Luanda — The raising of the levels of bilateral cooperation between Angola and the United States emerges as the greatest trophy expected for Angolan diplomacy, with the unprecedented official visit, this month, of President Joe Biden to the country.
Three decades after the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two states are preparing to materialize, from December 2 to 4, the first visit by a US President to Angolan territory, since Independence, in 1975. It is also the first trip to the African continent by a Head of State of the world's greatest power in the last 10 years, after Barack Obama in 2013.
As part of the trip, the two countries will certainly take the opportunity to strengthen political-diplomatic and commercial relations, 31 years after the recognition of the Angolan authorities by the United States.
The 31 years of diplomatic relations are marked by a partnership in clear progress, which began to consolidate in 2017, particularly in key areas such as renewable energy and telecommunications.
As a result of Angola's strong commitment to economic diplomacy, the United States has increasingly become involved in substantial investments aimed at its growth and development.
Signs of these significant advances in massive investment projects come from examples such as the Artemis Accords, signed in November 2023, to promote a common vision of space exploration for the benefit of all humanity.
With this initiative, the US Treasury Department wants to support Angola in the fight to reduce its debt vulnerabilities, through technical assistance, in an action that has already allowed the Angolan Government to reprogram its domestic liabilities and reduce the costs of default interest.
In May of this year, the two countries signed, as part of the U.S.-Africa Business Summit, the final agreements to finance three major projects of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI), with emphasis on the emblematic Lobito Corridor.
Totaling more than $1.3 billion, the agreed financing covers clean energy generation, radio connectivity, and transportation infrastructure, as a demonstration of the U.S. Government's continued commitment to supporting and accelerating Angola's economic investment priorities.
The infrastructure projects represent the largest U.S.-backed PGI funding package for any country since the initiative's launch and is expected to create Angolan and American jobs.
One of the strengths of the US President's initiative is the development of infrastructure throughout the Lobito Corridor, an important route that connects landlocked countries such as the DRC and Zambia to the Atlantic Ocean.
The Lobito Corridor offers potential for the creation of infrastructure that will better integrate the DRC, Zambia and Angola into regional and global markets, develop green energy supply chains and investment in agriculture, telecommunications and other sectors in underdeveloped regions.
Other projects
In addition to this initiative, the U.S. Government is carrying out a series of other investments, such as 'Prosper Africa', which deepen its economic engagement with Angola.
Under Prosper Africa, the U.S. government is facilitating billions of dollars in deals with the African private sector, in general, and Angolan, in particular.
Bilateral cooperation also extends to the transport sector, which has made significant progress, with funding of US$250 million to remodel the 1,300 kilometres of the Lobito Atlantic Railway railway line.
Also in this area, the Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2023 for the construction of the new 800-kilometre railway line between Angola and neighbouring Zambia.
In the field of air transport, and as a result of the growing trade relations between Angola and the US, Boeing and Angolan carrier TAAG announced an agreement for the purchase of 10 new 787 aircraft, valued at US$3.6 billion.
To build on its planned Public-Private Partnership Unit for transport infrastructure, Angola's Ministry of Transport and USAID signed an agreement for nearly $1 million in funding.
The support will allow the sector to replicate the successful and transparent concession of the Lobito Railway for additional investments in Railways and Ports.
On the financing side, the highlight is the provision of US$900 million by EXIM, for Sun Africa's solar projects, and US$363 million for the construction of 186 prefabricated bridges of the Acrow Bridge, whose objective is to support critical infrastructure and guarantee thousands of jobs for Angolans and Americans.
Food security
Over the past two years, the Biden Administration has also prioritized global food security by increasing agricultural trade.
The U.S. has partnered with Angola to increase food security and climate resilience by building capacity and expanding investment in support of Angola's agricultural development and economic diversification goals.
To that end, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will lead the first agribusiness trade mission with more than 60 individuals, representing agricultural businesses and organizations.
This commitment led USAID to provide US$13.3 million between 2022 and 2023 in emergency assistance to three provinces in southern Angola affected by drought. The program screened more than 500,000 children with acute malnutrition and treated 121,000 others with moderate and severe malnutrition.
With the deployment of $5 million from the Action Fund for Gender Equality and Equality, USAID will support agricultural development along the Lobito Corridor, focusing on connecting women smallholder farmers to value chains that will use the rail line as a critical component of the project's sustainability.
Digital transformation
With the physical infrastructure, the U.S. is also investing in Angola's digital architecture, supporting reliable telecommunications networks that will benefit the Angolan people and improve the country's digital connectivity to the global economy, according to the U.S. government.
In this regard, EXIM Bank approved a final commitment worth US$42 million to support the export, by Gates Air, of FM transmitters, training towers and other equipment and services to Rádio Nacional de Angola (RNA), within the framework of the 'Radio Signal Expansion and Studio Modernization Project'.
The EXIM Bank authorization is intended for the first phase of the project which, once completed, will increase the Angolan Government's ability to communicate by radio with about 95% of the country's population.
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Democracy and human rights
In another regard, the United States supports Angola's efforts to fight corruption, increase accountability, promote democratic governance, and support the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, association, and religion or belief.
The U.S. government continues to support Angola's commitment to democratic reforms, including expanding the role of civil society and religious organizations in democratic elections and local decision-making.
To that end, the U.S. Embassy in Angola has launched a program to promote the rule of law by strengthening judicial independence, raising citizens' awareness of their legal rights, and building the capacity of the courts.
The diplomatic representation also supports various grants to strengthen press freedom. Similarly, USAID and the Department of State are working with the National Bank of Angola to support the country's efforts and substantially improve its Transparency International rating.
The programming will increase the transparency of public finances and strengthen the capacity of oversight institutions in support of Angola's commitments as a new implementer country of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI).
Since 2019, the Department of the Treasury has provided technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of Angolan institutions to identify, detect, and prosecute money laundering, terrorist financing, and other crimes in support of Angola's economic reforms. FMA/ART/IZ/DOJ
