The European Union (EU) has provided Angola with €50 million to develop grain, vegetable, and tropical fruit crops in five provinces along the Lobito Corridor, a railway infrastructure that crosses the country.
The financing agreement, under the AGRINVEST Project—Opportunities and Competitiveness in Agri-Food Value Chains in the Lobito Corridor—was signed by the EU Ambassador to Angola, Rosário Bento Pais, and the Angolan Minister of Planning, Victor Hugo Guilherme.
Speaking to the press, Bento Pais stated that the financial agreement aims to contribute to the development of the Lobito Corridor, with implications for various sectors, notably agriculture, transportation, industry, and commerce.
“Specifically, we will contribute to job creation, particularly for young people and women, so that these three value chains for domestic production can develop in the agricultural sector, with a view to future exports,” said the EU diplomat.
According to Rosário Bento Pais, microfinance for producers will be made available through various agencies of the European Union member states, with the aim of contributing to Angola’s economic diversification—from production to the creation of cooperatives—benefiting approximately 300 smallholder farmers.
The ambassador emphasized that the project also includes a component for creating the necessary infrastructure for accessing and distributing agricultural products.
“We’re talking about the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the European Union, the United Nations system—with all its agencies—and the private sector,” he noted.
“There will be both small-scale and larger-scale financing for small and medium-sized enterprises, through initiatives to be implemented by development agencies, particularly those of member states and other international partners,” she said.
For his part, Angolan Minister of Planning Victor Hugo Guilherme welcomed the contribution of yet another partner to the country’s development, particularly that of the Lobito Corridor.
The minister emphasized that an increasing number of partners are joining the development of the railway project, which brings together nearly all of the Angolan government’s financiers, donors, development partners, and multilateral organizations.
“We’re talking about the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the European Union, the United Nations system—with all its agencies—and the private sector,” he noted.
Victor Hugo Guilherme emphasized that Angolan authorities are working “in a very active and coordinated manner” to secure funding for that corridor: “for this reason, with each passing day, investments are flowing into the development of this region.”
The six-year project will be implemented in the provinces of Benguela, Huambo, Bié, Moxico, and Moxico Leste, as well as in regions with high agricultural potential.
The Lobito Corridor is a railway infrastructure that starts at the Port of Lobito in Angola, crossing the country for 1,300 kilometers to the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it connects to the railway network of Congolese mining regions, with plans to expand it to Zambia.
Source: Lusa
