ANGOLA • L'Eldorado africain des Brésiliens

Attirés par les opportunités économiques, ils sont plus de 20 000 à avoir quitté le Brésil pour s'installer dans l'un des pays les plus dynamiques du continent.

La TAAG, compagnie aérienne angolaise, vient de décider de passer de trois à cinq vols hebdomadaires entre Rio de Janeiro et Luanda. L'entreprise qui, en 2005, ne proposait qu'un vol hebdomadaire, traverse l'Atlantique presque quotidiennement avec des avions remplis de Brésiliens à la recherche d'opportunités sur le sol africain. Il suffit de regarder les chiffres. Le commerce entre le Brésil et l'Angola a cru de 500 % entre 2004 et 2007. De janvier à août 2008, les exportations brésiliennes vers l'Angola ont dépassé 1 milliard de dollars [778 millions d'euros], montant équivalant aux exportations pour l'ensemble de l'année 2007. Même la crise internationale ne paraît pas de nature à freiner cette progression.

Détruite par vingt-six années de guerre civile, l'Angola connaît aujourd'hui un processus intense de reconstruction. En 2008, sa croissance (21 %) a été l'une des plus fortes du monde. Et les prévisions pour l'année en cours restent au-dessus de 15 %. "Il y a tout à faire", confirme Ronaldo Chaer, le président de la chambre de commerce et d'industrie Brésil-Angola. Près de 20 000 Brésiliens se sont récemment installés en Angola, selon les estimations de l'Association des entrepreneurs et exécutifs brésiliens en Angola (AEBRAN). "Ils sont nombreux à monter leur propre affaire", affirme Alberto Esper, président de l'AEBRAN. En effet, le nombre d'entreprises liées à des Brésiliens en Angola est proche de la centaine. Les relations commerciales entre Brésiliens et Angolais sont variées. Elles vont des feuilletons télévisés aux jus de fruits, en passant par les vêtements, les shampooings (les Angolais ont une préférence pour celui qui est parfumé à l'avocat) et les médicaments. Les Brésiliens ont pour concurrents directs les Chinois.

"Mais nous parlons la même langue que les Angolais et nous avons des structures locales pour accueillir les possibles réclamations et suggestions des clients", explique Mme Damaris Eugenia Avila da Costa, gérante de la société d'exportation de vitres Braseco. Chef d'une entreprise de fabrication de boissons alcoolisées, Ana Clara Arantes débarque une fois par mois à Luanda avec 20 containers de 20 000 litres chacun. Mais, parce que le port est congestionné, il faut souvent deux semaines pour décharger le navire et deux autres pour franchir la douane. Autre obstacle à ses affaires : les fréquentes coupures d'électricité. Mais la présence de nombreux compatriotes aide souvent à résoudre les problèmes.

Il y a deux ans, le consultant Breno Moreira Leite s'est rendu à Luanda pour y monter un centre de fitness. Le travail a duré près d'un mois, ce qui lui a suffi pour s'attacher au pays. "Il y a des résidences fermées, où les infrastructures et la sécurité sont assurées", affirme-t-il. Enfin, la présence d'Angolais sur le sol brésilien génère également des dividendes. La Télévision publique de l'Angola (TPA) enregistre à Rio le feuilleton Minha Terra, Minha Mãe (Ma terre, ma mère), avec un casting angolais et brésilien. "Ils adorent les feuilletons brésiliens", souligne l'actrice brésilienne Julia Lund, qui participe au tournage.

Mais tout n'est pas si simple dans cet eldorado africain et les obstacles sont nombreux pour les entrepreneurs qui s'aventurent dans ces terres : bureaucratie, corruption, difficulté d'obtenir des permis de travail, etc. Ainsi Adriano Amui, directeur d'Invent, entreprise de formation aux métiers du commerce, s'est récemment rendu en Angola pour identifier les possibilités d'y ouvrir une agence, mais a fini par y renoncer. "La création d'entreprises indépendantes demeure complexe, à cause de la bureaucratie et des questions culturelles", reconnaît-il. D'autres entrepreneurs ont rencontré des problèmes similaires. "Il est fréquent que des ministres soient engagés dans les grands projets, ce qui provoque un réel trafic d'influence", explique un entrepreneur qui préfère rester anonyme. Mais les Brésiliens demeurent optimistes. "Le gouvernement cherche à diversifier les investissements afin de créer une économie solide, qui ne dépendrait pas seulement du pétrole et des diamants", ajoute Alberto Esper. Tant qu'il y aura du travail, seul l'Atlantique séparera le Brésil de l'Angola.

Angola president off to China in search of investment

Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos flew to China on Monday in search of further financial investment for his oil-rich southern African state, a government official said.

Dos Santos' trip to China, his second in five months to one of Luanda's top economic partners, comes as Angola is being forced to re-evaluate its budgetary plans following the drop in oil prices.

"The president is making this visit to appeal for more financial investment from China," a senior Angolan official told AFP.

"The water sector needs a lot of investment and this is the next big area the government is working on and it hopes the Chinese will be able to help with the financing."

Dos Santos is also hoping to use Chinese financing to fulfill his promise during September's parliamentary elections to build one million homes, the official added.

China has been a key financial partner for Angola as it rebuilds its infrastructure after decades of civil war.

While credit from the Asian giant is officially believed to exceed four billion dollars (three million euros), a government source told AFP it was closer to seven billion dollars.

Many of the loans are oil-backed and Angola is now China's largest supplier of crude oil. Around 40,000 Angolan visas were issued to Chinese workers last year.

The budget, passed on Friday by the national assembly, is based on oil reaching 55 dollars a barrel, but the government has admitted this may have to change if the price continues to fall.

Travelling with the present to China is Foreign Minister Assuncao dos Anjos, Finance Minister Severim de Morais, and Transport Minister Augusto Tomas, the state news agency ANGOP reported.

The visit is scheduled to last until Friday, ANGOP said.

On Saturday, Angolan state airline TAAG launched a twice-weekly direct flight to Beijing.

Norway's Acergy and French contractor Spiecapag signed a $550 million pipeline contract in Angola

Entrepose Contracting (ENTC.FR) said Monday its Spiecapag unit stands to make $300 million from a contract to build a new onshore and offshore gas pipeline network for Angola LNG Ltd.

Angola LNG's shareholders are affiliated to Chevron Corp (CVX) as well as Sonangol, Total (TOT), BP PLC (BP) and ENI SpA (E).

The $550 million contract was awarded to a consortium that includes Spiecapag and Acergy SA (ACY.OS) of Norway.

Angola launches direct flight to China

Angola has launched a flight linking it to China, which has sent thousands of citizens to work on the reconstruction of the continent’s fastest-growing economy following its 27-year civil war.

The first direct 14-hour flight from Luanda’s Fourth of February Airport to Beijing’s Capital International Airport left on Saturday.

“The flight will run twice a week on a Boeing 777-200 ER,” said a spokesman for TAAG, Angola’s national airline.

It is being launched on a charter basis but if the market reacts positively, we’ll pass to a scheduled service,” he added.

Chinese money and manpower have played a key role in the reconstruction of Angola since the end of its 27-year civil war in 2002. Tens of thousands of Chinese workers are employed on building and roads projects across the west African country.
Last year more than 22,000 Angolan visas were issued to Chinese passport holders.

Credit lines from China to the former Portuguese colony are believed to exceed four billion US dollars.

Many of these loans are oil-backed and Angola is now China’s largest supplier of crude oil.

“The opening of a direct air link has been planned for a while — and is needed because of all the Chinese construction workers in Angola,” said Alex Vines, head of the Africa Programme at the London-based thinktank Chatham House.

“As long as large Chinese construction projects continue in Angola, a direct air link between China and Angola will be profitable.”

The new Luanda to Beijing route comes in the same week TAAG announced it was halting flights to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia and Pointe Noire in Congo (Brazzaville).

Citing “serious safety concerns,” the European Union last month renewed its ban on TAAG flights and extended the restrictions to all Angolan Airlines.

The Angolan government responded by sacking TAAG’s board and creating a commission to run the airline and investigate the safety issues.

It was also revealed that TAAG had lost 70 million dollars in the last year and was ranked 122 in a list of 124 world airlines.

Angolan Transport Minister Augusto Tomas said: “It is important that TAAG’s performance is in line with Angola’s current economic development.”

Angola is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and has overtaken Nigeria as sub-Saharan Africa’s largest oil producer with Luanda growing as key destination for many international airlines.

Lufthansa, British Airways, Brussels Air, Air France, Portugal’s TAP and South African Airways (SAA) are just some of the major carriers running flights in and out of the country.

Flights are usually full and often overbooked. One-way tickets can sell for up to US$5,000 on some routes due to the demand from the growing expatriate community of oil and construction workers enjoying Angola’s post-war boom.

Lufthansa spokeswoman Karin Webr said: “In terms of revenue, this is one of our best-performing flights, and there is certainly a potential to increase the frequency of the flight to more than once a week. As well as the oil traffic, we are seeing a demand from the Asian market using Frankfurt to transfer into Luanda from China and other parts of the region.”

Next year Delta hopes to become the first American airline to run a scheduled service from the United States.

A company spokeswoman confirmed the flight was awaiting approval from the Angolan government but the plan was to operate from Atlanta to Luanda, via Cape Verde.

Thousands of Americans work in Angola for oil companies such as Exxon Mobile, Chevron and BP and there is also a large diplomatic and NGO presence in the country.

Currently, the only direct route to the United States is via a charter service limited to oil workers and their families.

Lonrho unit gets $5 mln contracts in Angola

Dec 12 (Reuters)

Lonrho Plc, the British-based conglomerate with various business interests in Africa, said on Friday its e-Kwikbuild unit received two contracts worth $5 million for its prefabricated buildings in Angola.

The company said the first contract, worth $4.5 million, was from Kimbo Limbombewa, a local non-governmental organisation (NGO), to develop a school, training rooms and accommodation for young orphans.

Lonrho, which holds 55.6 percent in e-Kwikbuild, said it also received a $500,000 contract from Sul Engineeria for the supply of an office and residential buildings on the outskirts of Luanda.

E-Kwikbuild, which develops insulated prefabricated buildings, had said in November that it completed and started production from a new prefabricated panel production plant in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

"With the opening of the new production facility in Port Elizabeth we are now seeing an increasing order book across other African countries," Chairman David Lenigas said in a statement.

Shares of Lonrho, which have lost about 90 percent of their value since the beginning of the year, were up 2.4 percent at 4.59 pence at 1009 GMT.

Angola: Industry Deputy Minister Wants Recovery of Chinguar's Factories

Angola Press Agency, 12/12/2008

Angola's deputy minister of Industry, Abraão Gourgel, on Thursday here guaranteed the recovery as from 2009 of factories destroyed by the war in Chinguar District, central Bie Province, ANGOP has learnt.

The official, who was speaking to the press after an official visit, underlined that the repair works that are to start next year, in a three-year period, will comprise foodstuff industries (soft drink, tomato-paste) and building materials.

The project will count on the participation of the Ministry of Agriculture and will be executed in all provinces of the country.

Abraão Gourgel reminded that besides increasing the supply of food for the population, it will also provide more jobs countrywide.

The deputy minister called on businesspeople to collaborate with the local government in the rehabilitation and construction of various factories.

On Friday, Abraão Gourgel is to visit the districts of Katabola and Kamacupa to assess the level of destruction of the local factories.

Angola: "Nosso Super" National Land-Mark - Finance Minister

Angola Press Agency, 11/12/2008

The Angolan Finance minister, Severim de Morais, Thursday here said that the Programme of Re-structuring of Logistic and Distribution System of Essential Goods to the Population (Presild), integrating "Nosso Super" outlets, constitutes a land-mark for the country.

"With the inauguration of Logistic and Distribution Centre (Clod), the country gives an important step toward consolidation of logistic structure, capable of ensuring a better response to the need of consumers", said the Cabinet minister when presenting the infrastructure to the President of the Republic, José Eduardo dos Santos and to the government officials.

According to minister Severim de Morais, since March 2007 some 26 supermarkets were inaugurated, an average of one shop every month, in a performance considered positive.

The first Clod, located at Viana district, 30km from Luanda city, cost USD 30 million, and it will supply products to "Nosso Super" Shops.

Severim de Morais also guaranteed the implementation of sub-programme of Logistic and Distribution Network of Products to the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and of National Police.

Angola: Prime Minister Stresses Importance of Supply Centre

Angola Press Agency, 11/12/2008

Angolan Prime Minister, António Paulo Kassoma, Thursday here said that the newly-open Supply and Logistic Centre (CLOD) will contribute to the improvement of the supply system to the population.

"It is also a promoting and stimulating element of the local production", said the Angolan Premier, who along with the speaker of National Assembly, chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and other officials, attended CLOD inauguration, presided over by the Head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos.

Inaugurated in the ambit of the Programme of Restructuring of Logistic and Supply System of Essential Products to the Population (PRESILD), CLOD will employ 250 people in a 24-hour service and its construction cost USD 30 million.

In her turn, the minister of Trade, Fátima Valente, told journalists that with the functioning of this centre, "there will be betterment in the supply of locally-made products".

The minister of Agriculture, Afonso Pedro Canga, considered that it has a great importance because it will directly benefit the farmers at a time that works have been done aiming the increase of production of agricultural products.

Angola: Head of State Inaugurates Logistical Centre

Angola Press Agency, 11/12/2008

The Angolan Head of state, José Eduardo dos Santos, on Thursday here inaugurated the first centre of logistics and distribution (CLOD), which will enable to store and supply national products to the Nosso Super supermarkets, ANGOP has learnt.

Inaugurated in the ambit of the programme of re-structuring the logistical systems and distribution of essential products to the population (PRESILD), the CLOD will function with 250 people, 24 hours per day and will be supported by 55 trucks.

A second similar infrastructure is under construction in Lobito City, southwest Benguela Province and is expected to start operating next year, followed by others in other great centres of food production.

With this move the government want to create an efficient wholesale market, in order to valorise national production.

Nosso Super supermarkets network, whose first shop was inaugurated in March 2007, by President José Eduardo dos Santos, has already attended 11 million people, getting an income of about 13 million US dollars.

CLOD has cold-storage containers for meat, fish, fruits, a laboratory, commercial area, a hotel, police station and a waste treatment sector, besides other services.

President José Eduardo dos Santos also inaugurated on Thursday the Social Services Higher Institute of Angola (ISSA), located at Benfica Commune, in Samba District.

Angola to Be Among Top Diamond Producer

Luanda, Dec 10 (Prensa Latina)

Angola will become the third world diamond producer in 2010, according to forecasts by KPMG Company.

To become one of world's top diamond players, Angola will have to double its production to 19 million carats in 2010, from an estimated 10 million in 2008, Endiama said, noting falling demand for diamonds due to the global economic crisis.

KPMG says a second factory will open in Lunda Sur, 497.09 miles SE Luanda, with monthly profits to round $20 million.

Angola is currently the 5th world diamond producer, following Botswana, Russia, Canada and South Africa.

Angola: Finance Minister Defends Strong Private Sector

Angola Press Agency (Luanda), 27 November 2008

Angolan Finance minister, Severim de Morais, Thursday in central Huambo, spoke of the need for a strong private sector in the country, capable of meeting the society's demands for goods and services.

The minister was speaking at the closing of the first national conference on the private sector that took place in Huambo for two days.

The official justified the need for a strong private sector saying that the stronger its capacity in serving the demands of the society, the lesser will be the action of the State on the economy.

Severim de Morais stated that being the country's private sector still incipient, the Government finds it necessary to intervene on it in order to strengthen it as the only way to create a strong national economic and business basis, required for the sustainable development of the country.

He also spoke of the need for a mechanism for permanent and structured dialogue between the private sector and the Government, coupled with a major involvement of the State in the solution to constraints that affect the good performance of the private sector.

According to the minister, the Government is committed to the creation of an environment favouring political and macro-economic stability, existence of basic and working infrastructures, know-how and capable institutions.

On the occasion, the minister appealed to the country's businesses to endeavour to create a strong economic and business basis, through a dialogue with the Government.

The meeting was attended by about 300 people from Angola, Mozambique, US, Spain and South Africa.

The first national conference on the private sector closed with the investiture of the managing board of the Angola's Council of Business Associations (CAEA). The event was sponsored by the oil companies Sonangol, Chevron and Eny.

Angola: Government Considers Housing Policy Important to Development

Angola Press Agency (Luanda), 27 November 2008

Angolan minister of Urbanisation and Housing, Diankumpuna Sita José, Thursday in Luanda considered the Government's housing policy as an important component for the country's social and economic development.

The minister was addressing the opening of the forum on "Path for Angola's Development" being attended by professionals of the sector.

With this policy, the Government is seeking to create great opportunities for the establishment of mutually advantageous partnerships between the public operators and the private sector concerned.

The minister added that partnership could be established at the level of funding and elaboration of cartographic and topographic bases and financing for studies of urbanising conceptions for the areas.

He said the partnerships could also be developed at the level of financing and joint execution of housing units at controlled costs, construction of communitarian urban equipments, drinking water supplying, pluvial drainage and electricity systems and others.

According to him, the most recent studies on the country's demographic evolution indicate the emergence, in the 2008/2012 period, of more than one million new families distributed in urban and rural areas which, he added, creates the need for new houses.

Sita José stated as well that based on global information provided by the electoral registration process, complementary inquiries are in progress, aimed at indicative data on the families levels of revenues in Angola.

About six million people are estimated to be living in Luanda which, the minister said, "means a concentration of about one third of the Angolan population, a non-recommendable trend."

All projects made until now, according to the minister, indicate that Luanda is on the list of the world's mega cities, with a population oscillating around 2.5 million to 15 million inhabitants, as a result of the demographic growth trend.

On the other hand, the official said that a careful observation of the occupation of the urban lands show that 80 percent of the urban population is established in compounds considered as precarious or informal settlements, a trend that will remain unaddressed, unless measures to reverse the situation are taken.

He stated that the Ministry of Urbanisation and Housing started this year the implementation and structuring of the Integrate Programme on Constitution and Urbanisation of Municipal Land Reserves, with stress to the promotion of houses of social interest.

Sita José added that of the 100,000 hectares identified at the national level, only about 32,800 will cover the urban goals for the 2008/20012 period.

The minister also stated that with the fund of about Akz 60 billion allotted from the State Budget for 2009, for the housing promotion programme, arrangement of the territory and urbanisation, operations of urban lotting can be started to respond to the needs of about 390,000 inhabitants.

The forum comprising three panels is to discuss such topics as housing credit, financing of public/private partnerships, housing tax, housing foment law, challenges of housing promotion and re-qualification of the Luanda city and other matters.

Angolan president says new constitution a priority

By Henrique Almeida, LUANDA (Reuters), Sat 29 Nov 2008

Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos called on Friday for a new constitution to allow the first presidential poll in almost two decades, a vote he is widely expected to win.

Dos Santos, who has ruled the oil-producing African country for 29 years, said the new constitution might decree that a president is elected by parliament instead of by popular vote, as is currently the case.

Such a move alarms some opposition parties, who say the changes would be unconstitutional and would almost guarantee dos Santos would be re-elected as president since his party clinched more than 81 percent of the vote in a parliamentary election in September, "That would make things a lot easier for dos Santos," said Vicente Pinto de Andrade, an independent candidate for president, citing the ruling MPLA party's more than two-thirds majority in parliament.

"There are limits to what can be changed in the new constitution and one of those limits is the way a president is elected. Any changes to that law would be unconstitutional."

Dos Santos said the new legislation would define the best path to follow.

"Only then will we have the conditions to announce a calendar for the presidential election," he told his ruling MPLA party in a broadcast on Radio Nacional de Angola.

Dos Santos said the new constitution. of which he gave no details, should be approved in 2009. The president has often said Angola, one of Africa's fastest growing economies, needs to reform its laws to reinforce democracy.

The last presidential poll took place during a lull in fighting in 1992. Late UNITA rebel leader Jonas Savimbi lost and the conflict resumed. He was killed in 2002.

Angola's economy has been growing in double digits since the end of the war and it now rivals Nigeria as sub-Saharan Africa's biggest oil producer.

However, almost two-thirds of the 16.5 million-strong population survive on less than $2 day.

Dos Santos said the fight against poverty would remain a priority. His government is to spend one-third of next year's $42 billion budget to improve the lives of ordinary Angolans.

"Our priority will continue to be to improve education, health, housing, water and sewage systems and the fight against poverty," said dos Santos.

Angola: MPs Weigh Up Importance of Bio-Fuels

Angola Press Agency (Luanda), 21 November 2008

The production of bio-fuels in Angola represents a challenge to the Government that has as its strategic priority the fight against poverty that affects most of the population, as a result of the 30-year civil war that devastated the country.

This was said Wednesday in São Paulo, Brazil, by Angolan MP and deputy secretary of the National Assembly (Parliament), Emília Carlota Celestino Dias, during a parliamentary round table that focused on "Parliaments and Bio-fuel".

As a result of the war, she said, the populations abandoned the rural areas and agriculture ceased being a development factor as the areas with great agricultural potential are still mined and people afraid to settle in certain localities.

In order to reverse the situation, the official said, Angolan Government is carrying out, in a sustainable way, the programme of demining and relocation of the populations.

It is also making big investments in the sectors of agriculture and farming with a view to boosting development of sources of renewable raw materials and clean energy, for the foment of job in the rural area.

"With the end of the war, six years ago, the implementation of these Government measures constitute an incentive to the return of the populations to the areas of cultivation and thus Angola will resume its normal cycle of production," the MP stressed.

She recalled that in the past Angola produced sugar from which it would extract ethanol then used in hospitals.

Emília Carlota Celestino Dias is at the head of Angolan delegation attending the International Conference of bio-fuels. Other members of the team are Maria da Conceição Pinto and Mateus Isabel Júnior.

The round table that gathered representatives of 14 countries, totalling 48 MPs, admitted the need for regular such meetings. The event was on the sidelines of the ongoing conference for concert of viewpoints about the legislation on bio-fuels production.

Angola's Property Market Thrives Despite Crisis

By Henrique Almeida / Reuters - The Moscow Times, LUANDA - 11/11/2008

Forget Moscow and London -- the world's most expensive property may soon be in Angola, where the sizzling real estate market has sailed through the global financial crisis and is expected to continue to thrive in coming years, executives and analysts say.

Property values, particularly in the capital, Luanda, have skyrocketed amid an oil-fueled economic boom that came at the end of a 27-year civil war, making the city one of the world's most expensive in which to live.

One-bedroom apartments start at $7,000 a month, and it is not uncommon for expatriates to pay $20,000 a month for something more luxurious. Demand for office space has also been frothy, tripling in the last three years, according to Colliers International, an Australian real estate firm.

A shortage of modern buildings, coupled with growing demand for housing for foreign workers, promises to keep real estate one of the hottest and most profitable sectors of the African nation's economy, after oil.

"Everyone wants to be here. I predict growth in real estate prices during the next three years," said Jose Camargo, head of the Angolan real estate unit of Brazilian construction company Odebrecht.

The country's almost three-decade-long civil war, which began shortly after Angola won its independence from Portugal in 1975, ended in 2002 with the death of rebel leader Jonas Savimbi.

Since then, Angola, which rivals Nigeria as sub-Saharan Africa's biggest oil producer, has embarked on a massive reconstruction program, buoyed by rising oil production, a jump in world oil prices and billions in foreign investment.

Angola's government said last month that steep falls in world oil prices would not derail its plans to spend billions to fight poverty and spur economic growth. Benchmark U.S. crude was trading at about $64 on Monday -- less than half the July peak.

Angola's focus has mostly been on rebuilding ports, railways and other key infrastructure for the oil-centered economy, but the government has also earmarked funds for the construction of office and apartment buildings as well as hotels.

Dozens of construction cranes dot Luanda's skyline.

The Bay of Luanda is currently being revamped with a $2 billion facelift that will spawn new hotels, apartment buildings and other businesses along its historic but neglected shoreline.

The construction craze is likely to dent but not solve the shortage of apartments and office space, and prices are expected to remain at the lofty end of the spectrum.

"There is a huge gap between supply and demand, and that is the main factor pushing prices," said Nelson Rego, the head of Angolan real estate consultancy firm Proprime.

Unlike real estate markets in the United States, Britain and elsewhere, which have slumped due to the credit crunch, Angola's market has been buoyed by heavy inflows of foreign investment and strong economic growth.

The economy grew by about 20 percent last year and is expected to expand by another 15 percent this year.

Investors see the country as a stable emerging market with a government that has embraced pro-business policies, and the ruling MPLA's landslide victory in a parliamentary election last month ensured that the direction would not change radically.

"Angola is one of many places that are moving against the current economic cycle," said Helder Bataglia, the chairman of Portuguese conglomerate Escom, Angola's biggest non-oil investor.

The government, however, is under pressure to do more to spread the benefits of economic growth to Angola's 16.5 million people, many of whom live in run-down shantytowns that lack electricity, running water and sewage facilities.

Residents in Luanda, home to one-third of the population, often have no option other than to squat in derelict buildings in the city center. Renovating these prized areas could ease the housing shortage and perhaps keep a lid on prices.

An opportunity to do so could emerge in coming years as President Jose Eduardo dos Santos' government embarks on a plan to build one million homes for the poor at a cost of $50 billion.

Yet some Luandans say they will resist an offer to move.

"Why should I?" says Ricardo, 17, who lives on the 18th floor of the Lagoa building, one of the most famous of Luanda's run-down housing blocks.

"Where else can I wake up and have this beautiful view of the bay of Luanda? It's all I have."

Angola ready to strengthen ties with Zambia

Angola has re-affirmed its committment to boosting economic ties with Zambia and other countries in the SADC region.

Angolan Ambassador to Zambia Pedro De Morais Neto says regional integration is key to economic development.

He was speaking in an interview with ZNBC news in Lusaka ahead of his country's national day which falls on Tuesday.

The Angolan envoy said his country is ready to enhance economic cooperation with Zambia and the entire SADC grouping.

Ambassador Morais Neto also said Angola's economy has registered positive growth over the past few years following the end of the civil war.

Angola got its independence from Portugal in 1975.

West's difficulty in Angola is Beijing's opportunity

CHINA'S AFRICA - ANGOLA: The former Portuguese colony is China's main source of oil and largest African trading partner, writes Mary Fitzgerald

ANYONE WISHING to gauge the extent of China's penetration of some of the more unlikely corners of Africa need only take the South African Airways flight from Johannesburg to the Angolan capital of Luanda.

On a recent morning, at least two-thirds of the passengers on the fully booked Airbus A340-600 were Chinese. Slick-suited Chinese businessmen with briefcases sat next to Chinese engineers in jeans busily tapping on their laptops.

Taking up most of economy class were scores of what appeared to be Chinese labourers, with weathered faces and calloused hands. The cabin crew made their announcements in Portuguese, English and Mandarin. Among the in-flight entertainment offerings was Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Everything else came with Mandarin subtitles.

In the current phase of China's engagement with Africa, there is no more important country for Beijing than Angola. Not only is the oil-rich former Portuguese colony now China's main supplier of crude, having surpassed Saudi Arabia some time ago, it is also China's largest trading partner in Africa.

But in a country where state finances are notoriously opaque, it is difficult to pin down the exact nature of a relationship that many say encapsulates the notion that, when it comes to Africa, where the West sees difficulty, China sees opportunity.

In 2002, with Angola facing the mammoth task of picking itself up after almost three decades of civil war, plans to organise an international donors conference were abandoned. Western countries cited a lack of transparency and reports that billions of dollars in oil revenues had vanished from the country's coffers.

That slight clearly still rankles with Aguinaldo Jaime, Angola's deputy prime minister. "The donor community was not ready to come to our rescue so we had to look for alternatives," he says crisply, sitting in his office at the presidential palace high above Luanda's Atlantic coastline. And so the government turned to Beijing.

"We had just come out of a long war, our economy had been devastated and the country had massive social needs," explains Jaime. "China was willing to understand this reality and put a huge financial package on the table. This is the main reason Angola decided to enter into a relationship with China."

Beijing secured a major stake in Angola's future oil production in exchange for a multibillion dollar package of loans and aid that included funds for Chinese firms to rebuild the country's rutted roads and ruined railways, and replace long-destroyed schools, hospitals and offices. Since then tens of thousands of Chinese have arrived in Angola.

The blue-overalled Chinese construction worker breaking rocks or pouring concrete has become a common sight both in Luanda and some of the more remote towns of the country's interior.

One of the recent arrivals is Qui Shou Ying from Beijing. He is commercial director for Sino-Hydro Corp, a Chinese state-owned company contracted to build two roads, two water supply systems, 18 schools and four irrigation projects by next year. Qui lists the challenges that slow his projects down - erratic water and electricity supply is a particular annoyance, plus everything, apart from the local labourers he employs, needs to be imported from China.

What is striking though is Qui's zealous sense of mission. "Angola desperately needs help in reconstructing their country after the war," he says.

"It is very important for our company to do a good job in helping Angola develop." Qui and his wife, an accountant at Sino-Hydro, live in the company compound on the outskirts of Luanda, a sprawling site that houses 300 Chinese workers as well as acting as a storage and logistics base.

Most Chinese in Angola, and indeed in other parts of Africa, live in similar compounds, many of which are high-walled and completely sealed off from the surrounding community. As elsewhere, this isolation encourages sometimes fantastical speculation about the new arrivals and the way they live. One frequently heard rumour in Angola is that China has sent some of its prisoners over to work on the roads. The Chinese are to be found in the most unexpected places. I came across a small Chinese-run clinic in one of the many shanty towns known as musseques that ring Luanda. Xiong Kaihong, a 25-year-old nurse from Beijing, said the staff's use of traditional Chinese medicine such as acupuncture had become very popular with local patients.

Despite grumbling from some critics that Chinese labourers are doing jobs Angola's legions of unemployed could do - Beijing's deal stipulates that 70 per cent of the reconstruction tenders must go to Chinese firms and these companies tend to bring their own workers from China - there are few signs that the popular resentment which has bubbled up in other parts of Africa is gaining significant ground here.

There is no mention of China in any opposition party manifesto ahead of next month's elections, the first since 1992. "I think so far people generally see it as a positive thing," says Carlos Figueiredo, who works for the UN's development programme. "We see infrastructure being repaired and that's happening quite fast. As far as I know there is not much tension. It will be interesting to follow this and see how it will evolve. It's a real mixing of people and cultures on many different levels."

Allan Cain, a Canadian who runs a development agency and who has lived in Angola for almost 30 years, says the Chinese engagement, particularly its loan package, is an opportunity the country must be careful not to waste.

"The concern is that there is little national capacity and planning for the effective use of this credit line . . . Some of the projects are simply wasteful prestige projects such as sports stadiums that will burn a lot of that credit line for results that won't produce economic returns in the long term for Angola."

Others raise concerns that "no-strings-attached" Chinese credit creates a situation where the Angolan government has little incentive to implement political reform, tackle endemic corruption and make its economy more transparent.

Already there are signs of the problems that can arise when hard-headed Chinese business comes up against the realities of a country like Angola, which, despite its vast oil wealth, languishes on the bottom rungs of most development indices.

Rumours abound of suspended or cancelled contracts and billions of dollars worth of funds unanswered for on both sides.

Observers have speculated that relations have cooled considerably since the heady days of the first credit lines.

Deputy prime minister Jaime plays down that suggestion, pointing out that Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos signed off on a number of new contracts while in Beijing to attend the Olympics.

"In any negotiation there are sometimes setbacks," Jaime says. "Just because parties sometimes cannot agree on a particular business point does not imply the relationship is not good.

"As we like to say," he adds with a smile, "business is business, friendship is friendship."

© 2008 The Irish Times / August 26, 2008

South Africa's biggest single brand store network, PEP, opens in Angola

South Africa's biggest single brand store network, PEP, is extending its southern African store footprint into Angola and is making a major investment in Africa's fastest growing country. On 31 October 2008, PEP opens its first store in Lobito, central Angola. The group has also established a 2 000 m² distribution centre in Benguela.

In addition to the Lobito store, the group plans to open more stores in Namibe, Benguela, Sumbe and Lubango within the next year. The group's Angolan operation will initially provide new jobs for around 70 people.

As part of its commitment to and investment in this new market, the group has opened a dedicated distribution centre (DC). “We chose Benguela as the location for our DC as this is central to our store expansion programme and essential to our logistical needs,” says the group's Africa General Manager, Willie Jacobs.

“We believe that our product offering of value for money and functionality is right for the Angolan market. According to our research, affordable clothing and products are the most important factors for Angolan customers,” he adds.

The group's new general manager in Angola is Gerrie Scheepers, who is fluent in Portuguese and brings extensive and relevant experience having been general manager of the group's successful Mozambique operation for the past five years.

With the launch of its first store in Angola, PEP now operates in 11 southern African countries. PEP Africa has been operating for 10 years and has 38 stores in Zambia, 22 in Malawi and 30 in Mozambique. The balance of the group's 1310 stores are in South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland and (through Power sales) in Zimbabwe.

[30 Oct 2008 / Bizcommunity]

Chinese company launches $3.5 bln housing project in Angola

LUANDA, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- China International Trust and Investment Corporation (CITIC) has started the construction of a housing project valued at 3.535 billion U.S. dollars in Angola, a senior official from CITIC told Xinhua on Monday.

Chang Zhenming, general manger of CITIC, said the housing project, the largest of its kind China has ever contracted abroad, will turn a backward rural area into a modern satellite town of Angola's capital Luanda with a population of over 200,000.

He stressed that the groundbreaking ceremony of the project on Sunday in Kilamba Kiaxi in the suburbs of Luanda signals a new milestone of friendly cooperation between China and Angola.

According to Chang, the project will offer more than 10,000 jobs to local labor market, undoubtedly good news for the Angolan government which faces a headache of 65 percent unemployment.

When the project is completed in 2011, he said, there will be anew town in the rural area comprising 710 apartment buildings withover 20,000 apartments, 246 shops of various kinds, 24 kindergartens, 17 primary and middle schools as well as power transformer stations, water supply stations, sewerage treatment plants and other related infrastructures.

According to Virgilio de Fontes Pereira, minister of Angolan Territory Administration, who attended the ceremony, improving people's life is a priority of the Angolan government.

He said the Angolan government is very much engaged in the fulfillment of social projects and the housing project aimed to improve people's housing conditions.

How Angola may now be better positioned to avoid the "resource curse"

Source [Zambian Economist]

This report (audio version here) by Wharton University carries an interesting comment on how Angola may now be better positioned to avoid the "resource curse" from higher oil prices because it has pursued significant investments in infrastructure and policies that focuses on "moving up from the value curve" :

Kacou, who has advised government and business leaders in Rwanda, Uganda, Nigeria, Sudan and Mali, referred the audience to a chart showing the inverse relationship between various countries' "wealth" in natural resources and their GDP. (With the exception of certain countries like Dubai, which has been successful at reinvesting its oil wealth, countries with the most natural resources tend to do poorly in terms of income.) With regard to natural resources such as oil, diamonds and beaches, "Africa is wealthy," he said, "but we need to distinguish between wealth you can see and social forms of wealth," including human resources, knowledge, functioning institutions and a cultural attitude that is open to innovation and takes into consideration how natural resources are deployed. "Without the second [kind of wealth], you can't do much with the first."

Historically, African nations have suffered from what is widely known as the "resource curse" -- an inability to capture the value of their abundant natural resources. Stephen Priestly, managing director at JPMorgan and head of investment banking for Sub-Saharan Africa, noted one example -- Angola -- that has begun to move away from a mindset that allows other countries to come in and extract its resources by "moving up the value curve." Whereas many African nations like Nigeria, the continent's largest oil producer, export raw materials and often need to import the refined product for local consumption, Angola has developed its own refining capacity and now produces two million barrels of oil a day as a member of OPEC.

The effects are wide-reaching, from increased employment to capital inflows from investors like the Export-Import Bank of China, which has given Angola a multi billion-dollar line of credit for infrastructure improvements in exchange for access to the country's offshore oil fields. (Angola is now China's largest supplier of oil, with Saudi Arabia in second place.) While the situation "may not be perfect" in everyone's view -- many are critical of China's dominant role in the country's oil industry and government corruption is still considered rampant following more than 25 years of civil war -- Priestly noted that the country stands apart from many others by "addressing fundamental barriers to growth through its oil proceeds."

The Angolan government's relaxing of foreign exchange limits has led to an increase in investments in other sectors, too, including banking and real estate. Despite a more open economy, however, the country still faces "absurd levels of poverty," Priestly says. Herring noted that Angola is a classic example of "imbalanced growth," where some sectors are growing much faster than others, but that these imbalances "are creating strong incentives for the private sector to jump in and help [Angola] catch up."

Indeed, priestly said that the rapid increase in business opportunities in Angola has highlighted some obvious areas for improvement. "Anyone who has tried to do business there knows that it is impossible to get a flight or find a hotel." Basic support infrastructure -- including ports, power stations and even employee housing -- is a key area for investment growth as commodity production increases, the panelists agreed.