Speaking in Luanda at the opening of the VI Portugal/Angola Business Meeting, promoted by the Portugal-Angola Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIPA), Ivan dos Santos underlined the advantages of investment and the work that still needs to be done in order to balance the trade balance between the two countries.
In 2022, Angola was the first African destination country for Portuguese exports and ninth worldwide, but Portuguese imports of Angolan products are still below expectations, with Angola ranking 27th in the list of countries of origin of goods purchased by Portugal.
Ivan dos Santos highlighted the intention of "guaranteeing this balance" and continuing to work towards attracting foreign investment to Angola, providing greater speed and transparency in administrative processes and ease of access to information.
"For this purpose, some measures are being implemented that should have an immediate impact and will be useful tools for all national and foreign businessmen who intend to invest in Angola", he stressed.
Among these is the "Green Line", which he presented as "a simplified, more convenient and quicker mechanism for obtaining a visa" for investors in the Angolan market.
In the same context, he announced shortly a portal dedicated to attracting foreign investment in georeferenced Angolan projects, "which will give investors the possibility of discovering projects ready for immediate private investment".
On the platform, one's own investment intention can be submitted, either in an autonomous investment regime or in partnership, public or private, as well as the opportunity to do business with national producers for the purchase and sale of goods and services, he added.
At the event, which brought together about a hundred Portuguese and Angolan businessmen, serving as an antechamber to the Luanda International Fair (Filda), which starts on Tuesday and runs until Saturday, Ivan dos Santos also stressed that the promotion of private business is at the heart of the Angolan executive's governance strategy, with policies and programs aimed at supporting national production.
The Secretary of State admitted, however, that the Angolan economy is facing a "challenging moment", pointing to the package of extraordinary measures, approved last Friday, with financial and fiscal measures, and "which will help the country to remain on track of economic growth".
"We intend, with these measures, to reduce the impact of one of the great evils of our economy, represented by the excessive dependence on the importation of products of high necessity, since it is our intention that these products start to be produced internally", he added.
