Cape Verdean government points to accelerating tourism growth

Cape Verdean Tourism and Transport Minister Carlos Santos this Wednesday highlighted the “profound impact” of covid-19 on tourism and pointed to “relevant measures” that are helping boost the sector’s growth rate.

“After the restrictions imposed by the covid-19 pandemic have been overcome, the consequences of which were clearly visible in the figures for 2020 and 2021, we are now registering a recovery and even an acceleration in the growth rate in this sector,” he said. minister.

Speaking to Parliament at the first plenary session in June and during the debate on tourism and transport, the minister recalled that Cape Verde had dropped from four million overnight stays in 2015 to five million in 2019.

However, he recalled that the country recorded a drop of more than 60% in the number of tourists visiting the country in 2020, compared to the previous year, due to restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Once these cuts are overcome, the figures for 2022 already exceed pre-pandemic data by about 20% thanks to the trust and credibility that the country has been able to generate thanks to sanitary measures and protocols,” continued Carlos Santos, noting that the business sector is not abandoned his projects.

With the exception of 2020 and 2021, the minister highlighted the contribution that the tourism sector and sub-sectors have made to improve the living conditions of the people of Cape Verde, which can directly or indirectly stimulate almost all other sectors of activity.

“In particular, in creating jobs, balancing the balance of payments, attracting foreign direct investment, combating regional and local asymmetries and contributing to poverty reduction,” he said.

The minister’s ideas were supported by MPD MP Euclides Silva, who recognized the efforts and measures of the government and the Ministry of Tourism, saying that the sector is experiencing a “good moment of recovery.” .

According to the 2022 Annual Register of Hospitality Establishments released in May by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the country had a record number of rooms on offer last year: 15,257, up 4.2% from 2021, and 28,851 beds. -place, up 19.4%. .

According to the same document, there were 292 hotel establishments operating in Cape Verde at the end of last year, including hotels, “resorts”, guest houses, guest houses and others, which is 1.4% more than in 2021.

Also, according to the list, at the end of 2022, 9,458 people worked in these hotel establishments, which is compared to 8,400 in the previous year, which is 12.6% more.

Tourism accounts for about 25% of Cape Verde’s gross domestic product and welcomed a record 836,000 tourists in 2022, recovering from the complete closure of the sector following the start of the covid-19 pandemic in March 2020.