"The assets that have been recovered by the Angolan State have not ceased to play the social role for which they were created. In other words, the fact that there is a change in the ownership of the assets, or in other words a change in the ownership of the assets, does not mean say that these same assets end up dying, on the contrary", said João Lourenço, questioned by journalists after the meeting with the President of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, as part of the state visit he is carrying out to the archipelago.
"That would be very bad for the economies, for the economy of Angola, for the economy of Cape Verde, in the specific case of Cape Verde. It would be bad, above all, for the workers. that the recovered assets continue to serve the economy and do not mainly harm the workers of these same units", said the head of state, without commenting on the possibility of the recovery of these assets being extended to Angolan investments in Cape Verdean territory.
At stake is the recovery of private investments allegedly made with public money.
Several Angolan investments are known in recent years in Cape Verde in the transport, energy, telecommunications or banking sectors, some of which are associated with the Angolan businesswoman Isabel dos Santos.
"The measures that the Angolan Government has taken in relation to Angolan companies, to Angolan investments, will necessarily be respected in Cape Verde and we have the openness, the possibility of consultation, the necessary articulation, so that the issues are resolved without any disputes", replied the President of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, questioned by journalists on the same topic, in joint statements with his Angolan counterpart.
The President, João Lourenço, meets in the early afternoon, at the Government Palace, in Praia, with the Cape Verdean Prime Minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, prior to the presentation of the results of the VIII Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation in Cape Verde – Angola.
According to the Cape Verdean Government, on the same occasion, in the presence of João Lourenço and Ulisses Correia e Silva, legal documents in the field of air transport will be signed, namely providing for the transfer to the Cape Verdean state airline TACV, under a leasing regime, of a Boeing 737-700 by the Angolan TAAG, as well as an Agreement for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments, involving the two governments.
A Bilateral Air Services Agreement will also be signed between the two governments, a Memorandum of Understanding on Air Transport between the Transport Ministries of the two countries, and a Memorandum of Technical Cooperation between the Civil Aviation Agency of Cape Verde (AAC) and Angola's National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC), followed by a joint press statement by João Lourenço and Ulisses Correia e Silva.
The head of state arrived in Praia on Sunday and started the official program of the state visit to Cape Verde this Monday, repaying the one carried out last January by the Cape Verdean President, José Maria Neves, to Luanda.
This afternoon, João Lourenço will speak at a special session at the National Assembly and on Tuesday he will travel to Mindelo, on the island of São Vicente, where he will visit points of economic interest, such as the fish conservation company Frescomar and the Estação of Desalinated Water Production, in addition to receiving the keys to the city.
The departure from Cape Verde, from the island of São Vicente, is scheduled for Wednesday.
