The President of the Republic, who was speaking at the 44th session of the Board of Governors of the International Development Fund (IFAD), also stressed that food imports into the country also saw a 24 percent reduction last year, "which it is a sign that national production is beginning to gain space and replace products that were previously imported ".
According to the Chief Executive, despite the constraints caused by the covid-19 pandemic, the Government continues to develop initiatives to increase investments in agriculture.
Programs and projects for rural extension and concession financing to rural and agribusiness operators have been developed, with favorable interest rates on loans granted to the private sector, said João Lourenço.
The head of state highlighted the support of external partners, such as the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the French Development Agency, the European Union, among others, in increasing resilience and country autonomy, reaching the objectives of the fight against poverty and increase of food and nutritional security.
In particular, to IFAD, João Lourenço thanked the attention and moral, technical and material support that he has given to Angola in the country's agricultural and rural development efforts.
According to the President, IFAD has increasingly mobilized technical and financial resources to carry out agricultural and fisheries development projects, intervening in the key areas of agricultural research and extension, rehabilitation of rural infrastructure, direct support for productive investments and promoting access to markets, which has benefited more than 480 thousand families in at least ten of the country's 14 provinces.
"Let it be underlined that the ongoing efforts to open IFAD representation in Angola, as well as the recent creation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries to coordinate IFAD-funded projects will increase and improve the national capacity to implement programs. ", said.
João Lourenço stressed that, despite the positive results in the implementation of agricultural programs and projects, "more and better can be done in creating conditions for the resumption of economic growth in the country in general, and for the development of the agricultural and rural sector, in particular".
"We believe it is important to ensure an increasingly active involvement of farmers' organizations, as well as to reinforce the contribution of small, medium and large companies, which operate upstream and downstream of agricultural production, both through the provision of goods and services to support production, as well as through the acquisition, processing and distribution of products of local origin ", he said.
