A preparation for the next Strategic Cooperation Program (PEC) linked to the city of Praia, as part of a four-day visit to Cape Verde by a delegation from Camões – Institute for Cooperation and Language, IP, headed by Vice President Cristina Moniz.
In addition to preparing the next PEC, the objective of the Portuguese mission to Cape Verde is to carry out an evaluation of the program still in force (2017-2021), and whose indicative financial envelope was 120 million euros.
“The balance that was made together with our Cape Verdean partners of the implementation of the current PEC was, in general, very positive”, highlighted the vice president of Instituto Camões, acknowledging some delay in activities due to the covid-19 pandemic.
“We now have to accelerate some activities”, the project, also reporting on other actions that were accelerated and that were not foreseen in the current program, especially in the health area.
After a three-hour meeting with the sectoral ministries, a Portuguese official highlighted the “alignment” between two countries regarding the areas of Portuguese support and said that the current program had an implementation of around 70%.
Justice, security, education, training, culture, science and innovation, health and social affairs, energy and environment, public finance and the private sector were the areas of intervention of the current program, signed in 2017.
As for the new financial package, Cristina Moniz said that it will be decided at a political level and the signing will take place during the next summit between Portugal and Cape Verde, which should take place later this year and this time Cape Verdeans will be the hosts.
Cape Verde’s national planning director, Gilson de Pina, said that the African country wants to continue to deepen the sectors in cooperation instruments for the next five years.
“With the major reforms that the Cape Verdean Government is carrying out, we want to continue to count on the support of the Portuguese Government so that we can materialize these reforms because we still have major challenges in the field of education, culture, training, health and inclusion social”, he pointed out.
With regard to health, Gilson de Pina expressed the will of the Portuguese Government to continue helping Cape Verde to “better prepare” and reduce medical evacuations to Portugal.
“So that we can reduce costs both on the one hand and on the other side”, continued the same responsible, hoping to continue to count on Portuguese support in terms of energy and the environment.
“More than bringing in new areas, it’s focusing on these areas and now trying to intensify actions on both sides”, reinforced the national director of Cape Verdean Planning.
For Gilson de Pina, the current program was heavily conditioned by the covid-19 pandemic, but he said he hopes that the next one, from 2022 to 2026, will not suffer as much, improving what was not complemented in the current one.
The Strategic Cooperation Program (PEC) is a memorandum that advises direct support from the Portuguese Government to the Cape Verdean State Budget and is normally signed by respectful prime ministers during summits between the two countries.
RIPE // JH