Mário Simões, vice-president of the Executive Committee of the CE-CPLP, explained, in statements to the Lusa agency, that the event will count with the participation of "about two hundred and a half businessmen", in addition to several institutional representatives of the Portuguese-speaking countries.
"Entrepreneurs are from Portugal, Mozambique, Angola and Cape Verde," he said, adding that the largest delegation is the Portuguese, with around 70 companies.
Angola will participate with close to 30 companies and Mozambique with more than 20.
Cape Verde will have a mission with "four or five companies and the largest chamber of commerce in the country", he said.
The Cape Verdean head of state and acting president of the CPLP, Jorge Carlos Fonseca, is expected to intervene "online" at the meeting, while the minister of Industry, Trade and Energy, Alexandre Monteiro, will be in Malabo.
The announced participation of the President of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, should not take place.
São Tomé and Príncipe will be represented at the highest level with the presence of the President of the Republic, Evaristo Carvalho, who with the host, Teodoro Obiang, will be the only heads of state to participate in person at the summit.
From Angola, a delegation led by the Minister of Industry and Trade, Victor Fernandes, is expected to participate, while the representation of Portugal should be assured by the representative in Malabo, Frederico Silva.
The initiative will be officially opened by the President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, and interventions by the Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, Gabriel Mbega Obiang Lima, and the Minister of Fisheries and Resources are also planned during the three days of the meeting. Water, Adoración Salas Chonco, of the president of CE-CPLP, Salimo Abdula, or of the director general of CPLP, Armindo de Brito Fernandes.
The meeting of businessmen aims to "consolidate the integration" of Equatorial Guinea in CPLP, of which it has been a member since 2014, and "to demonstrate the potential, as a country of resources and opportunities, placing it on the route of foreign investment", according to organization.
"The idea is to hold economic summits in the CPLP countries and Equatorial Guinea was the first country to become available," said Mário Simões, adding that summits are already scheduled for Angola, in July, and Guinea-Bissau, in November.
"What we intend to do is take all CPLP countries, a group of companies that want to bet on this market," he added.
Gas, tourism, agriculture, fisheries, asset valuation, banking, training are some of the sectors of Portuguese companies participating in the business summit, most of which visit the country for the first time looking for investment opportunities.
Due to the covid-19 pandemic, Equatorial Guinea has a set of restrictive measures in place, including mandatory use of a mask, limitation to one international flight per week, presentation of negative PCR tests or proof of vaccination for entry into the country , as well as the prohibition of movement between regions or the limitation of participation in worship activities or weddings.
Sources heard by the Lusa agency point out that the decree with the restrictions ended on April 30, but that new measures have not yet been released, but believe in the announcement of the easing of restrictions in the coming days to frame the summit.
"Companies cannot remain closed at home and in their offices. This opening of the CPLP market is to help companies, after one year in confinement, to be able to leave again and open doors for other business opportunities," he said. , for his part, Mário Simões.
The summit, which takes place at the Simpopo International Conference Center, also includes an exhibition of companies and various cultural moments, including a tribute to fado and morna, classified as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Equatorial Guinea is the third oil-producing country in sub-Saharan Africa, after Nigeria and Angola, and has important reserves of natural gas, in an economy strongly dependent on the hydrocarbon sector, which in 2016 represented around 60% of the Domestic Product Gross (GDP).
The country's economy has been on negative ground for several years and is expected to resume growth in 2021.
According to estimates by the National Statistics Institute of Equatorial Guinea (INEGE), this growth is expected to be 2.8 percent.
Equatorial Guinea has agreed with the IMF a financial rescue program of 282.8 million dollars, about 231 million euros, at the end of 2019, receiving only then US $ 40 million, less than 33 million euros.
