The debate, which took place on Thursday night and lasted until the early hours of the morning, was marked by some pessimistic feelings regarding the short and medium term future of Angola, given the country's current situation, but in which there were also highlighted the country's advantages in the regional context and its capabilities and resources to be "a great power" in the future.
Firstly, because it is a country where "there are no ethnic and religious conflicts", a problem that today affects a large part of African states.
Regarding resources, the speakers highlighted the importance of Angola being the third oil producer in Africa, after Nigeria and Libya, but also the fact that it is a country with the capacity to be a major producer and exporter of food, in a global context of conflicts that affect food production.
The dinner-debate, which took place in a hotel in Lisbon in connection with the 50th anniversary of Angola's independence, which is celebrated on November 11, 2025, was promoted by the Angola Research Network and CEDESA, entities that investigate and analyze political issues, Angolan economic and social conditions.
Onofre dos Santos, retired judge of the Constitutional Court of Angola, the country's vice-consul in Lisbon, Manuel Resende, commentator and researcher Jaime Nogueira Pinto, former member of socialist governments and former secretary general of UCCLA (União das Cidades Portuguese Language Capitals) Vitor Ramalho, the vice-president of the Portugal Angola Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIPA), Maria José Melo, the former social democratic deputy Nuno Carvalho, businesspeople, lawyers and those responsible for companies with links to both countries were some of the participants in the debate.
One of the problems focused on by almost all speakers was the lack of training of people and the State's weak commitment to education, in a country where the vast majority of the population is young and where the unemployment rate is above 30 percent, there are no job prospects for youth.
The “gravity” of the education situation for some of those involved in the debate begins with the fact that many children in Angola do not even have access to school.
For all these reasons, Angola is, from the perspective of those analysts, a country that needs productive foreign direct investment, that is, not just extractive of its resources. But a transformative investment of its resources in final products for domestic consumption and export, first to other African countries, in addition to generating jobs.
The celebrations for the 50th anniversary of that country's independence, which is celebrated on November 11, 2025, were launched on the 11th of this year and will continue until December 31st of next year, under the motto “Angola 50 years: preserving and valuing the achievements achieved by building a better future.”
The year-long commemorative activities will take place on national territory but will also involve Angolan diplomatic and consular representations around the world.
But the highlight of the celebrations will take place in the capital, Luanda, at Praça da República, next to the Memorial to António Agostinho Neto, the country's first President, considered a crucial figure in the fight for Angola's independence.
These ceremonies will take place on November 11, 2025 and will be presided over by the current head of state, João Lourenço.
