Luanda, July 25, 2025 (Lusa) - The World Bank’s executive director told Lusa today that the organisation aims to be in Angola for the long term and be involved in large and challenging projects, stating that it would provide the authorities with funding, technical support, and monitoring.
“We are strongly committed to working with Angola on its development agenda; we want to be involved in long-term projects that present significant challenges, such as the water supply project we visited in Luanda,” said the World Bank’s number two, Axel van Trotsenburg, in an interview with Lusa from Luanda, during a visit that ends today.
"Projects such as water supply in the capital of a country where about half of Angolans need access to drinking water are examples of complex projects that need a long-term vision, and we want to be involved in this type of project because it requires a long-term commitment, both financial and analytical, as well as monitoring,” added the World Bank official responsible for development policy and partnerships.
In an interview with Lusa, van Trotsenburg argued that Angola should support economic growth in sectors other than oil and gas, as these are sustainable and can guarantee jobs for the many young people who enter the labour market every year.
“We need to see how we can support the country. Many sources of economic growth can be found within an economy. Angola has benefited enormously from oil and gas, and to ensure sustainability, we increasingly suggest that it look to diversify its economy, as there is great potential for development in other sectors,” he stressed.
The country, he said, faces new challenges in its 50th year of independence. The World Bank wants to be increasingly involved in its development: “We would like to be very strongly involved with Angola and there is an incredibly good basis for cooperation and we will support the country financially, whether through our public or private side, but also with knowledge, an area where we can provide analysis and training for Angolan officials to take advantage of the World Bank Group’s knowledge base,” said Axel van Trotsenburg.
Over the past six years, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has supported Angola with $1.2 billion (€1 billion), “which shows its strong commitment to Africa,” said Axel van Trotsenburg, concluding that the desire to expand involvement also extends to the other Portuguese-speaking countries on the continent.
The World Bank’s government director concludes a five-day visit to Luanda today, during which he met with President João Lourenço and the country’s top leaders, and travelled to Benguela. He will participate this morning in the economic forum, which presents, among other things, a report on the Angolan economy.
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