Luanda, Aug. 27, 2025 (Lusa) - Economist Alves da Rocha said on Wednesday that it was "unacceptable" that in 50 years of independence, Angola has not managed to create the conditions for economic growth to multiply employment and raise the national minimum wage.
"It's unacceptable that, in fact, we still haven't managed, after 50 years [of independence], to create conditions for growth in the economy so that employment can multiply and wages can increase tenfold," said the professor and director of the Centre for Studies and Scientific Research (CEIC) at the Catholic University of Angola (UCAN), when questioned by Lusa about the national minimum wage.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Angola Economic Forum (AEF -2025), which began today in Luanda and runs until Friday, Alves da Rocha said, for example, that he did not understand why the current minimum wage in Angola is currently set at 50,000 kwanzas (€47), safeguarding that it is necessary to balance "the amount of the minimum wage with the conditions of the economy"
For the economist, Angola "must know how to define its challenges and deal with them in a phased manner, to improve the living conditions of the population," noting that the national minimum wage component "is one of the most challenging issues for the country.
"Wages and family consumption are development factors," he noted, emphasising that the population's living conditions and the inflation rate should be the methodologies for drawing up the minimum wage.
Angola's Ministry of Public Administration, Labour and Social Security (MAPTSS) announced on Tuesday that from 16 September all companies in the country will have to pay the new national minimum wage, corresponding to 100,000 kwanzas (€94), except for micro-businesses and start-ups, for which it will be set at 50,000 kwanzas.
Alves da Rocha emphasised that the current wage in Angola is not compatible with people's living conditions.
"Celebrating History, Driving the Future of the Economy" is the motto of AEF-2025, alluding to Angola's 50 years of independence, which will be marked on 11 November 2025.
On Angola's economic journey after half a century of independence, the CEIC director of the Catholic University of Angola (UCAN) insisted that the country's economy is facing enormous challenges in various areas.
According to the expert, economic and social development in Angola, under the current conditions, is not enough, because, he said, it is not enough for the country to have natural resources, "but it is necessary to pay attention to other areas, particularly in terms of political strategy and human capital".
Asked whether current public policies respond to the country's challenges, the economist said that they "respond to some challenges", noting that others are much more complex and require more thought and more work".
The CEIC director believes that to face the challenges in such a complex and interdependent world, it is necessary to accumulate knowledge in the fields of science and technological innovation.
"And here [in Angola] we still don't have a base for accumulating knowledge. In terms of scientific and technological knowledge and innovation, there are initiatives, there is a ministry that has to coordinate this, but it's impossible to win this fight if we don't know how to define the challenges and deal with them in a phased manner," concluded Alves da Rocha, one of the technical coordinators of AEF-2025.
The Angolan economy in the view of the nationalists: a look at the past, present and future, Angola's economic history: an assessment of economic policy options in the post-independence period and public investment in healthcare in Angola are some of the topics that will be discussed at the forum, which will feature more than 70 speakers.
Kwanza Economics and PetroAngola organise the third edition of the Angola Economic Forum.
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