The Minister of State for Economic Coordination, José de Lima Massano, challenged economic operators yesterday, Monday, to invest in the production of inputs for the beverage industry, in order to create greater integration, considering that there is great potential in the country, but it is necessary to awaken
José de Lima Massano, who spoke during the meeting between the Executive and the Association of Beverage Industries of Angola, highlighted that the conversation with operators in the beverage industry was aimed at continuing to follow the path of national production, highlighting that the country must be able to continue to gather energy, knowledge and financial capabilities to ensure greater growth in the sector.
The Minister of State says that it is not possible to continue to grow the beverage industry if it is not through incorporation, highlighting that there will always be components to be imported, such as equipment, parts and some raw materials. “In the non-alcoholic drinks sector we do not have producers transforming fruit into drinks and we import orange juice. A country with the potential that Angola has doesn’t make sense,” he said. Therefore, he continued, “we challenge other operators to join the chain by producing the inputs that the beverage industry sector consumes for greater integration, due to the fact that there is immense potential, but it needs to be awakened”, he appealed.
According to the person responsible, the sector only uses 30% of its production capacity, highlighting that the economy is still structured around an import logic. He highlighted that there is work to be done so that by the end of this year there will be solutions that facilitate exports. “The domestic need is practically taken care of, but there is an opportunity to export,” he explained.
30% left
30% drop The president of the Angolan Beverage Industries Association (AIBA), Manuel Sumbula, said that the beverage industries recorded a 30% drop, as a result of constraints and the population’s weak purchasing power. The person in charge said that the meeting served to find synergies from an operational point of view, as well as in the policies implemented by the Executive to reduce the drop in production. “The beverage industry is robust and has excess capacity. However, a common denominator is needed to boost exports,” he said.
Likewise, proposals were presented to minimize import costs and allow greater fluidity in exports, and economic diplomacy must be implemented at the level of some countries, to address what is being done in Angola and have the products circulate with great satisfaction . “Some beverage exports are already being carried out timidly, but there is a need to increase, hence greater incentives for exports, specifically the reduction of fees and taxes”, he explained.
Regarding the high unemployment in the sector, Manuel Sumbula highlighted that, in the last four years, the sector employed 14 thousand people directly and today has 10 thousand, with four thousand people left unemployed. For the businessman, the idea is to look at some factors and combine them to increase production, to guarantee more taxes, employability and for entrepreneurs to feel that they can make more investments. Currently, the Angolan Beverage Industries Association controls 54 debt companies in eight categories.