Luanda: The African Development Bank (AfDB) has announced a significant financial commitment to Angola, revealing that 40 percent of its active portfolio, amounting to 1.5 trillion US dollars, has been disbursed to the country. This information was shared by Pietro Toigo, the AfDB’s representative in Angola, during the 1st edition of the Conference on ‘Multilateral and Development Financing’ held in Luanda.
According to Angola Press News Agency, the high percentage of disbursement to Angola is attributed to new projects approved in the last 18 months. Toigo emphasized that the AfDB aims to complete its financial portfolio allocation in Angola over the next four years, focusing on sectors such as agriculture, agribusiness, sustainable social infrastructure for energy, water, and sanitation, as well as international logistics corridors. This strategic allocation is expected to aid in diversifying Angola’s economy.
Toigo further elaborated that approximately 45 percent of the financing is earmarked for the energy sector at 20 percent and water and sanitation at 25 percent. From a public financing perspective, the Angolan government is reportedly maximizing available resources by enhancing the financing capacity of multilateral institutions.
The ongoing process of consolidating public debt and increasing macroeconomic risk is anticipated to create favorable conditions for greater financing, as per Toigo’s remarks. Furthermore, Gabriel Dava, the deputy representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Angola, highlighted initiatives to strengthen institutional capacity, akin to those by the World Bank, by collaborating closely with institutions benefiting from the financing to enhance processes and project implementation.
The conference served as a platform to discuss how Angola can effectively leverage financing from multilateral entities.