The European Union ambassador to Angola, Rosário Bento Pais, presented data today during a press conference regarding the VII EU-African Union Summit, scheduled to take place in Luanda on November 24 and 25.
Rosário Bento Pais stated that out of the total, 730 million euros are allocated from European institutions as development aid, while the remainder comes from private sector loans or investments.
The ambassador also noted European interests connected to the consortium operating the Lobito Corridor and the Lobito Port.
The consortium in charge of the railway concession of the Lobito Corridor is the Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR), led by Trafigura, Mota-Engil, and Vecturis, which assumed operation of the infrastructure in 2023.
The concession for the Lobito Port was awarded to Africa Global Logistics (AGL), part of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC Group).
During the press conference, Rosário Bento Pais also discussed the European Union’s priorities for Angola within the summit’s framework, emphasizing that they are “the same for other African countries” and that the occasion will review achievements over the past 25 years.
The diplomat explained that for investments and infrastructure, priorities set with the Angolan government for 2021-2027 focus on three areas: economic diversification and job creation, human development, and governance.
“When we launched the Global Gateway strategy, those were the objectives, with Angola featuring one of the largest projects, the Lobito Corridor, where we will apply all these priorities and combine private sector investment with European grants,” she stated.
Rosário Bento Pais mentioned a “regional component” involving financial institutions and European Union member states.
The diplomat emphasized the corridor’s aim as not only a transport route but also a hub for economic development, impacting populations and the environment.
The ambassador remarked that investment in infrastructure “is currently a priority of the European Union with the Global Gateway” and that “Angola has one of the most important corridors” among the 12 covered.
The Global Gateway is a European strategy launched in 2021 to finance infrastructure in partner countries, combining donations, guarantees, loans, and private capital, focusing on energy, transport, digitalization, health, and education.
