The Angolan government is committed to boosting the agribusiness sector, aiming for food self-sustainability, said last week in Washington DC the minister of Economy and Planning, Mário Caetano João.
The official, who was speaking to the press after attending an investor forum in the scope of the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual Meetings taking place in the United States (US) capital, pointed to an aggregate value as one of the goals.
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“In the last years farming on its own could not make any difference, due to that we have to work with other sectors which aggregate priorities and agribusiness is the main one”, said the minister.
The government’s commitment is to make Angola one of the main producers of grain on the African continent over the next five years, with emphasis on rice, corn, wheat and soya, key products for animal feed production. With this investment, Angola intended to raise 300 million for livestock and the fisheries sector.
As an example of agregation Mário Caetano João revealed an oil sector project that foresees the building of a a fertilizer factory.
The investors who attended the forum noticed that Angola is in an accelerated procedure to change the paradigm which goes by stopping importing products that can be produced with comparative advantages.
In the event, the investors have learnt about the main ongoing macroeconomic reforms in the country which enabled growth of 0,7% in 2021 with the forecast to grow 2,7% in 2022.
However, the IMF forecasts growth of around 2.9%, 0.2 percent more than the Angolan government´s forecasts.
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From a fiscal point of view, the minister showed that in relation to the data of 2018, with the country facing fiscal deficits and with the debt ratio far above the sustainability of public finances. Currently, Angola is very close to this indicator which is around 60% of GDP.
Regarding debt, the minister explained that the government was seeking a more rational debt, pointing to sustainable projects, such as the green and blue economy, amongst others.
The minister of Finance, Vera Daves de Sousa, heads the Angolan delegation which also includes the minister of Economy and Planning, Mário Caetano João, and the governor of the National Bank of Angola (BNA) José de Lima Massano
