Africa-Press – Cape verde. The heads of state of Senegal and Cape Verde want to study the creation of maritime connections for passengers and goods, they announced last Friday in a joint statement, in Praia, a recurring issue between the two countries.
“As part of strengthening trade relations, we want to work on opening a maritime connection between Dakar and Praia and even to other islands” , said the Senegalese President, Bassirou Diomaye Faye.
The statement was made at the Presidency Palace, in Plateau, the historic center of the Cape Verdean capital, as part of a visit by the Senegalese head of state.
” The sea route offers very large opportunities for movement of people and goods “, said Faye, forwarding the matter to the joint commission between the two countries, which should meet again.
The exchange of goods between the two countries will benefit, as well as Cape Verdean tourism and regional integration, he added.
The creation of maritime links is a recurring issue in relations between the two countries: in 2021, the heads of diplomacy of Cape Verde and Senegal identified transport across the Atlantic as one of the points to reinforce bilateral cooperation, but without progress.
The President of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, classified the visit as ” historic and strategic ” given the ” possibility of strengthening relations between the two countries, particularly through maritime connections “, following advances made through air transport.
” There is also the possibility of cooperating and articulating positions, both within the framework of the Economic Community of West African States [ECOWAS] and the African Union [AU] “, he added.
Bassirou Diomaye Faye was pleased with the ” commitment ” demonstrated by José Maria Neves in regional dialogue.
Cape Verde has ” the status of a great African democracy “, he said, which is why it will have ” an important role within ECOWAS to resolve the institution’s weaknesses “.
” We all know how useful ECOWAS must continue to be in the context of African integration, but it will not be strong if there are countries that want to leave “, said the Senegalese President, in an allusion to Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, whose governments were overthrown by successive military coups since 2020 and formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), under the banner of sovereignty and pan-Africanism.
” Therefore, it is important to renew dialogue ” and build a community ” of the people “, he said.
Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s visit was scheduled to last a few hours and was part of a tour, which on the 24th took him to Guinea-Conakry, after taking up his duties on April 2nd.
Since his investiture, the Senegalese head of state has visited neighboring countries such as Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Ivory Coast, as well as Ghana and Nigeria.
Senegal is one of the largest economies on the west African coast and is the closest country to Cape Verde.
Dakar and Praia are separated by 650 kilometers of Atlantic Ocean, maintain historical relations and reciprocally welcome large communities from their respective diasporas.
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