with the highest Chinese entities.
Also noteworthy is the participation in a business forum, where the topic “investment in Angola” will be at the center of the debates, as well as hearings for local businesspeople who already operate in the national market or want to do so in the future.
Sunday, the last day of the visit, is reserved for a trip to Xandong province, where he will maintain contacts with those responsible for the productive sectors in the textile, pharmaceutical and agricultural industries.
Angola and China are strategic partners, with political-diplomatic and cooperation relations that have seen a notable increase since 2000, enabling the signing of several legal instruments in the social, commercial and business domains.
Since 2007, Angola has been China’s largest trading partner in Africa, with a turnover that registered, in 2010 alone, a total of 24.8 billion US dollars.
In 2017, the value of trade with the Asian giant rose, in the first quarter, by 61.32 percent, that is, to 5.55 billion US dollars.
At the end of 2018, China approved a new financing line of US$2 billion.
In 2022, Angola regained its position as China’s second largest partner in Africa, lost in 2020.
Trade volume between the two countries was more than 22 billion US dollars, from January to November 2022.
Since the first decade of the 2000s, Angola has been requesting its first financing from China and, subsequently, the reinforcement of credits.
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