The economy of Africa is diversifying. Nigeria moved from GDP of less than $50b in 1999 to more than $$270b within  a decade because of the FDI from telecommunication and information systems. Kenya has become the hottest mobile services destination in the world. South Africa is a banking hub and telecom giant. Ghana is carving a niche in electrical and embedded systems engineering. No one is left out, Angola is on the loop. So, it is not surprising that iPAD Angola noted that the non-Diamond sector is picking up.

Private investment outside the oil and diamond sectors of the Angolan economy has been increasing steadily the president of the Angolan National Private Investment Agency (ANIP) Aguinaldo Jaime said Tuesday in Lisbon.

Angola had managed to attract investment projects outside of oil and mining worth US$2.4 billion. An ADB report published Monday said that the diversification of the Angolan economy remained “weak.”
“In 2008 investment outside these sectors totalled US$1.2 billion and in 2009 rose to US$1.8 billion,” he said adding that these figures demonstrated that private investment in areas other than oil and diamonds had been growing steadily

Infrastructure Partnerships for African Development (iPAD) Angola 2011 will bring together investors, high profile government dignitaries and high profile executives from national and international public and private companies, in order to explore investment opportunities, assess the Angolan business ecosystem, understand the operational and regulatory frameworks, as well as to establish partnerships in the following sectors: Logistics and Transport, Energy, Water and Sanitation, Agriculture and Mining.

Introduction

iPAD Angola is the latest addition to the successful iPAD series. The goal in launching the iPAD series was to create a powerful and cost-effective source of knowledge to assist stakeholders – government, public and private sector, local and international investors – to strengthen their network and business footprint, build a valuable database of contacts and investigate investment opportunities in key sectors like power, mining, water, transport/construction, agriculture, ICT/telecoms, and finance. These events provide a forum for government and business to meet and explore opportunities for developing and investing in the infrastructure of the West, Central, East and Southern African regions. iPAD Angola will continue this tradition by creating an enabling environment for business to flourish and grow, delivering insights into one of Africa’s most lucrative investment hubs.

Angola is on the move. As the second fastest growing economy on the African continent, the country’s government is taking aggressive steps to facilitate foreign investment in the country, mainly through Angola’s National Agency for Private Investment (Agência Nacional para o Investimento Privado) ANIP. Since 2003, ANIP has been involved in the launch of over 1124 projects representing more than US$4 billion in investment capital.

Driven by its oil and mineral reserves, the country’s infrastructure has to catch up with its economy; this unique dynamic means that few other nations right now offer as many opportunities for the entire scope of infrastructure development, including power, water, roads, telecoms ports and harbours. It is a land of opportunity for companies wishing to grow their business interests.

The Angolan Government has prioritised the following goals to facilitate maximum growth:

• Re-establishment of the macroeconomics goals
• Creation of a legal framework consistent with the market economy system
• Institutional reform and conclusion of the State property restructuring and privatisation process
• Credit and financial system reforms
• Investment incentives

The Infrastructure Partnerships for African Development (iPAD) Angola 2011 conference and product showcase provides a forum for government and business to meet and explore opportunities for developing and investing in the infrastructure of Angola.

The private sector will drive growth in Angola and, to help it do so, the government is striving to promote an enabling environment. This means listening to the private sector, lending directly to private interests and reforming legal and regulatory frameworks to strengthen governance and accountability. Potentially one of Africa’s richest sub-Saharan countries, Angola offers great opportunities for investment in various sectors. iPAD Angola provides a high-level networking platform that investigates opportunities in key infrastructure verticals including oil and gas, transport, construction, telecoms/ICT, finance and mining.

Why attend?

Choose from a multi-track programme offering updates on various infrastructure projects
Benefit from the insight and expertise of strategic government and business stakeholders
Gain perspective through strategic addresses focusing on the state of the industry as well as emerging trends and
opportunities
Discover and evaluate products and services to facilitate sound business decisions

Audience profile/Who should attend?

• Ministers/high-level government officials
• Senior executives (CEOs, Regional/Country Directors, Project Directors, Sales Directors, etc.) in relevant sectors: Mining, Construction, Transport, ICT/Telecoms, Agriculture
• Manufacturers and suppliers to these sectors
• Business development managers
• Project managers
• Contractors
• Consultants
• Business people looking for joint venture opportunities
• Financiers of infrastructure projects
• Funding agencies and managers
• Investors/financial houses
• City planners
• Engineers
• Tax and regulatory experts specialising in the Angolan market
• Chambers of commerce and industry
• Investment and promotion agencies
• NGOs
• Multilateral institutions, e.g:
  • United Nations
  • World Bank Group
  • NEPAD Business Foundation
  • Southern Africa Development Community