Angolan President João Lourenço and Chinese President Xi Jinping announced on Friday the elevation of relations between their two countries to a “comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.” The designation refers to the third highest level of diplomatic relations Beijing maintains and allows for greater trade and investment.
As their relations entered their fifth decade, Xi said that ties with Angola had benefited the peoples of both nations. In a time of global transition and upheaval, he said, the two countries should firmly support each other and achieve common development.
The two leaders jointly witnessed the signing of numerous cooperation documents under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), economy and trade, agriculture, green development and other fields.
[See more: Angola’s president is making his second official trip to China]
Angola has been one of the top destinations for Chinese investment in Africa since 2000, receiving tens of billions in investment for infrastructure and economic development. Chinese firms have invested nearly US$12 billion over the last decade through the BRI alone.
Nearly half of the BRI investment went into Angola’s energy sector, but recent talks have emphasised China’s interest in helping Angola “achieve agricultural modernisation, industrialisation and economic diversification” as the African nation seeks to move away from its reliance on oil. Outside funding is key, as Angola lacks sufficient non-oil revenue sources to finance such a transition.
Aid in economic diversification will also help Angola pay back the money owed to Chinese creditors, estimates of which vary by as much as US$4 billion. Lourenço put the figure at around US$17 billion when announcing that he had renegotiated Angola’s debt during the three-day state visit, securing “relief measures that do not harm the interest of either party.”
