By Zenak Matekenya:
Malawi and Angola have signed a general cooperation agreement following bilateral talks between President Lazarus Chakwera and his counterpart President Joao Lourenco.
The agreement was signed yesterday on the sidelines of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) summit in Luanda, Angola.
The agreement will, among other things, see Malawi accessing petroleum products from Angola, which produces at least 1.9 million barrels of petroleum a day and became a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries in 2006.
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Speaking after the signing ceremony, Chakwera said part of his mission at the summit was to facilitate a bilateral meeting with the Angolan leader.
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He said Angola and Zambia had signed an agreement pertaining to a petroleum pipeline that goes all the way to Lusaka, Zambia, adding that Malawi has also formally become part of the development.
The President said Mchinji already has a storage facility for petroleum products.
“Today, we had a wonderful bilateral discussion to consolidate our relationship since November 1993, when we entered into this. We have witnessed the signing of an agreement which has set the tone for us to cooperate in the areas of transport, energy, mining and infrastructure development and [this] will lead to other agreements,” Chakwera said.
Commenting on the summit, the President said they discussed issues of security in relation to conflicts in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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He added that those at the summit also discussed the promotion of democracy, bearing in mind that a number of member states will host elections this year.
Commenting on the agreement signed between Malawi and Angola, Minister of External Relations in Angola Tete Antonio said the agreement is critical in strengthening the relationship between the two countries.
He said Malawi and Angola have a good relationship but simply needed to strengthen it through such an agreement.
Malawi’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nancy Tembo said the two countries will ensure that the agreement translates into sustainable development for the people of Angola and Malawi.—Mana
