Africa need further integration of economic activities — Angolan VP

LUANDA, Angola (Capital Markets in Africa) — The Angolan Vice-President, Manuel Vicente, stated in the African Caucus forum that there is no sustainable development while there is poverty.

In his opening speech Manuel Vicente, representing the President of Angola, José Eduardo dos Santos, in the meeting of the Ministers of Finance and Governors of the African Central Banks, together with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund also noted that African countries must have a more comprehensive outlook, integrating the diversification of the economy based on national and regional value chains in potential competitive sectors.

“In truth, we have to add more value to our resources, whether in the directly productive activities, or through infrastructure and additional or supporting activities such as, transport and telecommunications systems, banking and financial systems generating integrated development hubs “.

According to a Report on Competitiveness in Africa, published this year, infrastructure vulnerability is one of the reasons for the poor diversification and weak competitiveness of the economy in Africa.

Discussion panels for the opening day include regional economic outlooks, economic transformation and diversification, combatting illicit financial flows to improve mobilisation of internal resources, environmental and social safeguards: consultations to the governors.

The forum assembles more than nineteen Ministers of Finance and fourteen Governors of the Central Banks representing approximately forty member countries of the African Caucus, including Angola.

The African Caucus was established in preparation for the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and of the World Bank. In this forum the above mentioned entities can discuss the Memorandum to be presented at the high-level meeting of the Institutions of Bretton Woods.

The African Caucus was created with the aim of preventing African Governors from presenting in the Annual Meeting of the IMF and WBG the economic and financial problems that affect the respective countries alone.