Angola’s Minister of Finance, Vera Daves de Sousa, on Thursday in Luanda, emphasized the need for a strategy to restore the financial health of companies, in order to prevent insolvencies that could jeopardize jobs.
Speaking virtually during the opening remarks of the International Conference on Business Recovery and Insolvency, she reaffirmed the State’s commitment to developing fair, transparent, and functional instruments to support business recovery.
“The business recovery process is crucial to the health of the economic fabric, as it involves companies fighting to survive and workers awaiting solutions — the State cannot turn its back,” said the minister.
She stressed that behind every recovery process, there is a story, a chance to save jobs, and an opportunity to preserve value chains. Insolvency, she noted, should not be seen as failure, but rather as a new beginning, a demonstration of courage to face difficulties, acknowledge mistakes, adjust course, and persevere.
“Behind every recovery case is a chance to recover jobs, restore value chains, recover credits, and often restore the dignity of honest entrepreneurs,” she added.
Daves de Sousa highlighted that Angola now has new legal frameworks and the political will to reform. The success of the new insolvency and recovery regime, however, will depend on the ability to implement it effectively, through collaboration between judges, business managers, lawyers, academics, and regulators.
Non-Performing Loans
Around 20% of Angola’s bank credit is currently non-performing, highlighting the urgent need to consolidate effective recovery and restructuring mechanisms.
This information was shared by Juciene de Sousa, Secretary of State for the Budget, during her opening speech at the 1st International Conference on Business Recovery and Insolvency held in Luanda.
According to her, the current economic climate — marked by persistent inflation and modest growth — presents major challenges to businesses. Thus, she stressed the importance of having a legal insolvency framework that allows for restructuring, recovery, and the relaunch of viable companies.
“A good insolvency system is an economic policy lever, a shield for employment, a sign of institutional maturity, and a legal safeguard,” she said.
She added that such a system also offers a platform of trust:
- For entrepreneurs, who know they are not alone;
- For workers, who should not be the first to suffer;
- And for investors, who seek security under the rule of law.
According to Juciene de Sousa, a functional insolvency framework with swift, effective, and responsive procedures is not only a legal ambition, but also an economic necessity and an institutional imperative.
“Above all, it is a commitment to building a more stable, more predictable, and fairer Angola — for those who invest, work, and innovate,” she concluded.
Source: Jornal de Angola
