Washington — Both the United States and Angola are demonstrating a “renewed commitment to expand and strengthen” their bilateral relationship, a trend the United States hopes and expects will continue in the years to come, says Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson. The year 2009, he said, has been a year of new opportunities for U.S.-Angola relations.

In a November 17 address commemorating “U.S.-Angola Day” at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars in Washington, Carson said, “The United States and Angola have always enjoyed close collaboration in the energy field, where Angola has been a major supplier of U.S. crude oil and where American private sector companies have been major investors.” (Read the full article)

A teacher from a school in Kangala, Angola, north of the port city Lobito, dishes out food to children and teachers at the school.

Washington — The issue of food security can now be found at the center of the global community’s development agenda in the wake of recent food and fuel crises caused by spiking prices. According to a USAID official, the current situation shows that inattention to agriculture has consequences for stability and the economic development process worldwide.

Jeff Hill, the agriculture team leader for the Africa Bureau at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), discussed food security November 17 in remarks before a one-day forum: “The New Angola: Forging a Strategic Partnership.” Hill spoke on a panel at the Wilson Center for International Scholars in Washington, exploring agriculture in Africa and Angola. Julie Howard, an agricultural economist who is executive director at the Partnership to Cut Hunger and Poverty in Africa, and Panzo Domingos, director of the Institute of Agronomic Research at Angola’s ministry of agriculture, also spoke at the forum. (Read the full article)