Armed confrontations aggravate the scourges of hunger, poverty and disease, cause forced the migration of populations, drive away private foreign investments, increase unemployment and other social ills, the president said at a virtual forum.
For the first time the continent celebrates today, January 31, the Day of Peace and Reconciliation, as a warning call on the need to find solutions to the existing serious problems, the head of State noted.
The commemoration was instituted in 2022 by the African Union (AU) Summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, which analyzed the problems of terrorism and unconstitutional regime changes, recalled Lourenço, who expressed gratitude for the recognition of Angola’s experience in terms of achieving and maintaining peace.
In his message, the Angolan president urged to leave behind the past of misunderstandings, which conditioned and compromised the implementation of economic development strategies that would allow the continent to reach an acceptable level of competitiveness in relation to other regions of the world.
In this regard, he stressed collective responsibility to comply with the objectives of the AU’s 2063 Agenda, which include the purpose of silencing weapons.
He also defended the strengthening of young African democracies, which, he said, must be capable of dissipating tensions and factors of discord, which have served as a pretext in recent times for unacceptable unconstitutional changes of government.
According to Lourenço, it is possible to achieve the dream of an economically strong and socially stable continent that eradicates hunger and poverty, and guarantees employment and welfare for its children.
It is achievable, he stressed, if we work together to reach definitive peace throughout the continent, declaring zero tolerance to terrorism, coups d’état, inter-ethnic, religious and neighboring wars.
Energies, talents and resources of all kinds in Africa must be devoted first and foremost to economic and social development, stated the Angolan president, whose entire speech was broadcast here on national television.
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