Africa-Press – Angola. The improvement of the geological information provided by the Geological Institute of Angola (IGEO) makes the production of fertilizers sufficient and opens doors for the country to be self-sufficient in terms of agricultural fertilizers, said yesterday the Minister of Mineral Resources and Petroleum and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo.
By becoming self-sufficient in terms of agricultural fertilizers, continued the minister, Angola will also diversify and export surplus production abroad, with the aim of raising foreign exchange.
In this way, explained the holder of the mineral resources portfolio, it is intended to contribute to the challenge of diversifying the economy, launched by the Angolan Government, that is, creating projects outside the oil and diamond sector.
The official, who was speaking during the swearing-in of the new board of directors of the Geological Institute of Angola, said that the production and transformation of fertilizers for the internal and external market allows Angola to boost the agriculture sector and explore the vast agricultural potential of the country’s soils. .
“The Executive of the Republic of Angola, within the scope of its strategy of diversifying the national economy, has been carrying out reforms in various areas aimed at promoting investments considered essential for the economic growth and well-being of our populations”, said Diamantino Azevedo.
He pointed to the presence of rare earths and minerals in the fertilizer production process as an indicator that Angola could benefit from the investigative mapping work carried out by IGEO, taking into account that the country is no longer a simple supplier of raw materials .
Meanwhile, he challenged the new members of the board of directors of IGEO to continue to work dynamically towards the achievement of the proposed objectives, including the discovery of new maps that prioritize the discovery of rare minerals for agriculture and energy transition.
He stated that the goal is to continue to focus on the growth of the petrochemical industry and agribusiness, as well as industrial development, in order to provide more verticality, with a positive impact on improving the living conditions of Angolans.
About Urea in Agriculture
Urea is a chemical compound in the form of white crystals that has a higher nitrogen content – 46 percent soluble in water, according to information provided by investors.
With its use, nitrates do not accumulate in the crop, allowing a rapid growth of the vegetative mass, increase in crop yield and protein content in cereal grains, being an environmentally friendly fertilizer that does not acidify the soil.
Official figures indicate that Angola uses lower amounts of fertilizers than recommended, employing, on average, seven kilos per hectare, instead of 40 kilos, which is due to the lack of component for the production of this fertilizer material.
At the beginning of the 2021-2022 Agricultural Campaign, which is about to end, the Government ordered the purchase of 55 thousand tons of fertilizers of the NPK-12-24-12 type, ammonium sulfate and urea, using 17 billion kwanzas.
According to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), farmers in Angola were consuming 300,000 tonnes of fertilizers before the end of the 20th century, well above the average of 50,000 tonnes in recent years.
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