Angola is a postponed country, torn by misery
as a result of corruption. we are finding throughout the country
infrastructures that in quality level leaves a lot to be desired.
When the war ended, Angola had a great
opportunity to become a prosperous and developed country. Oil production has
increased and prices have remained high for several years. This country had
more than enough money to rebuild the way it wanted the landscape destroyed by
the conflict.
However, the consequences of the reconstruction
and oil boom was the self-enrichment of President José Eduardo dos Santos, his
family and protégés.
According to Forbes magazine, Isabel dos
Santos, the President's eldest daughter, became Africa's first billionaire with
a fortune estimated at $ 3.3 billion.
The billions spent on reconstruction were
miserably managed. A good part of it "disappeared" in certain people’s
accounts, and in reality, little was done to ensure that the amount spent on
reconstruction produced lasting benefits for the economy in Angola.
A recent study carried out by a prestigious
university, about $ 189 billion was invested in opaque transactions abroad.
It is also worth noting that since 2002 (the
year the war ended), US $ 120 billion has already been invested in
reconstruction. On exports, we have a yield of almost US $ 600 billion, oil
with the lion’s share, with 60% of the crude oil exported to China as a
destination.
If we listen to Isabel dos Santos - chairman of
Sonangol's board of directors, the accounts of this company, display fantastic
results in 2016. However, if analyzed correctly, we realize that the largest
company in Angola the accounts submitted are not transparent . The alleged
miracle of Isabel dos Santos, who in 6 months solved the chaos of Sonangol and
saved the oil company from bankruptcy is false. It's just a fake “magic trick”.
The Angolan model of exchanging oil money for
infrastructure has generated some disadvantages. Business between Angola and its
foreign partners lacked transparency and often resulted in projects of poor
quality, either because of lack of supervision or simply because of corruption.
The reconstruction is in the hands of foreign
companies; this leads to the Angolans and their companies have not inherited
any specialization or skills.
As long as Angolans do not dominate their
development strategy and do not rule out corruption, Angola will remain a poor
country, although with enormous potential.
João Dias - Senior Consultant, Professor of International
Relations
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