Brava: President of the Republic promises to “continue and reinforce” positive discrimination policies for the island

The President of the Republic, Jorge Carlos Fonseca, said Friday, at the end of his visit to Brava, that he will "continue and reinforce" positive discrimination policies for the island, so that it is "more relevant" in the context of the country .

The Head of State made these remarks to the press, at the end of his visit to Brava Island, from 26 to 29 November, considering his stay on “Island of Flores” to be “very instructive and enriching”, from the point of view of knowledge of the island's current economic and social situation.

According to Jorge Carlos Fonseca, there were three days of contacts, highlighting, from the outset, the “detailed meeting” that he held at the beginning of the visit with the city council, which allowed him to have an overview of the state of development on the island, the projects in progress , the works already carried out, the constraints, difficulties and challenges of the island.

He also visited institutions such as the Health Department, a visit that allowed him to realize that there are shortcomings in this sector which, according to the PR, is “vital” for what is thought to be the island’s development process.

“It is an island where rural tourism and community health are being considered, but for this type of tourism to take place, it is necessary for tourists to have confidence that when they arrive on the island they will have the minimum health conditions for any eventuality”, he advanced.

When listing a set of shortcomings, the Head of State started with the number of nurses, but, above all, in terms of equipment, laboratories without basic analyses, some devices that were purchased but are out of order, lack of reagents and lack of equipment which are the “minimum of the minimum”.

Despite these facts, he also commented that people raised many problems in terms of health care, exemplifying with situations that lead patients to be transferred to Fogo or to the city of Praia

Having exposed these shortcomings, he stressed that it is a vital sector and that it needs a “closer” look from government entities.

In addition to these institutional visits, he said that he had been to several locations, contacting “many people” on the island, to “feel the pulse”, in an informal, direct and personalized conversation.

"This dialogue with people, with their feelings, their concerns helps me to improve what is the perception that I have of the Government's dialogue with local authorities", said the head of state, considering the visit as a kind of of filter.

"The populations have problems with an agricultural year that seemed to be reasonable, but turned out to be bad, which generates great pressure in terms of public employment, access to water, whether for consumption by people, animals or agriculture", highlighted the same source, adding that the situation is not "properly famous".

He added that Brava is an island that during the 44 years of independence "did not have the same level of development" as other parts of the national territory, even acknowledging that, "of course, development does not have to be the same".

He went on to say that Brava “lagged a little behind”, acknowledging, however, that there are signs of growth, and that the construction of a road from Nova Sintra to Nossa Senhora do Monte is planned.

He cited as positive signs, the construction of the Furna – Nova Sintra road, construction of the Furna desalination station, change in the face of Lomba Tantum in several aspects, but defended that “it is necessary to aspire more for the island”.

This, he explained, due to the past it had, is as if it needed a “reinforcement of restoration” to make it a more relevant island in the context of the country.

The President of the Republic said that he is from the island “optimistic”, but as Head of State he will pursue and reinforce policies of positive discrimination for the island, possibly even an “ultra positive discrimination”, taking into account that the island lost opportunities for a long time and is losing population.

He stressed that the existing culture, in which people want to emigrate from a very young age, needs to be “stopped”, not wanting to “say no, they won't”.

But if they travel, he continued, that is by desire or for a shorter period of time, defending the need to create conditions for people to stay on the island and have the necessary conditions.

MC/JMV

Inforpress/end