Africa-Press – Cape verde. Os dois maiores partidos agree on the need to diversify and decentralize tourism to boost the local economy, but with different approaches. Declarações feitas no “Plenário”, da Rádio Morabeza”, ao final da tarde desta segunda-feira.
During the program, the PAICV criticized a “lack of thinking and strategic execution”, while the MPD emphasized the progress achieved in the last years, especially in nature tourism, rural and ecotourism.
Nelson Faria, do PAICV, considers that the sector is still too centralized and follows a model that does not favor local development.
“Falo isso tendo em conta que 95% of the tourists are still centered in Sal and in Boa Vista, only for sun and beach tourism, with all-inclusive packages, whose repercussion at the level of the local economy is residual. We have a chaotic transport situation, which leads to the non-possibility of decentralizing tourism, we have a low inter-island connection. We also have municipal challenges. Digo isto porque quando as localities têm receber turistas, as suas infra-estruturas, saneamento, esgotos, o proprio municipal planamento tem de ser algo que possa recebir e colher turistas”, understand.
The representative of the major party of the opposition understands that sun and beach tourism is mainly procured because it is of interest to the operators. Nelson Faria quer um turismo que serva às pessoas.
“We have unexplored opportunities around nautical tourism, ecotourism, cultural tourism. Therefore, now we have tourists that we already know about the country, and we should have a plan and a strategic action that agrees with the need for these tourists to contribute even more to our economy. Nós queremos um turismo que serva às pessoas”, he affirms.
O MpD refers that, despite the impact on the economy and life of people, tourism is centered on our grand hotels, our islands of Sal and Boa Vista. Vander Gomes doesn’t have doubts about the path to diversification.
“We have the challenge of diversifying the tourist offer that the country needs to take up so that we can make a jump and become a little less dependent on tourism from the sun, the beach and the sea, and also the large hotel chains. There are two niches that the country is betting on. The cruise tourism where we have grown a lot and now with the new Cruise Terminal I believe that we are going to make a qualitative and quantitative jump. But there is also sports fishing, the number of tourists that we procure for Santo Antão and o interior of Santiago for mountain and rural tourism. Turistas que procuram São Vicente por causa da dynamica cultural”, points out.
Despite recognizing the country’s challenge for better inter-island transport, the MPD representative does not believe that this is an obstacle to tourism development in all islands.
“Estamos melhor do que no passado, certainly. We are not at the point we want? No. But, the two points that are normally pointed out at an international level for the non-augment of tourists on other islands other than Boa Vista and Sal, is not the problem of transportation. For example, tourists when they come to São Vicente and want to go to Santo Antão, they buy their tickets and go. Most of the ships are full”, he says.
Vander Gomes says that there are incentives for local companies to get involved in the chain of tourism values, but they need to be better disclosed.
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