Brazilian President to Visit Equatorial Guinea

MALABO, Equatorial Guinea, July 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will visit Equatorial Guinea on Monday, July 5 as part of an African tour that will take place between July 4 to 12, including official visits to Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Tanzania, Zambia and South Africa. The Brazilian President will be accompanied by a delegation of Brazilian businessmen.

Trade between the two countries has increased significantly in recent years. In June 2009, Brazil's Minister of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Miguel Jorge, also visited Equatorial Guinea accompanied by a large delegation of businessmen from his country. So far this year, Equatorial Guinea has signed several contracts with Brazilian companies across various sectors, including infrastructure and construction projects, education and sports.

Diplomatic relations between Equatorial Guinea and Brazil were established in 1974. The opening of the Embassy of Equatorial Guinea in Brasilia in 2005 and the Embassy of Brazil in Malabo in 2006 have significantly contributed to a stronger and more open cooperation between the two countries.

Equatorial Guinea's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pastor Micha Ondo Bile, traveled to Brazil in 2005 to conduct an official visit, during which bilateral relations and diplomatic relations were expanded.

The President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo also visited the Brazilian state in February 2008, an occasion on which he met with President Lula da Silva. Prior to this visit, President Obiang also participated in the Conference of Intellectuals from Africa and the Diaspora held in the city of Salvador de Bahia in 2006.

About Equatorial Guinea

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea (Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial) is the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa, and one of the smallest nations on the continent. In the late-1990s, American companies helped discover the country's oil and natural gas resources, which only within the last five years began contributing to the global energy supply. Equatorial Guinea is now working to serve as a pillar of stability and security in its region of West Central Africa. The country will host the 2011 Summit of the African Union. For more information, visit http://www.guineaecuatorialpress.com.

This has been distributed by Qorvis Communications, LLC on behalf of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. More information on this relationship is on file at the United States Department of Justice, Washington, DC.

SOURCE Republic of Equatorial Guinea