Lisbon - Several Angolan citizens in Portugal on Monday expressed positive expectations on the United States President Joe Biden visit to Angola.
In separate statements, the interviewees were unanimous in stating that the visit that President Joe Biden begins on Monday will serve to strengthen diplomatic relations between Angola and the US, as well as a greater boost to the country's socio-economic and political sector.
Speaking to ANGOP, the president of the Association of Angolan Students in Portugal, Ayrtom Pahula, said that expectations are always high, as it is the visit of the President of what is considered the largest economic power in the world.
In this sense, he emphasized, 'any Government that wants to develop the economy of the country it leads is always interested in establishing and consolidating relations with a country of this level'.
'As for us, citizens, we have always seen this approach with good eyes', he stressed.
Ayrtom Pahula stressed that, 'if we attend to the objectives that are on the agenda of the visit, there may be numerous gains'.
'If the objectives are achieved, there is no doubt that Angola, from an economic point of view, will register growth and, consequently, related gains, namely in the diversification of the economy, increase in domestic production and exports, as well as in the massive reduction of the unemployment rate.'
He also highlighted, in this context, the importance of the Lobito Corridor.
For this reason, Ayrton Pahula argued that, from a general point of view, diplomatic relations between the two countries have never been better than they are now.
'I think we are at the peak, in fact, just remember that this is Joe Biden's first visit to Africa as President and the first by a US President to Angola,' he argued.
According to the source, without prejudice to the contrary opinion of experts in relations
international, thinks that the axes of cooperation in the areas of education (staff training program), aerospace sciences, telecommunications and digital administration should be further explored.
He also said that Angolan business investment in the US is very small, compared to that of this country in Angola.
Therefore, he defended a greater balance with the increase in the presence of Angolan businessmen on US soil through incentives, on the part of the host State (USA) and the Angolan State, namely: tax exemptions, facilitation of financing, reduction of bureaucracy of commercial activity.
According to the association leader, Angola has many resources that interest the Americans and, if they are well presented, with objectivity and a sense of state, the benefits will be seen soon.
The president of the association of the Angolan Community in Almada, António Baptista, stressed that the visit of the American President will bring multiple advantages to the Lobito Corridor, as it will leverage the Angolan economy and that of neighboring countries, such as DRC and Zambia in the flow of variable goods for the benefit of the three countries and peoples in common.
For this reason, he appealed to Angolan businessmen to be more serious, because to a certain extent they leave their skills credits in the hands of others.
The president of the Angolan Civil Society Associations-Organizations, Alberto Marques Domingos, emphasizes that it is a 'historic landmark' for the country, as it is the second visit of an American statesman to the African continent.
'We hope that this visit will bring us tangible benefits and deepen bilateral relations in the most diverse areas, namely in the food, military, technological and even financial sectors,' he stressed.
Considering the fact that Angola is facing a disadvantageous cooperation framework, since the United States of America imports from Angola riches of much more significant quality and value than what the country imports from the Americans.
With the arrival of the US President, it is expected that Angola will once again benefit from access to foreign currency from the US Federal system and, likewise, have access to the various credit lines.
It is known that the Americans are very interested in the Lobito Railways and it is hoped that this trip will bring improvements, modernization, and the ability for Angola to lead the region's business.
In turn, Maria Emília, an Angolan resident in Portugal for more than 15 years, said she hoped that Joe Biden's visit to the country would bring great benefits to the country in different areas.
'The country will gain from the visit, we just need to take advantage of this opportunity and know how to present the projects that Angola has,' he said. EJM/SC/DOJ
