According to a statement released by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Chinese ambassador to Luanda, Gong Tao, said during the meeting that "hope that Angola can further improve the investment environment and provide more facilities and support for Chinese companies to invest and cooperate in Angola."
"Angola has a stable society, superior natural conditions, obvious location advantages and great development potential," he stressed.
The Chinese diplomat said that China "is confident" in the "prospects of economic and trade cooperation" between the two countries and that it "encourages" its Chinese companies to invest in Angola and "actively participate in the process of industrialisation and economic diversification" of the African country.
The same statement quoted Finance Minister Vera Daves, who said that Angola "is open to foreign investment and invites Chinese companies to actively participate in the plan to privatize Angolan assets".
The minister stressed that Luanda has adopted reforms in the "political, economic and judicial fields, including simplifying the process of registering companies and providing foreign exchange facilities," aimed at "improving the business environment and attracting more foreign investment."
"I hope that more Chinese investors will bring funds and technology, to help in the economic and social development of Angola," he pointed out.
The government's Privatization Program (ProPriv) foresees the privatization of more than 190 companies and/or state assets by 2022 in the banking, hotel and tourism, finance, insurance, agriculture, telecommunications, industries, and oil sectors, among others.
The National Interministerial Commission of ProPriv maintains the goal to privatize 100 assets and/or public companies this year, noting, however, that privatizations on the stock exchange may extend until 2022, as recently announced by the deputy coordinator of the technical group of ProPriv, Patrício Vilar.
China is the main customer for Angolan oil and has been one of the biggest investors in the African country. The Asian country played an important role in the reconstruction of Angola after a 27-year civil war between 1975 and 2002.
