In an interview with Lusa on Friday in the US capital, on the sidelines of the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, Minister Vera Daves indicated that she had seen public statements and posts on social media from the US administration reiterating its commitment and business vision regarding the Lobito Corridor, adding that this was evident in the meetings she held last week in Washington.
The minister denied feeling that Trump was distancing himself from the African continent, "at least with regard to this initiative [Lobito Corridor]".
"We received signs of this during the meetings we had. I'm not just talking about publications, I'm talking about words from the people we met with and who were present at some of the round tables we participated in. So I think the political commitment continues," she assessed.
Vera Daves stated that she participated in several round tables on the Lobito Corridor and its potential, in which she also felt "that European interest remains alive" around this project, both from the European Union and from countries bilaterally.
Italy, said the minister, was one of the countries that expressly mentioned its political commitment to the Corridor.
"We also feel positive signals from the United States, which means that there is still interest in the Corridor," she reinforced.
"We advocate an approach that does not focus solely on the railway line and the transportation of minerals. But, above all, on transforming the entire area into an economic hub, taking advantage of the potential related to agriculture, tourism and industry," she explained.
In this sense, the Angolan mission called on the World Bank Group to work together "with a view to identifying other infrastructure needs" and, in partnership with the private sector, attract private investment so that "businesses emerge and jobs are created" around the line.
The Lobito Corridor is a railway infrastructure that crosses Angola for 1,300 kilometers, connecting the Port of Lobito (coast) to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo to transport the production of critical minerals from the Copperbelt (DRCongo) and Kolwezi (Zambia) regions.
The operation is ensured by Lobito Atlantic Railway (a consortium that includes the Portuguese Mota-Egil, the Swiss Trafigura and the Belgian Vecturis), and should involve an investment of almost 1 billion dollars, partially financed by the North American financing agency Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and the Development Bank of Southern Africa.
The Donald Trump government recently announced the cut of several support programs for the African continent, including the suspension of some projects by the US agency USAID that were associated with the Lobito Corridor and aimed at supporting women farmers.
Analysts have warned that the recent freeze on humanitarian and development aid by the United States could encourage countries in southern Africa, a region that includes Angola and Mozambique, to move closer to China.
Regarding relations with Beijing and Washington at a time when the trade war between these two powers is intensifying, Vera Daves assured that Angola "does not have to have preferred friends" and that "it is a sovereign country, which has partners and which has the legitimacy to have relations with any sovereign nation", although "it likes to have good relations with everyone".
Still on her trip to Washington, Vera Daves admitted that she asked the IMF about options for new programs with this financial institution, indicating that she felt the IMF was "open" to this possibility, despite emphasizing that these are still informal conversations.
"We still have to work to look at the available options and possible amounts. It is all still very informal, no formal request has been made by the Government. But even so, in an informal manner, we will start sharing some information so that the Ministry of Finance will then be in a better position to advise the Government on the path to follow, depending on the weaknesses and treasury needs that we have", explained the minister, without providing further details.
Asked by Lusa whether a visit to the markets is on the table, Daves denied, for now, this possibility.
