In an interview with Lusa on the occasion of the 50th anniversaries of the independence of the former Portuguese colonies in Africa, celebrated this year, Sérgio Pimenta said that the Portuguese-speaking African Countries (PALOP) should deepen “the possibility of thinking regionally, and not only about the needs of their own country.”
The former Vice President for Africa at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, argued that PALOP countries should leverage their capacities and sector-specific expertise to adopt a regional rather than purely national perspective.
In the same interview, he reiterated that “a country with strengths in one area can provide training and qualification with others in mind,” noting that “speaking the same language matters,” as he reflected on the paths these countries have taken over the past half-century and what they are—or should be—shaping as their future.
“For instance, Cape Verde has strong experience in tourism. It could create a school that increases its teaching capacity to include students from Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, and São Tomé and Príncipe, which all have significant tourism potential,” suggested the former IFC Africa head.
Pimenta also argued that this model could be replicated in the agricultural sector and in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), where Cape Verde aims to specialize and become a continental reference.
He pointed to Angola as another example, noting its knowledge in the field of mineral exploration. As the second-largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa—pumping about one million barrels a day—and with experience in creating a business environment that attracts foreign oil companies, Angola could also offer training programs not only for its youth but also for people from Southern Africa.
This would be particularly beneficial for countries like Mozambique, which holds massive gas reserves in the north expected to be exploited on a large scale by the end of the decade.
More broadly, Pimenta emphasized that “it’s very important that educational leadership focuses on what Africa needs, not just the diplomas young people have.” He added that the region has huge agricultural potential but lacks enough institutions specializing in African crops—something he sees as a lingering legacy of the colonial era.
To highlight the importance of investing in training aligned with areas of development potential, the former IFC Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific cited Asia as an example. There, countries that once imported rice in the last millennium later invested in scientific institutions to study rice production—eventually becoming exporters.
Sérgio Pimenta also stressed the importance of infrastructure and education in developing the continent, using Angola as an example. Despite its significant agricultural potential, the country struggles to get products to market due to a lack of transport routes.
“In Angola, one of the most sustainable sectors is agriculture, but one of the country’s biggest challenges is the lack of infrastructure, because fields are far from the cities and rural roads must be traveled to move products from where they are grown to the major cities for export,” he explained.
“What we need to do is identify where the potential lies and what is missing to develop it. It may be infrastructure, training, or human capital—but whatever it is, it needs to be addressed in order to sustain development,” said the former IFC Africa lead.
Source: Jornal Económico / Lusa
