Day: March 19, 2023

Saurimo – At least 60,000 hectares of land have been identified, in the eastern Lunda Sul Province, for the start of the National Plan for Promotion of Grain Production (PLANAGRÃO), in 2024.

These are the municipalities of Saurimo and Muconda, in the province of Lunda Sul, in the eastern part of the country.

PLANAGRÃO, an initiative of the Angolan government, will be developed in the provinces of Moxico, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, and Cuando Cubango.

Each province will benefit from 500,000 hectares, with financing from the Development Bank of Angola (BDA) estimated at 1.6 billion kwanzas.

The secretary of State for Economy, Ivan dos Santos, who concluded a two-day visit to Lunda Sul on Saturday, verified the conditions of the areas chosen for the implementation of PLANAGRÃO, and specified that of the identified areas 35,000 hectares belong to the commune of Muriege where the four cereals will be cultivated.

Another 25,000 hectares are located in Peso-Velho, commune of Mona Quimbundo, exclusively for rice production, given the history of the locality in the cultivation of this cereal.

According to the State secretary, the identified areas offer favourable conditions for the cultivation of rice, corn, soybean and beans, with a considerable water potential which will serve for the Planagrão start-up, offering job opportunities to the youth, especially to the newly graduated.

He also said that Planagrão has two components, being the first related to infrastructures (roads, energy and water) and the other connected to the financing of the private sector that will be operated by the Development Bank of Angola (BDA).

Ivan dos Santos said that the private sector in this Plan will be in charge of bringing the equipment to materialize this great project.

He recommended the municipal administrations to encourage young people to participate in this project, in order to boost the cultivation of these cereals in the country, thus promoting economic development.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

Luanda – The third Vice-Speaker of the National Assembly, Raul Augusto Lima, is representing the country at the II International Russia-Africa Parliamentary Conference taking place on March 19, 20 in the Russian capital, Moscow.

According to a statement that reached ANGOP Sunday , the Angolan delegation, which includes Angola’s ambassador to Russia, Augusto da Silva Cunha, was received in an audience by the Deputy Chairman of the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia (DUMA), Aleksandre Babakov.

The event’s programme includes sessions on exchange in the science and education fields, legislative responses to economic challenges, security and experiences on western neo-colonialism.

The event will be attended by over 40 official delegations mostly from African countries, as well as leading experts to discuss current issues on the international parliamentary agenda.

The event also includes a plenary session where the agreements of the International Parliamentary Conference on the Russia-Africa theme in a multi-polar world will be presented.

According to the official website of the State Duma, the conference takes place on the eve of the 2nd Russia-Africa Summit to be held in July 2023 in St Petersburg, following the first one in 2019.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

Luanda – Petro de Luanda and 1º Agosto are clashing Tuesday in the semi-finals of the Angola Senior Men’s Basketball Cup.

The Angolan Basketball Federation has yet to indicate the time and venue of the match.

To reach this stage, the two teams beat their satellite (B) teams in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

Petro de Luanda with 13 trophies, with the last one won in 2022, beat Petro B 93-71 and 109 -96 in a two- games quarter finals, while 1º de Agosto that have won the competition 15 times , the last one in 2021, defeated their B team by 125-84 and 100-85.

Interclube qualified for the semi-final, benefiting from two absences of Casa do Pessoal do Porto do Lobito.

Interclube face Atlético Sport Aviação (ASA) Wednesday in the semi-finals.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

Practical and innovative ways to accelerate inclusive economic transformation in Africa took center stage in a session to review progress and set a new agenda in the implementation of the Doha and Vienna programme of action in Africa at the expert’s segment of the 55th Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.

Presentations by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) highlighted that despite a greater emphasis on both programmes of action in building productive capacity, boosting agriculture, food security, trade, good governance, and development, most African countries which form the majority of the LDCs have made only limited headway in transforming the structure of their economies to achieve sustainable development.

According to ECA, the devastating impacts of COVID-19, and the war in Ukraine on production, trade, and its wider economic and social effects, have mired progress even further.

Despite this, some African countries have made some progress in various areas of action. Botswana, Cabo Verde, and Equatorial Guinea have graduated from the list of LDCs while Comoros, Djibouti, Senegal, and Zambia were determined to have met the graduation standards for the first time.

There has equally been considerable progress in science, technology, and innovation, as well as on trade with the advent of the AfCFTA.

On renewable energy, Africa is performing well and for the first time, it is on the same line with the rest of the world in a race to explore technologies that could impact its energy security, it was indicated.

While this progress is promising, many African countries still face an array of binding constraints.

A lack of technological capabilities, infrastructure deficiencies, limited government capacity to implement growth-oriented structural policies, and insecurities and instabilities in areas like the Sahel have all combined to impede faster progress.

“There is no way trade or development will happen where bullets are flying. We need a nexus between security and development to ensure no one is left behind,” said Francis Ikome, Chief of the Regional Integration Section, ECA.

Addressing these constraints is crucial for Africa’s long-term development and will be the main driver of its transition from low- to middle- and, ultimately, high-income status.

As experts analyzed and sought ideas that translate into action, a set of recommendations presented highlighted the need for ECA to continue strengthening support for African LDCs to achieve inclusive and sustainable economic recovery from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and the war in Ukraine.

Countries need to expedite the implementation of the AfCFTA, deepen regional integration and increase connectivity by closing the digital divide, as well as leverage digital technologies to boost trade and grow the capacity of African LDCs to attract productive investment.

These recommendations can drive more discernible progress in overcoming the many structural impediments confronting these countries.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) stated that it is cooperating with Ethiopia in many ways and especially supporting the country to diversify its rich tourism sector.

ECA East Africa Director, Mama Keta told ENA that ECA is cooperating with Ethiopia in many ways and especially it is supporting the country to develop and diversify its rich tourism sector.

This continued support for Ethiopia in tourism development and diversification is part of ECA’s cooperation and supports to the country in many ways.

According to her, the second most populous country in Africa, with a big economy, immense potential in many sectors, and especially tourism for her office is critical point of cooperation and support to facilitating trade and regional economic integration.

“ECA works very well with Ethiopia. Ethiopia is key for AFCFTA and for Africa as a whole. The size of the economy is big and in terms of population also it is very big. It has also some great skills. So, ECA supports Ethiopia in so many things,” Mama Keta said.

The director pointed out that her office is particularly working with the Government of Ethiopia to unlock and diversify the enormous tourism potential of Ethiopia.

“From my office, for instance, we supported the country, and we are still supporting the country to diversify its tourism sector,” she pointed out.

Mama Keta noted that developing and diversifying the tourism sector in Ethiopia is critical and extremely important.

“For a country that is not very rich in natural resources and that is rich in historical sites and heritage, tourism is a critical and extremely important sector. So we are, for instance, supporting Ethiopia right now, to develop further the tourism sector to improve the statistics in order to be able to plan well, and to measure the results that are being done. So this is just one example where ECA is supporting Ethiopia but in many other sectors really collaboration is going on.”

Ethiopia is bestowed with massive tangible and intangible heritages and its natural and artificial tourism destinations have been expanding and diversifying, increasing earnings.

ECA has been assisting Ethiopia’s trade policy agenda, aimed at fostering industrialization and sustained economic growth and regional integration, it was learned.

She further stressed the need to remove non-tariff barriers and harmonize policies that allow free movement of people and goods to enhance economic activities, especially trade, particularly in East Africa and the continent.

Removing the barriers of trade will facilitate regional economic integration, create jobs and offer favorable markets in Africa, she added.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency