Luanda, July 2, 2025 (Lusa) - The Angolan government said on Wednesday that multilateral agencies account for more than 85% of international aid channelled to the country, which receives only about 1% of global aid to Africa, admitting the need for more ambition.

The idea was put forward by the chairman of the board of directors of the Angolan Insurance Regulation and Supervision Agency (ARSEG), Elmer Serrão, who considered that the country needs to take a critical and strategic look at the opportunities that remain to be exploited.

Multilateral agencies "now account for more than 85% of international aid channelled to Angola. Even so, our country receives only about 1% of global aid to Africa, and this fact forces us to reflect," he said.

Speaking at the opening of a conference on ‘Multilateral Institutions and Development Financing,’ on behalf of Angola's minister of finance, the ARSEG president said that the country "needs to position itself better and act with more ambition" to attract more financing.

To this end, he noted, "it is essential to strengthen the capacity to negotiate and absorb funds, improve the quality of projects submitted, improve predictability and speed of implementation, and align external financing with national priorities."

Elmer Serrão also listed the need to communicate effectively the results obtained and the impact of interventions, noting that attracting more resources also implies "greater internal ambition".

"It involves strategic planning, disciplined execution and accountability," he said, arguing that this is a joint effort that requires more capable public institutions, a more involved private sector and international partners who are more sensitive to the realities and aspirations of the country.

In his speech at this meeting organised by the magazine Economia & Mercado and the consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Serrão said that the role of multilateral agencies goes beyond simple financing: it translates into technical assistance, sharing of good practices, creation of synergies (...), inclusion and good governance.

In the case of Angola, this role [of multilateral institutions] "has been particularly relevant," he stressed, noting that cooperation with the World Bank (WB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) has contributed to strengthening public finances, promoting structural reforms and financing vital sectors such as education, health, energy, agriculture and climate resilience.

He also considered that African countries should assert their voice "in this era in which the international financial architecture is under review" and thereby propose solutions to actively participate in the construction of a new development narrative.

The Angolan Ministry of Finance is committed to this path - to maximise the use of multilateral financing, doing so with focus, rigour and impact, concluded Elmer Serrão.

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