"We will have an excellent infrastructure available to support aeronautical activity, allowing international flights to come to Benguela and which can also be used in cases of emergency, if there is a need for an aircraft to land here for safety reasons", said the holder of the Ministry of Transport, in statements, cited by Angop, on the sidelines of the ministry's 15th consultative council, to be held in Lobito.
According to the minister, there are other implications from the aeronautical perspective, such as advantages for other entities in this sector, particularly aerial navigation.
"Once we have other infrastructures on the ground capable of ensuring this service, it also allows other routes to be implemented in airspace, particularly for aircraft that are in transit", he pointed out, quoted by Angop.
The minister said that they are also turning to the Southern Corridor (comprising Huíla, Namibe and Cuando Cubango), which he considered to be "another opportunity" that the country has, "which is to boost the value chain in the southern region", adding that this corridor "has different characteristics from the Lobito Corridor, because it still has no border connection".
However, he added that they are "preparing the conditions so that, now, in the second half of the year, we can launch the international competition for the concession of the Southern Corridor as well."
On that occasion, he also did not forget about the Lobito Corridor, adding that the advantages are beginning to be seen and that the work must continue: "This is continuous work and will not stop. The experimental exercise of transporting minerals from the Republic has already begun Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, with five weekly shipments, with the prospect of this number increasing to comply with obligations in terms of concession volumes", he said, quoted by Angop.
Ricardo D'Abreu also pointed out that this factor is already "creating a dynamic around the corridor, integrating other sectors", such as industry and agri-business.
He also did not leave out the new António Agostinho Neto International Airport, having mentioned that an action plan was presented to ensure the operation of the infrastructure, adding that this plan is being implemented.
"At the time we said that we would start an operational transfer of cargo in 2023 and of passengers at the end of 2024", he recalled, adding that to start the cargo service it was necessary to ensure certification in order to be able to receive international flights.
"We said a year ago that passenger flights are scheduled for the last quarter of 2024 and this requires the Airport to be certified", the minister also highlighted.
The field of cabotage was another of the topics addressed by the holder of the Transport portfolio, who said that the authority gave initial priority to the northern region, with Cabinda standing out: "The dependence of the province of Cabinda on the transport system is very great and therefore this was prioritized", he said, having recognized that after this service is consolidated in the northern region it could also serve the central-south region, highlighting the need to "manage to evolve towards the central-south of the country".
He also said that the cabotage service is not exclusive to the Executive, so "it is open to the private sector and those who want to participate in the project, which is commercially viable, have all the conditions to do so".
