Malawi seeks Angola cooperation in mining sector
President Joyce Banda has beckoned oil-rich Angola to strengthen its economic ties with Malawi, especially in the mining sector, an Angolan online newspaper has reported.
According to Angola Press, the strengthening of the economic cooperation between Angola and Malawi, mainly in the mining sector, dominated the meeting between the Angolan vice-president Manuel Vicente and Banda in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia this week.
Both Malawi and Angola belong to the 14-member Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) trade bloc.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 20th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), which started last Sunday.
The online paper reported that during the meeting, Banda commended the Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos on advances Angola has made in the past 10 years, with highlights on the positive results of the programmes on the fight against poverty.
“The Malawian Head of State said she also discussed with the Angolan vice-president a possible cooperation in the sectors of mining, oil and agriculture,” said the online paper on Tuesday.
Banda, according to the paper, said Malawi “can exchange experiences with Angola in this [mining] field.”
Angola is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and boasts extensive oil and gas resources, diamonds, hydroelectric potential and rich agricultural land.
High international oil prices and rising oil production have led to Angola’s strong economic growth in recent years.
On his part, Vicente said the two countries need to identify areas for possible co-operation, admitting that there are various possibilities in the spirit of the south-south cooperation.
