The representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Angola, Denise António, expressed this Monday (15) her interest in strengthening the partnership with the Ombudsman’s Office, aiming to improve the performance of this institution in defending human rights and citizenship
Speaking to the press at the end of a meeting with the Ombudsman, Florbela Araújo, the UN system official promised resources to the Ombudsman, as well as contributing to development, inclusive governance and the diversification of the economy in Angola. She informed that the UNDP 2024/2028 program for Angola provides for improving the quality of services and help in the management of natural resources, in compliance with the best environmental preservation practices.
According to Denise António, the program contains financial projections, which she did not quantify, which depend on the mobilization of funds. In turn, Florbela Araújo said she had requested sponsorship to essentially promote training activities in the country and others across Africa. Likewise, in-person and virtual training is planned in the environmental field and on the protection of the rights of children, women and the elderly, within the scope of the Association of Ombudsmen of Africa, with the participation of technicians from the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic (PGR) and Penitentiary Services.
Florbela Araújo highlighted that the excess of preventive detention in the country is decreasing considerably, with the creation of a commission which includes the Supreme Court, the Ombudsman’s Office, the Order of Lawyers and prison directors, as well as with the emergence of guarantee judges. She also added that she has asked the Bar Association for judicial sponsorship for citizens in need, despite some abandoning cases because they are not paid. He referred to a case that occurred in the town of Cavaco, province of Benguela, of a lawyer who abandoned the defense process and appropriated his constituent’s assets.
