Angola and Japan signed last week in Luanda an agreement by Exchange of Notes, as part of the Initiative for Suspension of the Debt Service to Credits and Susceptible Conditions of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Signed the agreement the Secretary of State for International Cooperation and Angolan Communities, Domingos Vieira Lopes, for Angola and Takahashi Yusuke for the Japanese Embassy in Angola.
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The agreement aims to help Angola improve debt transparency and debt management, as well as honour its international commitments.
Due to the negative impact of Covid-19 on the economies of the countries, the Club de Paris (Informal Group of Official Creditors, whose role is to find coordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties of borrowing countries) and the “G20 launched an initiative to grant a temporary suspension of debt service due from 1 May to 31 December 2020.
Japan is a strategic partner of Angola and has supported the country’s development, working with projects in social areas such as health, education, higher education, agriculture, energy and water, mine clearance and others.
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Japan’s bilateral cooperation with Angola began in 1988 as Emergency Aid through UNICEF.
Since the 1990s, Japan has supported Angola in several demining programmes underway in the country, as well as funding other projects of common interest.