Around 250 businesspeople from Portugal, Mozambique, Angola and Cape Verde meet between Wednesday and Friday in the capital of Equatorial Guinea, Malabo, at the first business summit promoted by the Business Confederation of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CE-CPLP).
Mário Simões, vice president of the Executive Committee of the CE-CPLP, explained to Lusa news agency that the event will be attended by “about two and a half hundred businessmen,” in addition to several institutional representatives of the Portuguese-speaking countries.
“There are businessmen from Portugal, Mozambique, Angola and Cape Verde,” he said, adding that the largest delegation is from Portugal, with about 70 companies.
Angola will participate with about 30 companies and Mozambique with more than 20.
Cape Verde will have a mission with “four or five companies and the country’s largest chamber of commerce,” he said.
The head of state of Cape Verde and acting president of the CPLP, Jorge Carlos Fonseca, is expected to speak “online” at the meeting, while the Minister of Industry, Trade and Energy, Alexandre Monteiro, will be in Malabo.
The announced participation of the President of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, is not expected to materialize.
São Tomé and Príncipe will be represented at the highest level with the presence of the President of the Republic, Evaristo Carvalho, who together with the host, Teodoro Obiang, will be the only heads of state to attend the summit in person.
What we intend is to take to all countries of the CPLP, a set of companies that want to bet on this market
From Angola, a delegation led by the Minister of Industry and Trade, Victor Fernandes, is expected to participate, while Portugal’s representative in Malabo, Frederico Silva, is expected to represent the country.
The initiative will be officially opened by the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, and is also expected to be addressed by the Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, Gabriel Mbega Obiang Lima, and the Minister of Fisheries and Water Resources, Adoración Salas Chonco, the President of the EC-CPLP, Salimo Abdula, and the Director General of the CPLP, Armindo de Brito Fernandes.
The businessmen’s meeting aims to “consolidate the integration” of Equatorial Guinea into the CPLP, of which it has been a member since 2014, and “demonstrate the potential, as a country of resources and opportunities, putting it on the route of foreign investment,” according to the organization.
“The idea is to hold economic summits in CPLP countries and Equatorial Guinea was the first country to make itself available,” said Mário Simões, adding that summits are already scheduled for Angola in July and Guinea-Bissau in November.
The summit, which takes place at the Simpopo International Conference Center, also includes an exhibition of companies
“What we intend is to take to all the CPLP countries, a set of companies that want to bet in this market”, he added.
Gas, tourism, agriculture, fisheries, asset valuation, banking, training are some of the sectors of Portuguese companies participating in the business summit, most of which visit the country for the first time in search of investment opportunities.
Due to the covid-19 pandemic, Equatorial Guinea has a number of restrictive measures in place, including the mandatory use of a mask, the limitation to one international flight per week, the presentation of negative PCR tests or proof of vaccination to enter the country, as well as the prohibition of movement between regions or the limitation of participation in worship activities or weddings.
Sources heard by the Lusa agency point out that the decree with the restrictions ended on April 30, but that new measures have not yet been disclosed, but they believe in the announcement of the easing of restrictions in the coming days to frame the summit.
“Companies cannot continue to be closed at home and in their offices. This opening of the CPLP market is to help companies, after a year of being confined, to be able to go out again and open doors to other business opportunities,” said Mário Simões.
The summit, taking place at the Simpopo International Conference Centre, also includes an exhibition of companies and several cultural moments, including a tribute to fado and morna, classified as Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
