Talk to us about the creation of this fund and its main objectives.

The fund was created to invest in strategic sectors like education, touristic safety, and promoting Cape Verde as an excellent tourist destination.

What about the social and economic impact of this fund in tourism?

The government’s strategy for 2017-2021 is based on leveraging tourism for the development of Cape Verde. This growth will reduce poverty and create new jobs internally. Families will have more money and live better, but this has to be balanced with taking care of our country’s natural bounty, and protecting it for coming generations.

What is your vision for the country’s development, concerning the priority given to the Blue Economy and the transport sector?

Our geographical position in the Atlantic is key, as it connects Africa, Europe and America. Cape Verde has more maritime territory than it does land, so our Blue Economy is also extremely important, as well as renewable energy. We have potential for solar, wind and wave energy. There is a common objective which unifies all this: sustainably evolving our offering.

What are the challenges and opportunities for the private sector in Cape Verde tourism?

The government knows that the private sector is extremely important for our development, and is working with tourist operators and investors in order to create the necessary infrastructure to move forward. We are also focused on spreading these improvements across all ten islands, so that the entire country can benefit from the boost tourism provides for our economy.

How are you engaging with the private sector to make it part of this development? 

Our Chamber of Tourism plays a major role here. We are focused on making sure that private endeavours that contribute to the country’s economy have a return on investment, and also in making sure that there is diversification in the type of tourism.

There are also several NGOs working in tourism and nature preservation that can create partnerships with local government entities in order to access the tourism fund and work towards the regional development of this sector.

You have extensive experience on the islands of Maio and Boa Vista; how are you decentralising the tourism sector, and creating broad based development?

Last year we had 644,000 tourists. This is thanks to all-inclusive tourism mainly in the islands of Sal and Boa Vista. Other islands will be given important opportunities to grow in the near future; but what we’re looking for is sustainable tourism that allows us to reduce poverty country-wide.

What are your priorities for 2018?

We will participate in international events in order to promote our tourism activities. There is, for example, a Kite Surf competition to be on the island of Sal. We will also promote our culture worldwide, we are pushing for our “morna” to be considered World Heritage. Other objectives are promoting cultural events in the north of Europe, and promoting Cape Verde’s natural and rural tourism, specifically in the islands of Santo Antão and Fogo.

What are your competitive advantages in comparison to other archipelagos in the region such as the Azores or the Canary Islands?

The Azores, Madeira and Canary Islands are “European”. Thus, we are waiving the need for Europeans to need visas to come here. But our offer is different from what you can find on these other islands, we are a very special country inside Macaronesia. I’m sure that we can stand out from our competitors when it comes to quality tourism.

The way we welcome and receive visitors here is unique and we are proud of it. It’s called “morabeza”.

Could you share the meaning of “morabeza” with our readers?  What does it mean for Cape Verdeans?

“Morabeza” relates to the way we live and how we embrace people. We have cultural events and types of music like “morna” and “funana” that originate from our culture and way of being, and that makes the experience of visiting Cape Verde something very unique. Traditions like these are not found elsewhere, it’s all very authentic.