LUANDA, Angola, June 1, 2026/APO Group/ –Angolan oil company Etu Energias is making its return to the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) Conference and Exhibition – taking place September 9-10 with a pre-conference day scheduled for September 8 – as a Champion Sponsor, underscoring its expanding role in the country’s upstream landscape. The sponsorship comes as the company accelerates redevelopment campaigns across mature assets, deepens its offshore portfolio and pursues ambitious long-term growth targets aimed at strengthening Angola’s production outlook.

 

Already holding a prominent position within Angola’s oil sector, Etu Energias has implemented a series of 2030 goals centered around strengthening production at mature assets, restoring production and exports at onshore acreage, participating in ‘golden blocks’ and establishing partnerships with international players. These align closely with its own target of reaching 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) by 2030 while supporting Angola’s goal of sustaining output above one million bpd in the long-term. Recent milestones reflect these ambitions.

In May 2026, the company – alongside partners Poliedro, Kotoil, Falcon Oil and Prodoi – completed drilling and testing operations at the Espadarte 7ST2 well at Block 2/05 in the Lower Congo Basin. Initial tests showed stabilized production at around 2,000 bpd and 2,500 bpd, reinforcing the commercial viability of the Greater Espadarte – the last development area of the block. The partners are planning to drill one more appraisal well before finalizing the development plan.

At the same time, Etu Energias has continued to strengthen its offshore portfolio through strategic acquisitions. In March 2026, the company acquired a 20% and 10% stake in Block 14 and 14K respectively through a $310 million transaction. The deal was financially backed by Chariot and Shell Western Supply and Trading and marks another step in the company’s transformation from a domestic producer into a more diversified upstream player with exposure across multiple basins and production environments.

Beyond upstream projects, Etu Energias continues to expand its downstream portfolio through the development of service stations across the country. In the local content space, the company invests extensively in workforce development, education and skills transfer. This month, Etu Energias announced the first results of its STEM Program – spearheaded by ADPP Angola with the support of Etu Energias, the National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency and its Block 2/05 partners. The $412,000 program strengthens technical and scientific education in the country, with more than 8,000 students set to benefit by 2028.

As a Champion Sponsor of AOG 2026, Etu Energias will join government officials, operators, financiers and technology providers in Luanda to discuss the future of Angola’s oil and gas sector. Taking place at a pivotal moment for the country’s upstream industry, the conference serves as a platform for advancing investment, strengthening partnerships and supporting the exploration and redevelopment activities needed to sustain Angola’s long-term production goals.

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 1, 2026/APO Group/ –PayAngel (https://PayAngel.com), a cross-border payments platform built by migrants and shaped by a lived understanding of the migrant journey, today announced an expanded collaboration with Visa, a world leader in digital payments. Leveraging Currencycloud, a Visa Direct solution, PayAngel will strengthen its multicurrency account and international payout capabilities.

 

The collaboration enables PayAngel to support faster, more efficient cross border payouts across multiple currencies and countries, enhancing how individuals and businesses move money internationally. This capability supports everyday use cases that matter to PayAngel’s customers, from contributing to family milestones and fulfilling communal obligations, to supporting businesses that operate across borders.

Born out of a desire to challenge the high costs, friction, and lack of transparency that have long defined traditional remittances, PayAngel enables fee free transfers, competitive FX rates, and dependable settlement across 22 African countries, as well as India and Bangladesh. The platform also supports businesses through a web based B2B payments portal that enables collections, disbursements, and cross border settlement without the need for local presence or complex integrations.

By utilising Currencycloud’s regulated infrastructure, PayAngel is able to streamline settlement flows, improve operational efficiency, and expand its ability to serve customers with clarity, control, and confidence. The collaboration aligns with PayAngel’s long term strategy to scale responsibly, deepen trust, and invest in resilient global payments infrastructure.

“Access to dependable, well governed payment rails is essential to supporting globally connected communities,” said Jones Amegbor, CEO at PayAngel. “This collaboration strengthens the infrastructure behind our platform, helping us deliver faster and more efficient cross border payments while staying focused on the human connections those payments represent.”

“Visa Direct is focused on enabling secure, seamless money movement across the global payments ecosystem,” said Philip Konopik, SVP, Head of CMS, Visa Europe. “It’s fantastic to be collaborating with fintechs such as PayAngel, to help supercharge innovation that improves how money moves for consumers and businesses worldwide.”

BRAZZAVILLE, Republic of the Congo, May 31, 2026/APO Group/ –The African Development Bank Group’s (www.AfDB.org) five-day Annual Meetings in Brazzaville, concluded on Friday 29 May 2026 with the Board of Governors strongly endorsing President Dr Sidi Ould Tah’s mandate to implement the Bank’s Four Cardinal Points strategic vision.

 

The governors called on Dr Ould Tah to accelerate the reform of Africa’s financial architecture in order to mobilize large-scale resources for Africa’s development within the framework of the New African Financial Architecture for Development (NAFAD). They also expressed their support for institutional reforms undertaken by Ould Tah to make the Bank more agile, more flexible, and closer to beneficiaries across Africa.

“The Board of Governors approved and encouraged the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, to implement his vision, ‘the Four Cardinal Points,’ to strengthen Africa’s capacity for action and influence in an increasingly fragmented world,” said the Minister of Economy, Planning, Statistics and Forecasting of the Republic of the Congo, Ludovic Ngatsé, Chair of the Bank Group’s Boards of Governors, during the closing ceremony.

“I would like to warmly welcome the clear, frank and overwhelming support we received,” said Dr. Ould Tah during these Meetings.

In a compelling address, he recalled that it is “bold political decisions that will make the difference on the ground.” “I want to say this,” he added with the utmost clarity, “I have listened to you, and I have heard you.” The President emphasized that what was built in Brazzaville “beyond the figures” was “deeper.” “We have set in motion a dynamic of action, a dynamic of transformation, a dynamic of integration,” Ould Tah stressed.

More than 4,000 participants from over 81 countries took part in the Bank Group’s Annual Meetings, held under the theme: “Mobilizing large-scale resources for financing Africa’s development in a fragmented world.”

The Annual Meetings, the first organized under Dr. Ould Tah’s presidency since he took office on 1st  September 2025, featured a presidential panel bringing together the President of the Republic of the Congo, Denis Sassou-N’Guesso, his Central African counterpart Faustin-Archange Touadéra and Gabon’s Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, together with Bank President Sidi Ould Tah.

The Annual Meetings, the Bank Group’s main statutory gatherings, were also marked by several major announcements. Angola announced a contribution of €6.5 million to the 17th replenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF). This brings to 25 the number of African countries financing ADF-17, with a total exceeding USD 190 million. The unprecedented commitment of African countries to financing ADF-17 marks a turning point toward shared responsibility and reinforces African ownership within the development finance architecture and the economic future of the continent.

The Meetings were also marked by more than USD 3 billion in commitments to the Congo Basin Blue Fund (https://apo-opa.co/4nYSbKB), aimed at supporting 17 African countries in environmental conservation and sustainable development.

Numerous agreements were signed as part of the operationalization of the Bank’s new Four Cardinal Points strategic vision, as well as during a high-level meeting on the Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme in Africa (IATP) and the African Facility for Medicines and Medical Equipment (AMEF).

Japan announced USD 10 million in funding for the implementation of AMEF.

As the Annual Meetings kicked off with the Africa Day celebrations on Monday 25 May, the President of the Republic of the Congo, Denis Sassou N’Guesso announced the abolition of visas for all African citizens.

“As from the first of January 2027, nationals of all African countries will have visa-free access and will no longer need a visa to come to Congo,” the Congolese leader said and urged countries to deepen regional integration

Welcoming the landmark decision, Bank President Ould Tah described it as “a courageous and deeply pan-African decision.”

Congolese Prime Minister Anatole Collinet Makosso hailed the fact that the Annual Meetings were held in person despite the Ebola outbreak in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a few days before the event.

A joint mobilization of the Congolese government, the World Health Organisation’s regional office which has its headquarters in Brazzaville, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the African Development Bank, put in place detailed safety measures to address the threat of the outbreak. To date, no Ebola case has been reported or detected in the Republic of the Congo since the outbreak was declared by the WHO on 17 May.  During his closing remarks, Minister Ngatsé, the Chairman of the Bank Group’s Boards of Governors, stated:

“For the Republic of the Congo, hosting these Meetings has been an exceptional international showcase, but above all a unique opportunity to align its national priorities with continental dynamics”.

Bank Group President Ould Tah reaffirmed his ambition to make the African Development Bank a “solutions bank,” more agile, closer to people, and fully engaged in the continent’s economic transformation.

At the press conference following the closing ceremony, Ould Tah said the African Development Bank will never be burdened by bureaucracy and will remain firmly connected to the field. “There is no risk of disconnect from the field,” stressing that the Bank will work with national banks and regional banks to provide support to Small and Medium Enterprises, youth, and women.

The Bank Group president emphasized that Africa must mobilize more domestic resources, guard against fragmentation, and transform its raw materials in order to create value, growth, and above all jobs for African youth and women.

President Ould Tah also paid tribute to civil society organisation, philanthropists, and the African diaspora. “Your role is irreplaceable,” he acknowledged, “The Bank will be your leading partner,” Ould Tah assured.

• Communiqué of the Boards of Governors (https://apo-opa.co/4uCyCu5)
• President Ould Tah’s speech (https://apo-opa.co/4vo9zLq)