The President of the Republic, when speaking at the opening of the working meeting between the delegations of the two countries, stressed that despite the most varied agreements, memoranda and protocols signed to date, the results of economic cooperation and commercial exchange "are still little expressive" and far from ambitions.
"Therefore, we must develop a more active cooperation, which makes better use of our vast resources, the capacity and ability of our peoples and the dynamism of their rulers, in order to change this situation", said the head of state.
According to the President, the country's market is open to a greater presence of Zambian investors, in order to build in practice a mutually advantageous base of cooperation for both States.
The head of state stressed that Angola intends to establish a "true partnership" with Zambia, promoting and expanding ties of friendship and economic cooperation, with emphasis on education, culture, science, agricultural and livestock production, extractive industries and transformation of raw materials, road, rail and electricity interconnection.
"Thus, I consider that your Excellency's visit represents a great opportunity for us to address the best way to give practical impetus to all existing initiatives, so that the best benefits can be reaped from the cooperation that may be developed in such areas, which will result certainly me significant reciprocal advantages", he said.
João Lourenço considered that the legal instruments to be signed this Wednesday, linked to the sectors of agriculture, energy, infrastructure, industry, justice, specialized training in the field of public administration, will "surely" boost trade and investment crossing of the respective economies.
Among the legal instruments to be signed, he highlighted the memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Public Works, Urbanism and Housing of Angola and the Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development of Zambia, to facilitate the construction of the Angola/ Zambia, via the Jimbe border, "which will give a big boost to the development of the private sector, with the massification of the movement of investors and tourists in both directions".
The head of state underlined that Angola intends to place the infrastructures of the Lobito Corridor, which comprises the Commercial Port of Lobito, the mining terminal of the same port and the Benguela Railway line, with the Luacano branch being built soon, in the province of Moxico, serving the economies of countries in the region, namely Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
"Other important initiatives could give the necessary boost to our cooperation, such as the case under study of the cross-border electrification project between the two countries, which will help boost the growth of border areas and also the ongoing project to build the Rivungo navigable channel /Xangongo and respective essential infrastructures for the transport of cargo passengers between the two countries, reducing the risks that the populations of the regions incur in crossings with the use of artisanal vessels", he said.
On his turn, the President of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema, who has been in Luanda since Tuesday for a three-day official visit, defended the need to move from theory to practice.
Hakainde Hichilema, who praised the ties of friendship and cooperation between the two countries, said that the leaders know what must be done to boost and strengthen economic relations and investments, namely in infrastructure, highlighting the importance of the Lobito Corridor.
"One of the things that we agree on, President João Lourenço and I, is that we cannot just continue to sign documents, we have to implement them. What was signed in the past and what we signed today must be implemented", he stressed, also noting the importance of increasing trade.
The Zambian President also praised Angola's role and leadership in establishing peace and stability in the region.
