Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Minister of Tourism and Transport, Carlos Santos, admitted that the issue of transport and the challenge of inter-island connectivity is one of the conditioning elements for the development of tourism and other sectors.
Speaking to Inforpress, on the sidelines of Cape Verde’s participation in the Madrid International Tourism Fair (Fitur), which took place in the Spanish capital from 24 to 28 January, the minister recalled that the issue of transport is a challenge for Cape Verde, but which is included, namely in the State Budget for 2024, in which connectivity appears as one of the pillars.
“It is in fact an opportunity and a challenge, because it represents one of the conditioning elements in the development of tourism, we have no doubt about that. Therefore, we are interested and committed and there is a serious commitment that this year we will have to resolve the problems and shortcomings that still remain in air and sea transport”, admitted the official.
According to Carlos Santos, when the Government defines the resolution of the issue of connectivity as one of the central pillars for 2024, it is because it understands that the country has not yet reached the level it wants and that there is work to be done.
“We are working to correct all the deficiencies and insufficiencies that exist in the air, sea and land transport sector. I think it is a business opportunity, both for nationals and for people from other latitudes”, he declared.
The minister assured that the work is aimed at improving people’s connectivity and mobility, especially because it is the responsibility of the Government/State to guarantee this mobility, and the provider of this service does not have to be from the public sector, that is, it can be from the private sector.
“It is the Government’s determination to introduce in the country, later this year, the obligation of public service of inter-island air transport, a step that we took in 2023 with the publication of the basic law on the obligation of public services of domestic transport and this quarter we will present a second package of what is part of this global pie of legislation”, he maintained.
Carlos Santos explained that the next step is to define the minimum criteria, that is, the obligations that the domestic air transport operator will have to comply with, so as to then be able to improve punctuality, attendance, safety and sustainability of its own operator.
For him, these obligations cannot be seen from just one side, but from both parties, that is, on the side of the grantor, which is the State, and on the side of the fulfiller and grantor, who will probably have to be the operator in the market or the one that will be selected for this purpose.
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