"We have been negotiating for some time now the transfer of land in Angola so that Cape Verde can develop agriculture in Angola, with the aim of exporting here to Cape Verde. This is not yet a reality, but we are going to renew this desire, this intention. , and we believe that very soon this desire of the two countries will be fulfilled", said João Lourenço, in statements to 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 .
"With Cape Verde we are taking very concrete steps. We started with the transport sector but we do not want to stop there, we are going to extend to other areas", he added, still in joint statements with his Cape Verdean counterpart, at the Presidential Palace.
For João Lourenço, this state visit, which follows the one carried out in January by his Cape Verdean counterpart to Luanda, represents the intention of the two heads of state "to make up for lost time".
"It means saying that a lot could have been done, but for different reasons it ended up not happening. But as they say, better late than never. We think the time has come to do it from now on", he said. the president.
In this sense, the bilateral commission met on Saturday, 14 years later, and closed four legal instruments that will be signed this Tuesday by the delegations of the two countries, including the leasing by TAAG of a Boeing 737-300 aircraft. to Cape Verdean TACV.
"The first aircraft that comes under lease to be at the service of the Cape Verdean air transport company TACV has just landed here in the city of Praia. Therefore, we don't want to waste time, we want facts, with concrete gestures, to start working on for the strengthening of the economic relationship between the two countries", said João Lourenço, guaranteeing that Angola has "much to gain" if it cooperates with Cape Verde also in the sectors of tourism, commerce or public administration.
On the same occasion, José Maria Neves underlined that it was a visit "in all historical respects" and that it aims at a "pragmatic perspective" of strengthening cooperation and friendship relations between the two countries.
"There is a strong will to strengthen the business economic pillar between the two countries," said the Cape Verdean head of state, appealing to Angolan investment in Cape Verde.
For the Cape Verdean President, the visit of his counterpart is "a very important moment for the revitalization of relations" between the two countries, in order to reach "the level of a strategic partnership".
The two heads of state praised the historic relations between both countries and the incentive that will be given with the new mobility agreement approved by the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), which both are part of.
The President meets in the early afternoon, at the Government Palace, in Praia, with the Cape Verdean Prime Minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, before the presentation of the results of the VIII Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation 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 Tuesday, 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.
