Rwandans traveling to Angola will not be required to have visas, thanks to a new agreement signed between the two countries. On Friday, April 15, Rwanda and Angola signed 9 cooperation agreements in different sectors including agriculture and livestock, local administration, health, as well as mineral resources, oil and gas, trade and investment, among others. The two countries also agreed on double taxation avoidance, extradition, legal assistance, and transfer of convicted persons. A high level delegation from Angola led by Tete Antonio, the country’s Minister of External Relations was in Kigali to discuss bilateral relations. Other Angolan officials who participated in the signing include their Ministers of Justice and Human Rights; Agriculture and fisheries; Health; as well as the Secretary of State for Territorial Administration, Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, among others. “Angola and Rwanda are going to work together to make sure that our people can benefit from the cooperation between our countries. We have different experiences from various sectors, and we just agreed to work together and share our experiences to make sure that we can mutually benefit,” Dr. Vincent Biruta, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said. He noted there are many ways that people of both countries can benefit from the deals, giving an example of how important the removal of visa requirements is. “We have agreed that visas for diplomatic service passports as well as the ordinary passports for Rwandans visiting Angola have been removed. Rwandans can travel to Angola and do business there, benefit from the double taxation avoidance agreement we have signed. So there are many ways that Rwandans and Angolans can benefit from the agreements we signed today,” he said. He called for results-oriented action plans, realistic time-frames and efficient monitoring mechanisms to ensure full benefit of the people of both countries. “The government of Rwanda is committed to cementing bilateral cooperation with the government of Angola as well as working together in addressing regional, continental and global challenges that affect our countries,” he said. On his part, Antonio said he is “deeply convinced” that the agreements signed will help to create a conducive environment for strengthening the two countries’ cooperation. “We believe that the South-South and intra-African partnerships such as the one that we intend to build with Rwanda offer a good opportunity and valuable conditions for our continent on the road to prosperity,” he noted.
