According to the evangelical pastor, who spoke at the opening of the "National Conference on Natural Resources: Hunger and Wealth", hunger in Angola has gained "very challenging proportions", despite the abundant natural resources, translated into "harm" for citizens.
"This year poverty is stronger (...), everyone needs to seriously reflect [on] this phenomenon of hunger that is ravaging our country. Even with the permanent exploitation of resources, even after the end of the civil war 22 years ago, hunger is pressing and the challenges are greater", lamented Toni-A-Nzinga.
For the president of "Tchota Angola", an Angolan civil society platform focused on the management and exploitation of natural resources, all the country's living forces must find solutions to today's problems and "not just a group of citizens who run the country", he criticized, alluding to the Government.
The country's wealth "should be reflected in the improvement of citizens' living conditions and not in the luxury vehicles and houses that we build", he said.
Toni-A-Nzinga also questioned the terms and motivations of the celebrations of Angola's 50 years of independence, to be marked on November 11, 2025, when "thousands of citizens live in miserable conditions".
"Is this a celebration?", he asked, considering that "as long as the populations are living in miserable conditions, (...) we are not independent".
He criticized the stance of politicians who, in his view, in parliament, defend only militancy and not citizenship for the country's inclusive and democratic development: "For Angola to be democratic, everyone must participate in the citizenship process", he noted.
In his speech, he pointed to the need for "all citizens to wake up" in favor of the country's balanced and inclusive development, highlighting that natural resources "must be a blessing and not a harm" for citizens.
The contrast between the abundance of natural resources and the situation of hunger in communities affected by exploitation, the situation of human rights in the context of exploitation of natural resources and the challenges for transparency in the extractive industry are some of the topics being addressed at this conference that runs until Thursday Friday, in Luanda.
Thousands of citizens, including politicians, activists and other actors in Angolan society, marched on Saturday, in Luanda, against hunger.
