Angola – New Law on the Economic Activity Definition

A new Law on the Definition of Economic Activities has recently been enacted in Angola (Law No. 25/21 of 18), which repealed and replaced Law No. 5/02, of 16 April.

Main changes

The new statute underlines the fundamental principle of the free private economic and business initiative. The performance of economic activities is only limited in case of activities included in (i) the State's absolute reserve, which is not open to private entities, and (ii) the State's relative reserve, which can only be carried out by private entities under a concession regime.

The list of economic activities previously included in the absolute reserve of the State is now reduced, being solely limited to the exercise of central bank activity and the issuance of national currency.

Several economic activities previously included in the state's absolute reserve, such as the production, distribution and marketing of war material, are now subject to the relative reserve regime, which also includes the following new economic activities:

• Basic sanitation services, environmental conservation areas and tourism development hubs;
• Management of historical and cultural heritage infrastructures;
• Management and recovery of solid waste deposited in public landfills.

Updated full list of economic activities subject to the State reserve:

Absolute reserve

• Central bank activity and the issuance of national currency

Relative reserve

• Production, distribution and commercialization of war material
• Exploration of basic sanitation services
• Collection, treatment and distribution of water for public consumption through fixed networks
• Production, transportation and distribution of electrical energy for public consumption
• Basic postal services
• Exploration of environmental conservation areas
• Management of historical and cultural heritage infrastructures
• Exploration of tourism development hubs
• Management and recovery of solid waste deposited in public landfills
• Management of port and airport related infrastructures
• Exploration of port and airport services
• Rail transportation
• Regular domestic air transport of passengers
• Exploration of infrastructures which are part of the basic telecommunications network
• Exploration of telecommunication services

Law No. 25/21 of 18 October came into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette, 18 October 2021.

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