PS President defends Portugal’s support for Cape Verde Observer
The president of the Socialist Party (PS), Carlos César, defended this Friday, in Praia, a strengthening of cooperation with Cape Verde, including the economic one after the escalation of prices in the war in Ukraine.
“From the point of view of the Socialist Party, the stimulus is for the Portuguese Government to strengthen and deepen this cooperation”, questioned by Lusa at the Presidential Palace, in Praia, after Carlos César’s visit to the Cape Verdean State, José Maria Neves .
“From the point of view of bilateral relations, this availability is high. I think that Portugal has already taken some decisions in the field of public debt, namely arrears, and thinks that this preferential relationship allows us to go deeper and go as we have been until now ”, she added.
The Cape Verdean Government referred to the call for international support in the war prompted by the war, estimating an impact of 40 million euros to contain the escalation of war.
“It is a disastrous scenario. It is really a scenario, but we will all be maximally capable of finances to solve it”, said the deputy minister and finance minister, Ovo Correia, when presenting the macroeconomic situation in the country for 202 after the consequences of Ukraine, namely the need for state intervention to stabilize energy and food prices.
Cape Verde does not have refining capacity and imports all the petroleum products it needs — around 80% of its electricity production is powered by a diesel or fuel oil plant — as well as 80% of its food, due to the drought that the archipelago has been experiencing for the longest time. of three years.
Portugal is one of several countries that provides support to Cabo Verde, among others, such as the granting of arrears to service the Cabo Verdean debt, in 2020 and 2021, due to the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Carlos César, who today began a three-day visit to Praia, where he participates in the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV, opposition since 2016), said that the two countries strengthen relations and “consolidate the areas in which this bilateral cooperation can and should be sought.
“We have almost 40,000 Cape Verdeans in Portugal, many Portuguese here in Cape Verde and, therefore, beyond our common past history, so that the relationship between Cape Verde and Portugal is always a preferential relationship”, he said.
He said that Portugal has “obligations” and that the prime minister, António Costa, “has also developed and intensified this cooperation” with Cape Verde.
“Democracy to build over the centuries, even today they are brothers who will live over the centuries, their desire to build the fairest and most prosperous societies in Democracy, but democracy will live over the centuries, marks the prestige that Cape Verde has today in the external market”, said Carlos César, as he left the meeting with José Maria Neves.
“Being cooperating countries or international in general, they recognize that Cape Verde is a country with a healthy democratic life and with high probabilities of improving its economic and social condition”, he added.
José Maria Neves was elected President of the Republic of Cape Verde last October, after having appointed the post of Prime Minister in 2001 by the PAICV.
“I was very pleased with this meeting as it was an opportunity to congratulate the President of the Republic on his recent election. He is also a person with whom from a personal point of view I already have a long relationship, since as president of the Regional Government of the Azores I worked with him when he was prime minister for many years, deepening this relationship between Cape Verde and Portugal”, recalled Carlos César .