The AAIC is organised by Expo Connect Angola in partnership with Skyliam Properties, the Cópia Group, and Angolan Business Beyond Borders, with the support of the Angola-Mozambique Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIAM) and the Angolan Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Telecommunications, Information Technologies, and Social Communication. The conference brings together heads of state, ministers, ambassadors, CEOs, investors, development banks, and business leaders from over 60 international markets.

Mr Cruz will address how ACG’s origination of integrated sport and entertainment districts contributes directly to inclusive economic growth. His intervention will focus on how sport infrastructure, when designed as a financially self-sustaining urban ecosystem, becomes a catalyst for large-scale job creation, skills development, accessible infrastructure, and long-term economic diversification.

The AAIC’s focus on accessibility and inclusion aligns directly with ACG’s approach to sport and entertainment district development. A Victory District™ is designed from inception to serve the widest possible community: creating permanent employment across dozens of professions, providing professional sport training facilities for young athletes, and generating economic activity that benefits surrounding neighbourhoods year-round.

“Sport infrastructure has the power to be one of the most inclusive economic assets a country can build,” said Paulo J. Cruz, CEO of ACG. “A Victory District™ does not just create stadiums. It creates thousands of permanent jobs, from hospitality to broadcast production, from sport coaching to facility management. It creates training pathways for young athletes. And it creates an urban ecosystem that generates economic activity 365 days a year. That is inclusive growth in practice, not in theory. I am honoured to share that vision at the AAIC alongside some of Africa’s most influential investors and decision-makers.”

The AAIC programme includes official MoU signing ceremonies, B2B investment rounds, VIP executive networking with senior government and business leaders across 10 dedicated Business Lounges, and the inauguration of Angola’s first assistive technology factory. The conference covers priority sectors including energy, mining, accessible tourism, agriculture, logistics, health, and infrastructure.

ACG’s Victory District™ framework is designed to originate integrated, mixed-use sport and entertainment districts that move beyond single-venue development models. Each district combines stadiums, indoor arenas, training academies, hotels, conference centres, retail, entertainment, residential, and commercial space within a single masterplanned development, financed by private and institutional capital without reliance on public subsidy.

Mr Cruz brings more than 28 years of experience across Africa, the Middle East, and Europe in originating, structuring, and delivering large-scale infrastructure, urbanisation, and real estate development initiatives. Prior to ACG, he served as Senior Vice President at DAMAC Group, the largest private real estate developer in the Middle East, and as Group CEO of LandAfrique, a pan-African development platform focused on industrial parks, infrastructure, housing, and power projects across Sub-Saharan Africa.

The declaration was signed on October 12 during the 8^th Meeting of the APPO NOCs CEOs Forum at African Energy Week (AEW) 2026 in Cape Town. The signing was overseen by Godfrey Moagi, CEO of the South African National Petroleum Company (SANPC) and newly appointed Chairman of the APPO NOCs CEOs Forum.

“This non-binding agreement is very encouraging, showcasing the expedience of the pace of our resolve to improve socioeconomic development in all our respective countries,” Moagi said during the forum.

Signatories to the agreement committed to strengthening continental energy security within their respective legal mandates, including through direct commercial agreements between African NOCs for crude oil and refined products, subject to domestic legislation and competition rules.

The declaration also aligns participating companies with the APPO’s Long-Term Strategy 2050, which supports the sustainable development of Africa’s energy resources and greater energy independence. It advocates a just and pragmatic energy transition that reflects national economic and social circumstances, with responsible hydrocarbon development continuing alongside complementary emerging green energy solutions.

Signatories pledged to deepen domestic refining capacity to reduce dependence on imported petroleum products, while supporting the African Refining Industry Upgrading Strategy Program and developments surrounding the African Refining Model. The declaration also welcomed operational steps towards implementing the Africa Energy Bank as a funding instrument for major energy projects.

Digitalization, skills development and local content form another pillar of the declaration. Participating NOCs supported secure digital platforms to improve data visibility, monitor local content and facilitate joint research, alongside greater cross-border mobility for professionals between national oil companies and training institutions. They also endorsed an interactive African energy map and encouraged locally developed research and emissions-reduction approaches.

The agreement provides for further international cooperation across upstream exploration and production, downstream refining and marketing, commercial trade and workforce training. It also acknowledges an executive presentation delivered by a visiting delegation from Venezuela, opening the door to exploring potential partnerships with international counterparts across the petroleum value chain.

The declaration also confirmed that the 9^th meeting of the APPO NOCs CEOs Forum will take place in 2027, with the venue and other arrangements to be finalized by member companies. The agreement establishes a shared framework for advancing African energy cooperation through commercial partnerships, infrastructure investment, technical collaboration and the development of domestic capabilities.

The declaration was signed by Bienvenido Nguema Envó, Director General of GEPetrol; Lorenzo Nicolás Mba Obama Nsang, Deputy General Manager of SONAGAS GE; Kwame Ntow Amoah, CEO of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation; Godfrey Moagi, CEO of SANPC; Fayçal-Réda Laraba, Vice President for Planning and Economics at Sonatrach; Ricardo Van-Deste, CEO Exploration and Production at Sonangol E&P; Issifou Moussa Yari, Managing Director of SNH-BENIN; Nathalie Moudiki, Senior Advisor No. 2 to Executive Management at SNH; Augustin Nkuba Kasanza, Director General of SONAHYDROC SA; and Karim Coulibaly, Deputy General Manager of PETROCI Holding.

Speaking at the 8^th annual meeting of the CEOs of APPO NOCs at African Energy Week (AEW) on Monday, Ghezali emphasized that NOCs are no longer just oil companies, but vital platforms for national energy security and economic sovereignty.

“We have moved to how much value Africa can create from the energy it produces,” he stated, highlighting that NOCs must play a decisive role in reversing this imbalance. “To build a competitive sector, African NOCs must strengthen internal partnerships across critical areas, including refining technology, gas infrastructure, petrochemicals, and project financing.”

He urged African NOCs to combine domestic capacities, assets, and off-take agreements to de-risk projects and build a robust pipeline of bankable energy initiatives. The Secretary General highlighted the African Energy Bank as a crucial mechanism to ensure NOCs can finance strategic projects which they cooperate own to enhance regional energy sovereignty.

To ensure long-term impact, the Secretary General challenged delegates to focus on practical outcomes, asking: Which projects can our NOCs develop together? Where can we create integrated value chains? Which projects are we prepared to execute right now?

“Africa does not need an architecture of good intentions, but an architecture of delivery,” the Secretary General concluded, stressing that the true success of industry forums will be measured not by the conversations held, but by the tangible investments, implemented projects, and economic opportunities delivered to African citizens.