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Cape Town - Premier of the Western Cape Helen Zille and Minister of Economic Opportunities Alan Winde are leading a delegation to Angola to strengthen trade and investment between the region and the Western Cape.
The Western Cape government has been driving expansion into Africa for the past few years.
Key on the agenda will be enhancing collaboration between the regions in Project Khulisa’s strategic sectors such as tourism, oil and gas and agri-processing. This is expected to unlock growth and job creation potential in both regions.
The value of the Western Cape’s exports to Angola was valued at over R2bn in 2013.
Zille said the Western Cape and Angola were natural partners because they shared the Atlantic coastline, and common challenges of poverty and youth unemployment.
Winde said there were significant opportunities for the Western Cape and Angola to work together to increase trade and investment between the two regions.
“African countries are already our top importers for food and beverages. Going forward, consumption on the continent is set to increase dramatically, driven by rising GDP, growing middle classes and urbanisation," said Winde.
Angola is one of Africa’s fast-growing regions. Over the past year the Western Cape’s exports to Angola have increased by 30%.
Due to current oil situation, Angola is seeking opportunities to diversify its economy, especially in tourism and agriculture. Agri-processing has been selected a high priority sector for the Western Cape.
There are some types of produce which will thrive in the Angolan climate and the delegation will be exploring partnership agreements between agri-businesses in the two regions.
Tourism is another fast-growing area, with arrivals from Angola to the Western Cape increasing by 67% between 2009 and 2013. Central to increasing business and leisure tourism is increased air access. The Western Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism is developing an implementation plan for increased air access.
Currently, there are only three direct flights between Cape Town and Luanda each week.
In the oil and gas sector there are already existing linkages between the Western Cape and Angola.
Several Cape-based companies provided services to Angolan oil and gas companies. In addition, many Angolans travel to the Western Cape to complete specialised training in fields related to oil and gas.
