South of Angola will receive €48 m in EU funds for agriculture. Investment will be managed by the Portuguese

The Portuguese minister of agriculture announced today that Portugal will be managing an EU operation of €48 million euros that will focus on developing projects in three regions that have been identified as the most fragile due to climate change. The news was confirmed through an official government source and released through Lusa, the Portuguese news agency.

“In sum, this is a programme which will be financed with a total of €60 million from EU funds, €48 million of which will go to the southern regions of the country: Namibe, Huila and Cunene. The plan is to capacitate families, create a better life standard and increase agricultural sustainability in the region, trying to lower the impact of climate change in the regions that have been identified as the most exposed to this issue”, minister Capoulas explained.

Luís Capoula Santos believes that this programme can be vital for the development of the country, and it will contribute to the achievement of the Angolan government’s goals.

“On one hand, we aim at creating better conditions for the farmers, with particular attention to small projects, and on the other hand, we want to increase the national level of agricultural production until a significant surplus is achieved; we are thinking of products which the country has all the necessary conditions for that level of intensified production”, the Portuguese minister explained.

From the 30th of September, until the 12th of October, a technical mission will be on site to identify the priorities in the three southern regions selected for the programme. It will as well assert the feasibility of the project and the compatibility with the Angolan authorities in terms of cooperation with the Portuguese. The signs are quite positive, as the authorities in Angola are looking forward to co-operating with the Portuguese within the framework of the programme.

The Angolan minister for agriculture, Marcos Nhunga,  met with his Portuguese counterpart for a long meeting this Thursday, in which the priorities for the application of these funds were discussed, and the calendar for its application outlined.

“We want to invest primarily in training and investigation” the Portuguese minister explained. “Also, we are working closely with the Luso-Angolan Chamber of Agricultural Commerce in order to improve the cooperation between farmers in both countries, and to promote the exchange of products, making exports improve, for both sides”, he added.

“Portugal won’t start producing coffee, tropical fruits and peanuts, for sure, as well as Angola will most certainly not start producing wine and olives – Angolan and Portuguese agricultures can complement each other’s needs, they are not competing”, the minister affirmed.