According to the bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Angola and São Tomé and Principe (CEAST), hunger and poverty in Angola have been exacerbated by several factors, such as the lack of sustainable public policies on the exploitation of natural resources, corruption, precarious wages and “violent” fiscal policy.
“There are countless factors that contribute to poverty, but we must also be aware that our country needs to change many policies. Citizens cannot get used to receiving everything for free. We have been giving everything away for free for many years, and no state can survive that way,” said CEAST spokesman Belmiro Chissengueti today.
The Angolan bishop, who was speaking at a press conference to take stock of the II Annual Plenary Assembly of CEAST, which began on Wednesday and ended today at the Muxima Shrine, Diocese of Viana, also said that the current wages in Angola further aggravate the hardship of families.
For the religious leader, in Angola “there is a misconception that by paying poorly, you can have more workers and spend less” when, “in fact, the basic elements of economics tell us that good wages create good consumers who boost the cycle of trade.”
“It is incomprehensible that a country like Angola, which has abundant rivers, is unable to meet its food needs, but we also know of the existence of very powerful import lobbies that somehow overshadow or undermine national production,” he criticised, lamenting the decline in national production in towns and villages due to a “lack of distribution”.
A situation “associated with the gangrene of corruption, which has been the worst misfortune of the last 50 years after the war,” he said, advocating a commitment to meritocracy.
The CEAST spokesperson also criticised Angolan fiscal policy, which, in his view, “is extremely harsh for a country that produces almost nothing to the point that,” he noted, “fiscal policy is killing national entrepreneurship.”
“In the face of social instability,” the Angolan Catholic bishops, in a final statement issued by the plenary, urged the government to prioritise the fight against hunger and poverty by creating dynamics of dialogue and statutory tripartite government-employers-trade union talks.
They also argue that the Angolan authorities should make the celebration of the Jubilee of National Independence – whose 50th anniversary will be marked on November 11 – a “ new starting point for the consolidation of peace and national reconciliation,” urging political actors to “prioritise a discourse that favours unity in diversity.”
The CEAST bishops approved the programme for the National Reconciliation Congress, marking Angola’s 50 years of independence, scheduled for October 29–31 in Luanda, as well as the holding of the 2026 Ecumenism Symposium.
The National Reconciliation Congress “is an opportunity for political and social actors to assess their path and the country’s journey over 50 years and to set a course for the future,” he noted.
Asked about the awards ceremony presided over by the Angolan president João Lourenço, part of the celebrations of 50 years of independence, which does not distinguish Holden Roberto (founder of the FNLA) and Jonas Savimbi (founder of UNITA), two of the figures who, together with Agostinho Neto (MPLA), signed the Alvor Agreement in January 1975 with the then Portuguese government, the bishop argued that they should be honoured in the near future.
“Agostinho Neto, Holden Roberto and Jonas Savimbi are the fathers of independence. Each had their virtues and flaws and should be recognised as being at the foundation of the country’s independence,” he concluded.
Platform with Lusa
