"From 2018 to 2022, the real GDP growth rate for the manufacturing industry registered an accumulated of 7.7 percent, with greater emphasis on the year 2022 which had a growth of around 6 percent, surpassing the forecast projection in the OGE for that year", said João Lourenço.
In his speech, the head of state also highlighted that, in the period in question, more than 200 new "great impact" undertakings were approved and implemented in the manufacturing sector, distributed across the country's various provinces in various subsectors of activity, in a action that contributed to the creation of 10 thousand jobs.
"During this same period, within the scope of private investment, more than two hundred new enterprises of great impact in the domain of the manufacturing industry were approved and implemented, distributed across the different provinces in the most varied subsectors of activity, contributing with more than ten thousand jobs, with greater emphasis on the food sector, a bet by the Executive on increasing industrial production with a view to guaranteeing self-sufficiency in essential consumer goods", he said.
In addition, he said it was necessary to "continue to stimulate and boost the increase in national production", aiming at reducing prices and imports, as well as increasing exports: "We need to continue to stimulate and boost the increase in national production to reduce prices, reduce imports, increase exports and address the competitiveness arising from the country's adherence to the protocols of the SADC Free Zone, the African Continental Free Trade Area and the Tripartite Free Trade Area".
He also left an appeal for "an organized, systematic and persistent effort to attract national and foreign private investment, so that we are on the right track and reach the level of industrialization established by SADC, setting our sights above all on the Continental Free Trade Area".
The President of the Republic also considered that this is not an easy task. "This task is not easy, as competition between countries to attract foreign direct investment is quite strong", adding that "the effort that the country has been making in recent years to increase and improve the support infrastructures industries and the economy as a whole".
In his speech, he also referred to improvements in the supply of electricity. "It considerably increased the supply of electricity from hydroelectric and photovoltaic production sources, consequently reducing production from thermal sources that are not only polluting as we know, but that increase the price of energy sold to both domestic and business consumers", he said.
He also highlighted the commitment to "construction of transport lines for the energy produced in the Baixo Kwanza basin, in Capanda, in Laúca, in Cambambe and in the Combined Cycle of Soyo, all of which are already interconnected through the national transport network to bring this available capacity to the east, southeast and south of the country", aiming to have "the provinces of Lunda Sul, Lunda Norte, Moxico, Cuando Cubango, Huíla, Cunene and Namibe connected to the national grid".
He also took the opportunity to announce that "important investments are also scheduled in the water sector throughout the country", adding that "for Luanda, the country's main industrial centre, we are hopeful that the Bita and Quilonga projects will relieve the situation of city, which has a great deficit in the production and distribution of the precious liquid to about ten million inhabitants and countless industries already installed and for those in perspective".
In his speech, João Lourenço also said that they will continue "with the structural reforms of Angolan society in all its aspects from the economic, financial, exchange rate and social areas, to security, justice, education and qualification of people, passing for the organization of the State and the territory and in all aspects that make Angola an increasingly attractive country for investment".
"With public or public-private investment, we will continue to increase and improve the road network, we will continue to increase the supply of water and electricity, we will electrify the country, but as we believe it is possible and necessary to walk together, with private investment we are going to industrialize the country", he added.
It should be noted that the head of state opened this Wednesday the 5th edition of Expo-Indústria. After his opening speech, João Lourenço went to the pavilion's main entrance to cut the ribbon.
"The symbolic moment was followed by a detailed visit to the sample of products and services that make up Expo-Indústria 2023, a movement in which the head of state was always accompanied by the first lady of the Republic, Ana Dias Lourenço", refers the Presidency, in a statement, which VerAngola had access to.
According to the note, the President was on the premises of the event "for more than two hours", having dialogued with the exhibitors, asking questions about the respective production processes and taking "the pulse of what has effectively been the development of the industry in the country in its more different domains".
The event started this Wednesday in the Special Economic Zone (ZEE) Luanda-Bengo, where it will run until next Saturday, April 1st.
