Africa-Press – Angola. The Minister of Planning, Victor Hugo Guilherme, highlighted, on Tuesday, in Washington, food security and human capital as the main priorities of the Angolan Executive in the short term.Víctor Hugo Guilherme made these considerations when taking stock of the activities of the Angolan delegation on the first day of work in Washington, during the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The Angolan delegation basically had two important meetings with the World Bank, focused on the existing partnership, especially with regard to the review and analysis of the projects being implemented in Angola with the support of that international institution.
Víctor Hugo Guilherme said that the meetings aimed to present the main ideas in relation to what the Government of Angola intends to do to reinforce World Bank financing, with the main areas being food security, human capital and public-private partnerships, which are related to the objectives of the National Development Plan.
Other topics were related to the World Bank’s objectives, not only for Angola, but also for the continent.
The minister said that the World Bank agrees with the issue of food security, as it is a topic that is also part of its agenda, which includes support to countries in the agricultural sector.
This support aims to combat poverty and hunger, in addition to generating jobs and increasing family income.
As far as Angola is concerned, the World Bank was asked for support in introducing new technologies to increase productivity and, in this way, make faster progress in this field.
In relation to human capital, the Minister of Planning highlighted the need to have more qualified people to deal with existing challenges, especially with regard to basic training, with support in primary and secondary education and the inclusion, above all, of girls in the education system.
The Minister of Planning also addressed the issue of public-private partnerships, highlighting that there is a pioneering project in Cabinda, supported by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) linked to the World Bank.
Víctor Hugo Guilherme said that the inclusion of the private sector through public-private partnerships is a way to promote economic development more quickly.
The Lobito Corridor has been a way of drawing the attention of the international private sector, highlighting that Angola thinks of the Lobito Corridor in one way, while the international community thinks in another.
According to the head of the Angolan Delegation, the international community sees the Lobito Corridor as a route for the transport of products. But there is much more to it than that. There are logistics platforms and projects to be developed along the route linked to the sectors of Education, especially professional, Health and Tourism.
“It will be a very busy corridor and, consequently, used efficiently. It will develop the private sector, both nationally and internationally, and that part of the territory.”
According to the minister, the provinces along the Corridor have very attractive agricultural areas, “We are, therefore, focused on developing these lands where the route passes”, he said.
The meeting with the World Bank Vice President for the Southern and Eastern Africa Region, Victoria Kwakwa, was also attended by the Minister of Finance, Vera Daves de Sousa, who also referred to the need to increase financing, and members of the World Bank group.
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