Luanda- Angolan president João Lourenço has highlighted the axis of the ANGOLA - 2050 Long-Term Strategy, whose focus is to create a diversified and prosperous economy, agriculture, farming, fishing, manufacturing, mineral resources and tourism sectors.
In his address on the State of the Nation, the Head of State said the road to transforming the economy is a long one and that it is being made with the vision, conviction and dedication of all the daughters and sons of the land.
The president underscored that achieving food security is an objective if "we realise that we need to work harder, to produce more, because just complaining doesn't bring bread to our table".
Provisional data on farming production for 2023 shows positive indicators, with an expected growth in terms of overall volumes in all crop sectors, with production to be higher than in 2022, when there was a 5.7 per cent increase compared to 2021.
João Lourenço said that in 2022 the country recorded an overall production of 24.7 million tonnes, underlining that the re-launch of coffee production has already turned out to be productive, with the volume of production rising to 5,000 tonnes in 2022, 1% higher than in 2021.
At the moment, the president continued, around 4.7 million seedlings are being produced in various provinces, which will allow 2,350 hectares to be planted.
João Lourenço assured that the MUCAFÉ Project, with the aim to improve the Performance and Growth of the Coffee Value Chain, will be implemented with funding from the French Development Agency to increase the volume of production, productivity and quality to enable producers to liaise and promote exports.
According to the President, in the farming sector, 103,721 tonnes of meat were produced from January to June this year, an absolute increase of 1,075 tonnes compared to the same period last year.
"We hope to reduce our dependence on animal vaccine imports with the construction of the Biodiversity Centre and Vaccine Factory for cattle, poultry and goats in Huambo province, which is expected to be completed within the planned time frame," Lourenço said.
The president also praised the commitment of all men, women and young people who have dedicated themselves to agricultural production and are helping to consolidate the hope of achieving the goal of food security.
"In the current agricultural season, we have seen the start of wheat production by around 3,320 families and various entrepreneurs from different provinces. Although small, the expected production proves that it is possible to reverse the situation of wheat imports, if we are bold and exploit our potential to the limit." Lourenço said. HEM/AC/AMP
