President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to address the Angolan Parliamentarians at their National Assembly in Luanda today. The President had said yesterday that, as the world’s largest democracy, India hopes to enhance parliamentary cooperation with Angola. She had stressed the need for the democratic institutions to learn from each other’s experience through mutual exchanges. She had further added that India is ready to share its parliamentary best practices.

President Murmu will also interact with the members of the Indian Community in Angola. The Indian community in Angola numbers around 8000, mainly consisting of business persons, professionals and workers in the establishments of Indian owners. It is estimated that around 200 Indian companies operate in Angola – particularly in retail, hospitality, agriculture, plastics, metal, pharmaceuticals, diamonds & automobile sectors. President Murmu had yesterday held wide-ranging discussions with Angolan President João Lourenço.

“The two leaders agreed to work together to deepen bilateral cooperation. They identified areas such as energy, infrastructure, defence, health, agriculture, and digital technologies for closer partnership. MoUs were exchanged to strengthen cooperation in fisheries, aquaculture, marine resources, and consular matters. President Murmu welcomed Angola’s decision to join the International Big Cat Alliance and the Global Biofuels Alliance. The Angolan President praised India’s expertise in health, aerospace, and defence systems.

He stated that collaborating with India in these areas would be particularly beneficial for Angola. President Murmu is on a visit to Angola and Botswana from 8 to 13 November. Tomorrow, she will be attending the 50th anniversary celebrations of Angola’s 39th independence, before proceeding to Botswana for the second leg of this tour. This is the first visit by an Indian Head of State to the two African countries.