Angola will host on August 27-28 the Meeting of the Ministers of Finance and Governors of the Central African Banks, the African Caucus. The meeting is an important opportunity for African leaders, represented by their Ministers of Finance, Planning and Governors of the Central Banks, to jointly present in a coordinated and organized way the major and current concerns affecting the economies of the African continent, namely the building of infrastructures and industrialization.

Among the issues scheduled to be addressed by six panels, include the General Overview of the Regional Economy, Economic Transformation and Diversification, Discussion on the 2015 African Caucus Memorandum as well as the Financing of Regional Projects connected to infrastructure.

Angola was formally designated as the leader of the African Caucus Group in 2015 at the event that took place from September 3-4, 2014 in Khartoum, Republic of Sudan.

Founded in 1963 as the African Group of Governors of the World Bank Group and the IMF, the African Caucus aims to strengthen the voice of Governors of African Banks on important issues related to the socio-economic development of Africa, within the Bretton Woods Institutions.

Source: ANGOP

Private investment in Angola will be faster under the new Private Investment Law, adopted on August 11, said the Minister of Economy Abrahão Gourgel.

Speaking about the new law at a seminar held on August 17 on “Private Investment”, Abrahão Gourgel said the role of the National Private Investment Agency (ANIP) will be transferred to ministries and enabling the private investments process to be done faster as ministerial departments will deal directly with investors.

The previous law, according to the minister, enabled Angola to attract a great volume of investments, nevertheless the country faced difficulties in regards to attracting high quality investments. He said the new law sought to eliminate red tape and barriers to private investment as well as regulate the repatriation of capital.

The new Private Investment Law gives priority to partnerships with the private companies and defines what constitutes an Angolan company. According to the Minister, the new law defines as an Angolan company a company in which at least 51 percent of the share is Angolan owned.

Source: ANGOP

The Zambian government’s intention to import, in the near future, oil from the Republic of Angola was the main issue discussed on August 10 at the Presidential Palace in Luanda during a meeting between the Angolan Head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos, and the Zambian Deputy Minister at State House, Mulenga Sata.

Addressing the press after the meeting, Mulenga Sata said that his country currently imports oil and oil by products from the Middle East at a high cost and, in this context, Zambia being a neighbor of Angola “we find it more convenient to import this product from this country.”

“The Republic of Angola has projects related to the construction of oil refineries and we need to take advantage of it, as well as in the chapter of generation of electricity and gas from Angola to Zambia,” he said.

Visiting Angola for the first time, the Zambian official expressed that he was quite impressed with Angola’s current development level.

Source: ANGOP

The Angolan telecommunications operator, Angola Cables, has obtained land in Fortaleza, the capital of the Brazilian state of Ceará, to build an undersea fiber optic cable station and a data center for the system that will link Fortaleza (Brazil) to Luanda (Angola).

The official land handover ceremony was held on July 24th in Fortaleza, where the Mayor, Roberto Cláudio, and the CEO of Angola Cables, António Nunes signed a contract.

The Angola Cables will manage the 6,165km long fiber optic cable, which, in the framework of the South Atlantic Cable System (SACS), will connect Africa and South America and later on, Africa and North America when the Monet Cable System is deployed.

The Monet Cable System, a consortium that includes Angola Cables (Angola), Algar Telecom (Brazil) Google (USA) and Antel (Uruguay), is an undersea fiber optic cable linking Fortaleza and Santos in Brazil to Miami, in the United States.

Source： ANGOP

On July 24th, Angolan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, attended in Dili, East Timor, the 20th Ordinary Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Portuguese Speaking Countries Community (CPLP).

The meeting reviewed the activities carried out in the first year under the rotating presidency of the CPLP, which East Timor currently holds. The meeting also reviewed reports from the CPLP’s Executive Secretary, the International Institute of Portuguese Language (IILP) As well as from the CPLP Business Confederation.

CPLP member states also tackled issues such as the New Strategic Vision, globalization, the mobility of citizens within the Community and the new post-2015 Cooperation Vision.

The member states of the CPLP are Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, East Timor, Mozambique, Portugal and São Tomé and Príncipe.

Source: ANGOP

The Angolan Parliament approved on July 23rd, the Private Investment Law, which aims to adapt the system of tax benefits to the current economic dynamics of the country.
The draft bill, which was presented by the Minister of Economy, Abraão Gourgel, will reduce bureaucracy associated with the entry of investments. The bill establishes the general bases of private investment in Angola and outlines the principles and rules for access to incentives and other benefits granted by the Angolan government.

This draft bill, will also establish the general basis for private investment in Angola, including in special economic zones, free trade zones, development hubs and in other areas subject to specific guidelines.

Source: ANGOP

New mining areas have been discovered in the provinces of Huíla, Huambo, Kuando Kubango, Kwanza Norte and Kwanza Sul, under the geological survey program currently underway in the country, said the Minister of Geology and Mining, Francisco Monteiro Queiróz, adding that during the first phase of the geological survey program some mineral anomalies were identified in the aforesaid provinces which will be thoroughly surveyed in the second stage of the program.

The Minister said that by 2017 Angola will have a complete geological map. The aim is to create a credible information database which will enable the State to draft a long-term management and exploration plan of the mineral resources. The geological mapping information will also be made available to potential investors, policy makers, academics and all other interested parties.

Source: ANGOP

The Heads of State of Angola, José Eduardo dos Santos, and of France, François Hollande, expressed a common desire to strengthen the bilateral relations between their two countries at a meeting held in the Angolan Presidential Palace.

Speaking to the press after the meeting, the Angolan President, José Eduardo dos Santos, said that the two sides also expressed interest in exploring ways to better use the opportunities provided by the 1986 General Cooperation Agreement and other specific agreements.

José Eduardo dos Santos also said that the meeting discussed political and security issues of concern to Angola and the region. The President added that France’s support for Africa in the fight against terrorism and the preservation of peace, was also part of the agenda of the meeting.

François Hollande, highlighted in particular the role played by his Angolan counterpart, José Eduardo dos Santos, in resolving the conflict in the Central African Republic.

The French leader visited Angola from 3 to 4 July at the invitation of his Angolan counterpart, José Eduardo dos Santos.

Source: ANGOP