Africa-Press – Angola. Angola and the United Arab Emirates may soon have daily air connections to respond to the growing number of business trips in both directions.
The project was announced yesterday in Dubai by the Angolan ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, Albino Malungo, when he was speaking at the opening of a forum on the country’s potential in attracting investors, held on the sidelines of the Annual Investment Meetings (AIM), at the Dubai Axhibition Centre.
The ambassador said that, so far, the connections between the two countries are guaranteed by the airline Emirates, which, with four weekly flights, connects Luanda to the emirate of Dubai.
The intention is to move towards direct connections between the two capitals, namely Luanda and Abu Dhabi, which should happen soon, with the entry of the company Etihad Airways.
“It is important to mention that the existence of an air connection between Dubai and Luanda, with four weekly Emirates flights and with perspectives of increasing frequency in the near future, facilitates the travel of business delegations”, he says.
Election areas
The ambassador also said that, at the moment, there are several investment opportunities in Angola and in different sectors. He highlighted seven areas as being of choice, pointing out the Agricultural sectors, where opportunities take into account that Angola has large tracts of arable land and abundant water resources.
There is the Energy and Water sector, where projects related to the production of electricity and water distribution are emerging, namely the Kilonga project, which aims to supply water to the northeast region of Luanda,
In the field of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, the diamond segment stands out (with extraction, polishing and commercialization operations) and the oil segment (with several blocks available for exploration).
In Industry and Commerce, the construction of the industrial parks of Viana, Catumbela, Caála and Porto Amboim is mentioned), while in Transport, the construction of the rail link between Malanje, Saurimo and Luena, interconnecting the railways of Luanda and Benguela, in addition to the rehabilitation of the Zenza-Cacuso railway station.
The field of infrastructure is opposed to the rehabilitation of several national roads and, in the area of Health, the construction of hospitals and health centres.
At the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM), an initiative of Dubai Chambers, from the United Arab Emirates, Ambassador Albino Malungo announced that the political and socio-economic reforms carried out by the Executive demonstrate the country’s determination to lay the foundations for the adoption of a dynamic, efficient and inclusive market economy, as pillars for the prosperity and well-being of all Angolans.
On the occasion, he referred that, with the signing of the peace agreement on 4 April 2002, and which this year celebrates 20 years, Angola has taken a qualitative leap in the issues of building a Rule of Law and Democracy, with greater political stability and which provide sustainable economic development to the country.
Angola already has some successful projects resulting from partnerships between local entities and the United Arab Emirates, with emphasis on the creation of factories to assemble tractors, mobile phones and also the sale of diamonds, which resulted in investments of around 1.2 billion of dollars last year.
national promotion
The Private Investment and Export Promotion Agency (AIPEX) said at the forum that attracting investment is a process that involves the need to be consistent. In this sense, he added, Angola’s participation in the Annual Investment Meeting, and with public companies such as Catoca, Porto de Luanda, as well as other private ones, is a clear sign that the country is open to investment.
For the chairman of the Board of Directors of AIPEX, António Henriques da Silva, no matter how much the country attracts thousands of companies with private investment of one, two or three billion dollars, the value will always be lower, if one takes into account the needs, dimension and potential that Angola has available. This is also the reason why the country aspires for more relevant investments, capable of positively impacting the national economy.
For the CEO of AIPEX, the fact that Angola is positioned in an access area to the sea should be seen operationally as a huge advantage over landlocked African countries (without access to the sea), as is the case of Zambia and Zimbabwe.
In addition to the ongoing economic reforms, António Henriques da Silva also addressed the fact that the legislative reforms offer investors several incentives, which go beyond the ease of repatriating dividends and the reduction of the tax burden, depending on where the business is being implemented.
The fact that the Angolan population is mostly young and with an average age of around 25, he said, should encourage investment in innovative and technological companies, in the generation of quality jobs and in the affirmation of small and medium-sized national companies.
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