The infrastructure, called Oftalmed, built in an area of 1800 square meters and located in the municipality of Viana, in Luanda, was inaugurated by the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Rui Miguêns, having created, in the first phase, 50 new jobs.
According to the administrator of Oftalmed, Amyn Habeb, this is also the first ophthalmic lens factory in the Central African region and Portuguese-speaking African Countries (PALOP), with modern technology and international standards.
"In an investment of more than eight billion kwanzas, this industrial project was financed in part by the Development Bank of Angola (BDA) and places Angola at the forefront of technological development with enormous export potential", said Amyn Habeb at the ceremony of Opening.
For the manager, the creation of Oftalmed, which will produce the "Oftalens" brand lenses with the "Made in Angola" seal, should fill a gap in the African market in the area of visual health and also constitutes an important contribution to the diversification of the economy.
"And that will allow for sustained growth in the sector. With the creation of this first ophthalmic lens factory, the optics sector in Angola will develop more quickly", he highlighted.
Amyn Habeb assured, on the other hand, that the lenses manufactured in the industrial unit will become available on the national market, "allowing current retailers, and many others that are expected to be created, to no longer be dependent solely on imports".
"In addition, we will also help current informal agents to enter the formal market", she highlighted.
In the first phase, the investment created 50 direct jobs, especially for young people, with the aim of expanding this to 100 jobs in the second phase and creating a total of 150 qualified jobs in the third year of operation.
João Murteiro, executive president of Grupo Centro Óptico, highlighted, in his speech, that the factory is equipped with the latest technology aligned with the highest international standards for the medical device industry.
The factory has a production capacity of more than 1000 lenses per day, with a production line, and the installation of a second assembly line is planned, which will ensure the manufacture of more than 2000 lenses per day.
This manufacturing unit has a laboratory for cutting and assembling all types of ophthalmic lenses into glasses, namely frames, sunglasses, sports glasses and occupational protection glasses, among others.
"We also implement strict control over the entire production process, in which our lenses, until they are delivered to the customer, go through three phases of quality assessment: graduation, treatments and assembly of glasses", highlighted João Murteiro.
He also pointed out the "rapid" development of the visual health sector in Angola, the reduction in delivery time for ophthalmic lenses and the easy access to lenses made in Angola for the population as some of the advantages of installing Oftalmed in the country.
The unit will produce monofocal, working, progressive and reinforcement lenses and these will have anti-scratch, anti-reflective, blue light, tinted and photochromic lens treatments.
