Prime Minister António Costa is flying this Wednesday to Maputo, where on Thursday and Friday he will take part in the 5th Luso-Mozambique Summit, which aims to “deepen bilateral relations” and sign “various instruments of cooperation.”
António Costa will spend two days in the Mozambican capital, during which he will be accompanied by Foreign Ministers Joao Gomes Cravinho, National Defense Ministers Helena Carreiras and Agriculture and Food Ministers Maria do Seu Antunes.
The Portuguese government’s entourage also includes secretaries of state for foreign affairs and cooperation, Francisco Andre, for tax matters, António Mendonsa Mendes, and for economics, João Neves.
In a press release on the visit, the Prime Minister’s Office indicates that the 5th Luso-Mozambican Summit “is aimed at deepening bilateral relations and signing various cooperation documents.”
Speaking to Lusa, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation stressed that the agreements signed between the two countries are part of the Strategic Cooperation Program signed in November 2021 for a period of five years, and that after the 5th Luso-Mozambique summit “will be appreciated” and “developed” by the two governments.
“This is a program that lays down all the foundations for bilateral cooperation in important areas such as health, education, areas of sovereignty such as defense, internal governance or justice, but which also aims to solve important problems faced in present, such as climate and digital technologies. We want to respond globally to the socio-economic consequences of the covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine,” Francisco Andre said.
The official said that this global instrument, or the November 2021 Luso-Mozambican cooperation “hat political agreement”, “has a financial package of 170 million euros, of which 80 million are for projects, programs and actions.”
According to the Secretary of State, this represents “an increase of 12 million euros over the indicative volume of the previous Strategic Cooperation Program (2017-2021) and which was based on a performance forecast that was still underway at the signing date.”
Within the framework of this Strategic Cooperation Program, at the end of the 5th Portugal-Mozambique Summit, several agreements on cooperation in the field of agriculture, education, tourism and at the level of technical police will be signed.
MoUs will also be signed to improve capacity building at the public administration level, in particular providing for closer cooperation between the general inspectorates for finance in Mozambique and Portugal, as well as the authorities responsible for food and economic security in each country. , but also the introduction of cooperation tools in the field of health, in particular in telemedicine, with a protocol between the Maputo hospital and the hospitals of the University of Coimbra.
Francisco André also noted that a part of the projects subsidized by the PROCULTURA project in Mozambique will be presented.
The Portuguese Prime Minister’s visit begins on Thursday with a visit to the Mozambique Heroes’ Monument, where he will lay a wreath, followed by meetings with the President of the Republic of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, and the President of the Assembly. Republic of this country, Esperanza Bias.
On the same day, António Costa will visit the Portuguese Cultural Center, where he will give a speech and visit a joint exhibition by Gonçalo Mabunda and Francisco Vidal.
The first day of the head of government in Maputo ends with a dinner hosted by the President of the Republic of Mozambique.
On Friday, the Prime Minister’s program includes a visit to the Facim (International Fair in Maputo) and a speech at the opening of a business forum, a visit to the Portuguese troops and the European Union mission, as well as meetings with the Portuguese and with the Portuguese community in the country.
This official visit by the prime minister to Mozambique was scheduled for July 11 and 12, but António Costa decided to cancel the trip due to the increased risk of fires in Portugal at the time.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
