Angola’s Minister of Telecommunications and Information, José Carvalho da Rocha, said the National Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics (INAMET) plans to spend the sum of USD 60 million in the first phase of its modernisation program. He said this while addressing journalists at the institute after an official visit by the Vice-President of the Republic, Bornito de Sousa.

According to  Rocha, the program which started a year ago, will have the greater part of the funds directed at the training of cadres, which will be facilitated by the Faculty of Sciences, Agostinho Neto University.

The minister stated that the faculty currently undertakes Geophysics Courses with an emphasis on Meteorology. He explained that the institution’s objective is to effectively support the country’s development.

“This is our biggest goal, so we are working, training human resources at different levels and bringing the technology that will facilitate service delivery,” he said.

He further revealed that the institution submitted a strategic plan to different executive bodies, which made money available, after which, a partner was found, in this case, Meteo France International, which has supported the process.

Briefing the press on the state of the last phases of the program, José Carvalho da Rocha said a thorough assessment will be made at the end of the first phase, followed by the process of recovery of the country’s meteorological network.

During the visit, the Vice-President noted the readiness of the institution for forecasting, and also visited the proposed centres for meteorological programming and calibration as well as the Weather and Aeronautics Center at the 4 de Fevereiro International Airport.

INAMET, under the Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technologies, aims to contribute to the protection of lives and property, and to support the sustainable development of the country through reliable meteorological and geophysical information.