Ndalatando – Minister of Economy and Planning Mário Caetano said Friday in Lucala that the sector is going to increase and define, as of this year, the amount of money earmarked for funding youth economic initiatives.
According to the minister, taking into account population density, each province will receive between 500 million and 1 billion kwanzas.
He said that in addition to defining the funding, the amount will increase fivefold, because in the past many provinces received between 50 and 100 million kwanzas.
Without giving details of the amount to be allocated to Cuanza Norte province, the minister said that, for example, Bié and Benguela will each receive one billion kwanzas.
The minister, who was speaking to the press after visiting two agricultural projects funded under the Credit Support Programme, said that the institution is already in contact with the provincial government to help it find committed young people.
He pointed out that there will be more money for young people for the acquisition of some production factors.
The minister also said that, in view of the need for youth funding, the ministry has decided to reduce the capital to be allocated to beneficiaries in order to cover more young people.
He added that the work will also make it possible to broaden the tax and contribution base, in financing of more than 500,000 kwanzas.
Financing small and medium-sized businesses
According to the minister, more than 4,700 projects for construction of small and medium-sized companies have been financed in the last three years by the Angolan Development Bank (BDA), with an investment of approximately two billion dollars.
Until 2019, 30 to 50 projects had been financed, as the BDA only used to finance large projects, a situation that has been reversed with the transformation into a bank focused on small and medium-sized companies.
The Minister for the Economy and Planning said that this rate of growth in financing for small and medium-sized businesses was also seen in the agricultural sector and in young people's economic initiatives, especially agribusiness.
Mário Caetano said that over the last three years this funding campaign has also covered more than 400 co-operatives in the country. IMA /VM/DAN/NIC
