The Diplomat
The second and last day of the King and Queen’s State visit to Angola had a clear economic and political profile, with the participation of Felipe VI in the business meeting, in which he offered “the business collaboration and financial support” of Spain to the economic and social development of the country, and his subsequent speech before the National Assembly, in which he affirmed that Angola is “a priority country” for Spain and the great “Afro-Ibero-American” country for its “clear affinities with the Ibero-American world”.
Yesterday began with the participation of the King and the President of Angola, João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, in the inauguration of the Angola-Spain business meeting Together building the future, organized by the Chamber of Commerce and the CEOE, whose presidents, José Luis Bonet and Antonio Garamendi, accompanied the King and Queen on their trip.
During the forum, Felipe VI said that Spanish companies “have carried out emblematic projects throughout Angola” that “have generated and generate added value, that contribute on a daily basis to promote progress and, with it, to improve the welfare of the population”. “With this trip, we hope to consolidate the existing bilateral collaboration and encourage Spanish companies to contribute their knowledge, capacity and technology for the benefit of all,” he continued.
The Monarch also highlighted that, after overcoming a context of “deep recession” in 2018 and suffering the impact of the pandemic, Angola “has now managed to present healthy public accounts, decreasing inflation and a balanced balance of payments, as well as stable foreign reserves” thanks, especially, to the signing of an agreement with the IMF and “the implementation of a strict macroeconomic stabilization program.”
“In this new context, even with uncertainties, Angola can and must take advantage to relaunch its growth and strengthen its economic and social development, objectives in which Spain can play an important role through business collaboration and financial support,” said the King. “Angola’s National Development Plan identifies many of these areas as priorities, and I am sure that Spanish companies will be able to contribute their experience and professionalism in these areas, and can thus be of great use in generating the best results in the short, medium and long term,” he added.
Angola is the second largest oil supplier to Spain in Sub-Saharan Africa, after Nigeria (more than 96% of Spanish imports come from hydrocarbons). Besides, the country is currently undergoing a process of economic reforms at the initiative of the Government, whose policy of privatizations and macroeconomic stabilization has been favored by the increase in oil prices, which has made it possible to increase State revenues and reduce public debt.
Spanish companies are particularly interested in participating in this process of economic diversification and in contributing to economic development in sectors such as infrastructure, telecommunications, agribusiness, sanitation and water, engineering and defense. Between 35 and 40 Spanish companies operate in Angola in various sectors, such as energy and infrastructure (Elecnor), defense (Navantia and Airbus) and fishing. Indra has participated in the organization of the last three elections held in the country.
Speech before the National Assembly
After this event, the King and Queen went to the Angolan National Assembly, where they held a meeting with the Speaker of the House, Carolina Cerqueira, and where the King and Queen delivered a speech to the Chamber. In the ten or so State visits the King has made since his accession to the Throne, he has only had the honor of addressing the National Assemblies in France and Portugal.
In his speech, the King praised “the reforms that Angola is carrying out to promote its economic development, diversify its economy and promote business presence” and assured that “Spain, both from the public and private sectors, is prepared to contribute to the economic growth of the country, a productive growth that generates jobs for the Angolan youth”. To this end, he continued, “we have very competitive companies in sectors that we are interested in promoting, such as agro-industry, infrastructure and sanitation, renewable energies, engineering and tourism”.
Likewise, Felipe VI affirmed that “Angola is for Spain a priority country for its political and social stability, for its resources and good economic prospects and for its active regional and multilateral diplomacy”, and stressed that “Angola has clear connections with the Ibero-American world, with those countries in Europe and America that speak Spanish and Portuguese, the two sister languages of the Iberian Peninsula”. “In fact, Angola can be considered as the great ‘Afro-Ibero-American’ country with clear affinities with that great space of dialogue and cooperation that is Ibero-America”, he said.
At midday, the Angolan President and his wife officially bid farewell to the King and Queen and the rest of their delegation at the Presidential Palace, before their return to Spain. The King and Queen were accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, and the Secretary of State for Trade, Xiana Méndez.
