Gaborone – Angola is very close to macroeconomic convergence aimed at accomplishing the Economic and Monetary Union at the level of the member countries of the Southern Africa Development Countries (SADC), according to a note from the Angolan Embassy in Botswana.

According to the document that reached ANGOP last Saturday, Angola has achieved about 95 per cent of the primary goals of SADC for 2008, missing only the attainment of one digit inflation rate, which allows Angola to be among the three countries of the organisation that lead the race for macroeconomic convergence.

This conclusion came out from a workshop held on 26-27 November, at the head office of SADC in Gaborone (Botswana), whose objective was the Mobilisation for economic convergence, in which experts from Angola and other member countries of SADC
participated.

One of the primary goals outlined by SADC for 2008, is that it expects that member countries should present a fiscal deficit below 5 per cent of the Gross Domestic product (GDP), having Angola presented a projection of 15 per cent for the referred period, which
corresponds to a surplus balance.

Other figures referred in the primary goals of SADC are the Public Debt (whose value should be lower 60 per cent below the GDP) and the Deficit of the Current Account (that must be below 9 per cent of GDP).

In regard to these two last data, Angola presented a figure lower below 25 per cent in the first case, while the second value is roughly 15 per cent.

Other figures that revealed the macroeconomic performance regarding convergence, but included in the secondary goals of SADC, are the growth of GDP and external reserves and the credit of the Central Bank to the government.

The economists Manuel Tiago Dias of the National Reserve Bank (BNA), and Gardiana Melo of the Ministry of Finances participated in the event. The third secretary of the Angolan Embassy in Botswana, Etelvina Fonseca, also integrated the delegation.

The next assessment meeting for macroeconomic convergence at the level of experts subcommittees of the ministries of Finances, Planning and central banks and whose results are presented to the committee of senior employees of treasury before taking it to the Cabinet Council of SADC, is set for March 2009, in Gaborone.