Africa-Press – Angola. The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, defended this Sunday a “functional cooperation” between the Member States of the CPLP, with a view to better responding to the expectations of the community.
The Angolan statesman expressed this point of view during his speech at the opening ceremony of the XIV Conference of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP).
In his speech, the Angolan President reaffirmed the need to make the organization increasingly solid and active in different domains.
As for the two years in which Angola was at the head of the rotating presidency of the Community, President João Lourenço said that they were marked by actions aligned with the theme “Building and Strengthening a Common and Sustainable Future”.
This is the theme chosen for Angola’s mandate, and in the wake of this motto the foundations were laid for the expansion of the inter-community market and the promotion of initiatives aimed at strengthening economic cooperation at the level of Member States.
The Head of State highlighted among the actions carried out, during the Angolan presidency, the Joint Meeting of Ministers of Economy, Trade and Finance, as well as the Forum of Agencies for the Promotion of Trade and Investment of the CPLP.
João Lourenço also highlighted the holding of the 8th Meeting of the Lusophone Competition Network and the dialogue on small businesses and CPLP entrepreneurship, which aims to give form and content to the economic pillar of the Community.
He recalled that the Directorate for Economic and Business Affairs was created at the level of the Executive Secretariat, which will have the task of defining policies and action plans to support the 4th general objective of the organization.
During the speech, the President of the Republic considered it important to eliminate the barriers that still exist, in practice, in the CPLP, and that hinder economic cooperation between the States of the organization.
The Angolan Head of State defended joint action to mobilize financial and material resources that allow “to grow together”, as a solidary community and with a spirit of “true brotherhood of States”.
“This will only be possible if we manage, in fact, to ensure an easier mobility of our citizens in the CPLP area in a legal way, through the suppression or simplification of the visa process”, he underlined
. citizens who meet the requirements that may be established, in order to meet the expectations of each State.On
the occasion, he praised the growing number of countries and international organizations that show interest in joining the CPLP, which he considered a “remarkable work”.
The President of the Republic suggested improving the functioning of the organization and its articulation with its partners.
This strategy aims to reap benefits that affect the general living conditions of the populations and show that it was worth taking the joint path.
João Lourenço valued the contribution of the CPLP, in helping the people of Mozambique, within the framework of the “problems of instability” faced in the Cabo Delgado region.
The strength of solidarity and its effects, continued the Angolan President, were demonstrated in Mozambique, by the way in which it was possible to mitigate the difficulties.
He also referred that in the case of Mozambique, the strength of solidarity made it possible to contain, to a large extent, terrorist organizations that dangerously threatened stability, security and order.
As for the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, he reaffirmed the “condemnation of aggression and occupation of territories of a sovereign State” and underlined the “need to put an end to the war”. disputes should be resolved through negotiation, with a view to establishing a lasting peace.At
the meeting taking place in the capital of São Tomé and Príncipe, João Lourenço also referred to the situation of instability prevailing in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
The Angolan President also spoke about the situation in Sudan, the Central African Republic (CAR) and the Sahel region, where unconstitutional changes of government represent a serious concern.
In the search for solutions to the situation in the DRC and CAR, he said that Angola has persistently sought to act within the framework of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (CIRGL).
As for the two States (DRC and CAR), he added that following the action of Angola and other regional actors, there has been an “appreciable improvement” in the reduction of political-military tension in those areas.
He called, however, for a little more effort and, with the coherent participation of all the parties involved in these conflicts, to reach a lasting peace.
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