Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Tourist Village of Fontainhas, in Ribeira Grande, Santo Antão, has just been selected by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) to participate in the Upgrade Program of the Best Tourist Villages in the World, along with 20 other countries such as Argentina, Ethiopia, Mauritius , Kenya, Italy, Portugal and Japan as a result of the worldwide competition for “The Best Tourist Villages 2002”.
According to a publication on the website of the World Tourism Organization, the selection was made among 136 applications from 57 Member States of the UNWTO, with 32 chosen as the best rural villages and 20 for an Upgrade Program, as was the case of Fontainhas.
The support of this United Nations body and its partners is aimed at improving the areas identified for this purpose during the evaluation process and thus contributing to their being qualified in the near future as the best villages in the world.
The award ceremony takes place in AlUla, Saudi Arabia, from 27 to 28 February 2023, together with the first face-to-face meeting of the network of the best tourist villages in the world, within the framework of the UNWTO.
The award recognizes rural destinations that make the tourism sector the engine of development and new job opportunities, preserving and promoting the values and products of the local community.
The UNWTO initiative also recognizes the villages for their commitment to Innovation and Sustainability in all its aspects – economic, social and environmental – and for tourism development in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“High potential” of Fontainhas – OMT
According to a communication from the UNWTO General Secretariat addressed to the Minister of Tourism and Transport, Carlos Santos, this election is a “clear demonstration” of the natural and cultural wealth and the high potential of the Aldeia de Fontainhas to become an exceptional example as a rural destination in the world. of reference.
Cape Verde, remember, competed last June, within the framework of the Program for Tourism and Environmental Enhancement of Rural Villages, presenting two villages including Fontaínhas, which was already being intervened by the Program with a set of interventions that total the value of 138 386 935 ECV.
Interventions
Interventions include the construction of the access road in the amount of 80 635 000.00 ECV and other specific ones, in Aldeia de Fontainhas, in the amount of 57,751,935 ECV, namely the requalification of the social centre, improvements in accessibility in Fontainhas plus requalification of the square and sintina, accessibility improvements in Corvo and Formiguinhas.
In addition to this same package, the construction of septic tanks and the sewage system, improvement of the water distribution network, requalification of housing (plastering, painting, roofing and WC) and training and business promotion, in addition to environmental awareness and recovery actions. of intangible heritage (the contradance).
The program
It should be noted that the Rural Villages Tourism and Environmental Enhancement Program is a nationwide program and covers 18 tourist villages on the islands of Santo Antão, São Nicolau, Maio, Santiago, Fogo and Brava, consisting of diversifying the tourist offer, improving of basic sanitation, aiming at improving the quality of life of the populations in the regions covered.
In 2015, the Spanish edition of National Geographic magazine elected the village of Fontainhas as the second place “with the best view in the world”.
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