On Monday in Luanda, the Angolan government and the World Bank (WB) signed a 300 million dollar agreement for the Project to Accelerate Economic Diversification and Job Creation..

The agreement was initialed between Angola's finance minister, Vera Daves de Sousa, and the World Bank's regional director for Angola, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and São Tomé and Príncipe, Albert Zewfack.

For the vice-president of the World Bank, Vitoria Kuakua, this project supports the "critical pillar" of diversification in the next national development plan, highlighting the importance of Angola developing the non-oil sectors to reduce exposure to the volatility of the price and production of oil.

Vitoria Kuakua stressed that Angola had great potential to become an agro-industrial power and to develop other sectors, such as technological services, which could create jobs in urban centers, a role that should be led by the private sector.

She said that Angolan statistics show that more than 80% of companies are micro, with fewer than five workers, 60% of which are in commerce, half of which are in Luanda, stressing that "the private sector is not playing a sufficient role in creating good jobs".

The WB's vice-president for Africa stressed that Angola needs new technologies to come into service, to grow and expand, thereby accelerating productivity growth and job creation and linking them to regional and international markets.

"It also needs a sophisticated financial sector that grants credit to viable companies and talented entrepreneurs, thus offering products that are adaptable to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups," he said.

The World Bank, Vitoria Kuakua pointed out, aims to increase private investment in the growth of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, so that they are climate-resistant and focused on the Lobito corridor, which is essential for the diversification of the economy, as it connects the coast to agricultural areas as well as to neighboring countries.

"Its aim is to catalyze public and private investment in productive infrastructure in the Lobito corridor, through public-private partnerships and investments of 100 million dollars in infrastructure and state-of-the-art work, it will also support the capacity building of companies and the adoption of technologies, as well as facilitating the granting of commercial loans to these micro, small and medium-sized companies, through credit lines," said Vitoria Kuakua about the initiative, which is expected to benefit 12,000 companies.

Angola's Minister of Economy and Planning, Mário Caetano João, considered the Lobito Corridor to be the "next frontier" for the Angolan economy, highlighting the "interesting dynamic" in the transport sector when the Lobito Corridor railway line was concessioned to a consortium, "which will bring another dynamic".

The Angolan government official highlighted the participation of the World Bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency in the Lobito Corridor railway concession process, helping to make it a reality.

"Now we have another arm of the WB, which is the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which is also coming to support the private sector and the infrastructures needed to give another dimension to what is the Lobito Corridor," he said.