To ensure that all children are vaccinated and protected from vaccine-preventable diseases, the Ministry of Health, with the support of the WHO, is holding a methodological meeting in Luanda on 20, 21 and 22 August with the participation of partners and health technicians from all the country’s provinces.

According to the Acting WHO Representative in Angola, Dr Zabulon Yoti, the methodological meeting on the Expanded Programme on Vaccination (EPV) is testimony to the collective determination to protect all children in Angola against vaccine-preventable diseases.

“Vaccination remains one of the crucial measures to protect and save lives. Therefore, we must always come together, work together, share experiences, learn from our past, plan our future and make a country free of vaccine-preventable diseases a reality.”          

Andrew Trevett, Deputy Representative of UNICEF in Angola, considers the immunisation programme (EPI) to be fundamental for any health system still facing the double burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases.

“As well as protecting against preventable diseases, the EPI also strengthens community health, reduces child mortality and improves community satisfaction, which is why it is necessary to strengthen the effectiveness of the implementation of strategies and the capacity to meet the needs of the most vulnerable communities, home to children who have never been vaccinated.”

In recent years, the Angolan government has made significant investments in health by building and remodelling structures, expanding the national network of health services, gradually acquiring equipment for the cold chain, increasing the workforce and training new professionals in the area of vaccination to improve the supply of vaccines and the population’s vaccination coverage levels.

Despite the efforts and achievements, Angola continues to face several challenges in guaranteeing the immunisation of the population. Therefore, according to WHO data, it is among the three countries in the African region with the highest number of zero-dose children (children without any vaccine dose), with an estimated half a million children not vaccinated with the Penta 1 and Penta 3 vaccines. To recover these children, the WHO supports the Angolan government in implementing the middle-income countries zero doses project (MICS) to reinforce vaccination in 22 municipalities in the five provinces with the highest number of unvaccinated children.

On the other hand, Angola needs to reinforce the immunisation of children against polio due to an ongoing outbreak caused by the importation of the virus from neighbouring countries. To date, 16 virus cases have been confirmed in six provinces: Luanda, Huambo, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Moxico and Benguela. In response, the health authorities conducted two vaccination campaigns in May and June, with around 78 per cent and 84 per cent of municipalities achieving high-quality vaccination coverage in the first and second rounds, respectively. An extended vaccination campaign will be held in September this year as a reinforcement.

For Angola’s Secretary of State for Public Health, Dr Carlos Pinto de Sousa, the government is aware of its challenges, mainly of a structural and financial nature, to increase vaccination coverage and sustainably include all children. However, ‘it fully trusts in everyone’s leadership and commitment to overcome this challenge and sustainably reduce the number of Zero-Dose children’.

“The vaccine is one of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal to protect lives and prevent diseases such as polio, relieving pressure on our health system and allowing valuable resources to be directed towards treating other conditions that vaccines cannot prevent. This event will allow us to conduct an exhaustive assessment of routine vaccination indicators and the challenges and constraints preventing us from achieving high coverage and protecting our population.”

The methodological meeting on vaccination in Angola represents a crucial opportunity to assess the leading performance indicators of routine immunisation, the Zero-Doses MICs Project, report on the National Vaccination Campaign Plan for the Prevention of Cervical Cancer, define the actions for the National Polio Vaccination Campaign, as well as establish essential initiatives for improving vaccination in the country.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Angola.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying announces:

On September 5, President Xi Jinping will attend the Opening Ceremony of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and deliver a keynote speech. During the Summit, President Xi Jinping will host a welcoming banquet and relevant bilateral events for the leaders of FOCAC’s African members and representatives of relevant African regional organizations and international organizations invited to the Summit.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China.

From Nigeria’s Niger Delta to Algeria’s Hassi Messaoud and Hassi R’Mel areas, Africa’s mature oil provinces are seeking to revitalize their mature assets in a low-carbon future. Targeting new strategies, technologies and best practices, African Energy Week: Invest in African Energy 2024 in Cape Town will feature a dedicated panel on Africa’s legacy fields, bringing together the E&P companies leading near-field exploration and redevelopment activities across the continent. 

Under the theme – Unlocking Hidden Value: Maximizing Africa’s Mature Fields – the panel will share valuable insights into reservoir management, enhanced oil recovery techniques, digital and automation technologies, optimization strategies and more to highlight the untapped production potential within Africa’s oil and gas acreage. Panelists include Jean-Michel, CEO of Trident Energy; Armel Simondin, CEO of Perenco; Rahul Dhir, CEO of Tullow Oil; Paul McDade, CEO of Afentra; and George Maxwell, CEO of VAALCO Energy.

AEW: Invest in African Energy is the platform of choice for project operators, financiers, technology providers and government, and has emerged as the official place to sign deals in African energy. Visit www.AECWeek.com for more information about this exciting event.

Africa’s mature oil markets are seeing a number of independent operators drive production gains, prioritizing incremental exploration and innovative technologies to breathe new life into existing assets. In Gabon, Perenco launched appraisal drilling near its existing Hylia South West discovery in February 2024 to identify additional reservoirs and estimate oil volumes, ranging from 20 to 100 million barrels. Spearheading an infrastructure-led exploration (ILX) strategy, Tullow Oil is pivoting toward infill drilling to maximize production from its Gabonese assets and plans to drill two ILX wells at its Simba license later this year, as well as maintain 100,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) output from its Jubilee field through infill drilling over the next few years.

Maximizing production from its mid-life oil and gas assets, Trident Energy launched a three-well infill drilling campaign on Block G – home to the mature Ceiba and Okume fields – offshore Equatorial Guinea earlier this year. Meanwhile, VAALCO Energy is leading development of the country’s Venus Field in Block P, which involves drilling two producer wells and one water injector well. The program aligns with the company’s plans to double its crude production of over 50,000 bpd by 2027, as well as grow its output from maturing fields. 

Oil and gas independent Afentra is also focusing on optimizing, redeveloping and extending the lifespan of Africa’s legacy assets. In Angola, the company recently gained approval for the acquisition of Block 23, focusing on high-quality, long-life shallow water production assets with significant upside. Afentra is working to maximize production and reserves, while reducing emissions and fostering synergies across its assets through an innovation-led approach.

The development of marginal fields is another key production driver within Africa’s mature markets. Under its planned 2024 bid round, Nigeria is placing a strong emphasis on marginal assets, which offer the potential to boost efficiency of the sector, bring new resources online and diversify the country’s exploration landscape. Nigeria’s previous marginal licensing round in 2020 featured 57 fields, of which the largest 25 are expected to generate over $9 billion of investment in their first five years of operation and over $38 billion in lifetime revenue. Meanwhile, Angola is offering five marginal fields for exploration in addition to 24 other block opportunities. Representing a first for the country, the marginal fields are situated in operated blocks and hold proven reserves with commercial potential.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.

On August 23, commencing at around 10:30 a.m. for approximately 30 minutes, Mr. TSUJI Kiyoto, State Minister for Foreign Affairs met with Hon. Mr. Cosato David CHUMI, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania, who visited Japan to attend the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) Ministerial Meeting. The overview of the meeting is as follows.

At the outset, State Minister Tsuji mentioned his visit to Tanzania this May and stated that he would like to further strengthen bilateral relations and cooperation in the international arena with Tanzania, which is a gateway to Africa. In response, Deputy Minister Chumi expressed his high appreciation and gratitude for Japan’s assistance in a wide range of area.
On that basis, two sides welcomed the growing exchange between the two countries in the economic field and concurred on continuing to work closely together to further strengthen economic ties. In addition, two sides confirmed that they would continue to work together to strengthen connectivity with Tanzania, which is the starting point for landlocked countries and a key point for regional connectivity.
They confirmed their commitment to further develop Japan-Tanzania bilateral relations, looking ahead to TICAD 9 next year and held an exchange of views regarding cooperation in the international arena.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.