What is your current assessment of the economy in Cape Verde and what are your priorities in terms of development?

Cape Verde is a small country of half a million, but we are in the West African Economic Community, with over 300 million. We are the smallest country in the community, but we have shown that our macroeconomic indicators are sound.

Since our government took over, growth has doubled. When we took over, growth was around 2%, in 2016 it rose to 3.9% and this year we are looking at around 4%, a figure backed by the IMF. Our currency is pegged to the Euro, so investors from Europe see no risks in terms of exchange, and political stability and rule of law here provide a platform for investors feel to their investment is safe.

A sound economy relies on strong infrastructure: what projects do you see as pivotal to better economic performance?

We are currently upgrading much of our infrastructure: the airport in Boa Vista, for example, is expanding. The airport did not previously have the capacity to handle the increased volume of tourists that that beautiful island was experiencing. The runway and the terminal will both expand as well as the introduction of lighting for night landing when needed. We are also looking at building a cruise terminal in São Vicente and that’s going to serve the cruise business but also aid in decongesting the port and allow other activities in the port.

What are your thoughts on how to approach job creation in Cape Verde?

If tourism is the engine of growth which pulls many other sectors along, this is sure to induce employment in a number of areas.

All the complementary externalities will drive economic growth and create jobs. Paradoxically, with a small population and large scale emigration, more than half of Cape Verdeans worldwide live abroad! We need to consider the shortcomings of our labour pool in being able to serve the economy. In some of the islands, tourism is growing too quickly for the local population to support and fill the jobs being created.

How should the economy of Cape Verde be diversified and what is the potential of the blue economy?

The issue of tourism ties in with the blue economy. The question becomes “how we can go further up the food chain and add greater value to our tourism?” Currently we see high volume, mainstream tourism. What we find is that companies which begin with four stars, when they come to re-evaluation, they renovate and become five star.

Cape Verde is small, but we have one of the largest sea territories in the area. Our Maritime Special Economic Zone is 200 times larger than our landmass, which means fisheries will be important, particularly regarding logistics.

There is also potential in air transport. If we are successful implementing a hub here, it would be a tremendous driver in job creation, and in IT we have many home-grown IT solutions. In renewable energy, 25% of our energy comes from renewable sources and we want to further develop green industries. Even in agriculture, using intensive methods, be they hydroponic or drip irrigation, we can cut down on imports and have a positive effect on the economy.

Are there more trade partnerships to be announced?

With the EU we have a recently updated Special Partnership Agreement, and this is important for us. We are creating in Cape Verde a continuation of Europe: many of our institutions are based on the European model, and we are working to eliminate further boundaries that separate us. We will soon eliminate visas for certain countries, the UK definitely and likely North American countries. We want to base ourselves on a European pattern which will open up trade and more.

Finally, what are your goals for this ministry?

To implement the government’s five year mandate, which emphasises tourism in a broad sense with the effect it exerts. Development of the blue economy is also important in terms of UN development goals, which we are mindful and supportive of. We will pursue our objectives in renewable energy and take a leading role in the UN on this also. We will also look to develop our IT sector and transport with regard to air.