ANGOLA’S SOUTHERN REGION TO BENEFIT FROM SOLAR ENERGY, WATER

 Washington - Angola’s southern region will soon have solar and water supply systems, as part of USD 1.5 billion project to be implemented by US company “ Sun Africa”.

The project is expected to cover the southern provinces of Cunene, Namibe, Cuando Cubango and Huíla.

For the execution of the project, Angolan government and “Sun Africa” signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Monday, in Washington.

The Memorandum consists of the electrification of all Municipal headquarters and the main communes in the country.

The minister of Energy and Water, João Baptista Borges, signed the document for Angolan side, in the presence of the President, João Lourenço, as part of visit to the north American country.

João Baptista Borges said that the objective is to supply the electricity and water to the population and promote the emergence of economic ventures.

"The electrification will be done either through conventional solutions, with the extension of lines and the construction of substations, or using solar energy. The US is one of the leading countries in the installation of these systems, mainly in the remote regions, where this solution is the most available and accessible”, he stated.

The project features the installation of water supply systems, said the minister, stating that “Sun Africa” will mobilise financial resources from the US EximBank to cover the needs of the project.

He said that as soon as the contracts are signed, the execution period will be defined, predicting that the present project could be implemented in two years.

According to the official, the Memorandum is a reflection of the importance the US attaches to cooperation with Angola, the credibility the country currently deserves with US financial institutions and an evidence of the priority the Angolan Executive gives to expanding access to electricity and to water.

The memorandum was signed on the sidelines of a roundtable on investments in Angola, an initiative of the United States-Angola Chamber of Commerce.

The president of the US-Angola Chamber of Commerce, Pedro Godinho, praised the round table  and added that the turnout at this event spiked among many American companies which did not participate in the previous events.

He said the increase in participation in the Angolan event owed to the reforms underway in Angola, with stress to crack down on corruption, as well as the credibility the country began to gain with institutions such as the International Mine Fund and the World Bank.