The African Development Bank (AfDB) plans to help Angola set up a youth investment and entrepreneurship bank to enable young people to create their own jobs and raise their standard of living. These were the words of the AfDB President on 20 September 2024, following an audience with Angolan President João Laurenço.
To enable young people to create their own jobs and raise their standard of living, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has announced that it will help Angola to create a youth investment and entrepreneurship bank. The statement was made on 20 September 2024 by AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, following an audience with Angolan President João Laurenço.
The AfDB will contribute to the creation of the Investment and Entrepreneurship Bank for Young People, because this bank can help mobilise resources so that young people can create their own jobs and start-ups, financial technology and digital technology companies, in order to raise the population’s standard of living.
Akinwumi Adesina, President of the AfDB
During the meeting, the AfDB President assured the Angolan Head of State that the Bank would continue to support projects in the agricultural, energy, fisheries and industrial sectors, as well as all other areas aimed at the country’s development. According to Akinwumi Adesina, in the agricultural sector, the AfDB is committed to supporting the Angolan government in the production of cereals, particularly maize, wheat and rice, and to stepping up its support for the Lobito corridor with an investment of 500 million dollars.
The government has already invested more than two billion dollars and the AfDB intends to support this project [Corredor do Lobito] as we have already done on the Zambian side, making this connection possible.
Akinwumi Adesina, President of the AfDB
According to AfDB data, the Angolan economy, one of the least diversified in Africa, is heavily dependent on the oil sector, accounting for 28.9% of its GDP, 95% of its exports and 60% of its state revenues in 2022. According to the AfDB, Angola’s informal sector provides around 80% of jobs, with the country’s unemployment rate estimated at almost 30%, driven by young people (52.9%) and rural areas (38%).