Cape Verde: Travel and Tourism Agencies Will Propose Air Taxis to Improve Mobility between Islands

Cape Verde's travel and tourism agencies will present to the government, next Monday, a proposal to introduce air taxis in the country, as a way of “trying to resolve” the constant mobility gaps between the islands.

“We will hear [from the government] what can be done to realize this opportunity to improve mobility between the islands, especially with regard to tourism,” said Marvela Rodrigues, president of the Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies of Cape Verde ( AAVT), to Lusa on Thursday.

She did not give further details about the proposal, but stated that she was aware of two other similar projects (in addition to the AAVT proposal), which also aim to increase air connections in the country.

Travel agencies in Cape Verde are taking the initiative at a time when there are persistent cancellations, delays and reschedulings by the state-owned company Transportes Aéreos de Cabo Verde (TACV), the only company that operates flights between the country's islands.

There were cancellations “every other day”, with an average of “three to four per week”, on planes with capacity for 72 people.

“It is very complicated to manage this”, especially during the high holiday season in Cape Verde, between July and September, when there is a lot of mobility between the islands, especially among tourists and emigrants, he said.

The businesswoman emphasized that passengers no longer complain.

“This has been happening for years and we are not seeing any improvements”, he lamented, recalling the government's repeated promises to create reliable and regular connections between the islands, but so far without solutions.

Marvela Rodrigues said there is “a lot of demand” for air travel between the Cape Verde islands, but there are no seats to sell.

“Agencies’ hands are often tied in terms of the possibility of business”, he stated, considering that, under these conditions, one cannot talk about tourism in Cape Verde, with the exception of the islands of Sal and Boa Vista, which receive international charter flights. .

TACV announced a week ago that it would receive another plane to add to the two it uses on domestic flights.

However, according to public flight platforms on the Internet, there is only one plane connecting the islands, with several delays and cancellations.

Lusa has been seeking clarification for weeks, but has not received responses from TACV or the Ministry of Transport.

Investors and partners have pointed out that the lack of a strategy for the domestic flights sector is a serious limitation for the development of Cape Verde, an archipelago made up of nine inhabited islands with around 500,000 inhabitants.