The Prime Minister of Cape Verde presented this Monday in Parliament what he considers the “visible results” of management and measures influencing the stabilization of incomes and prices, and said that the economy is recovering well after successive crises.
During the debate at the second session of Parliament in October on the topic “Income and Price Policy”, Ulisses Correia e Silva noted that the current context is still marked by crises such as severe droughts, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. .
In this sense, he said the government’s income and price policies should be tailored to protect employment and incomes and reduce the impact of inflation on families and businesses.
In a “very difficult context that no other government in Cape Verde has faced since the advent of democracy,” the prime minister demonstrated “visible results” of a reign that began in 2016, such as a 32.7% increase in the wage bill from then until 2022.
He also noted the increase in the minimum wage, which rose from 11 thousand escudos (99 euros) in 2016 to 16 thousand escudos (145 euros) in 2024 for the public sector and 15 thousand escudos (136 euros) for the private sector, expected will reach 17 thousand escudos (154 euros) in 2025.
Another result is that more employed workers now have Social Security, reaching 65% in 2022, and the unemployment rate is forecast to fall to 8.7% this year (it was 12.1% in 2022).
The absolute poverty rate dropped to 20% in the second quarter of 2023, and the extreme poverty rate dropped to 9.4% in the second quarter of 2023, he continued.
“These are the results achieved in a situation of global crisis. We would be much better off under normal conditions,” the head of government emphasized in his speech at the opening of the session, the topic of which was presented by the parliamentary group Movement for Democracy (MPD, in power).
To make income affordable and ease the burden on families, he recalled, the government has created, among other things, the Social Inclusion Income (RSI), which will benefit more than 9,000 families next year, and has also increased the value and number of beneficiaries of the Social Pension. , covering more than 25 thousand older people.
According to him, in order to protect family incomes in the face of rising prices, the executive branch reduced the VAT on electricity and water from 15% to 8% and increased discounts on the social tariff for electricity from 30 to 50%.
“We have taken financial and fiscal measures to stabilize energy prices (gasoline, diesel, fuel, butane and electricity) as well as prices of staples (corn, wheat and vegetable oil),” he gave an example, guaranteeing, that many measures still remain in force. came into force, and some were strengthened.
The Prime Minister of Cape Verde also presented some measures that will be implemented next year, such as the Career, Functions and Remuneration Plan for Career General Staff, the Regulation on Management Personnel or the second program for the regularization of precarious work in the central public administration.
The country’s economy is “recovering well” after successive crises, with economic growth, falling unemployment, a reduction in poverty and a reduction in public debt, the prime minister said.
In his speech, the leader of the MpD parliamentary group, Paulo Veiga, praised the “responsible and effective measures” that the government has taken to guarantee purchasing power and combat rising inflation.
“We are witnessing sincere and determined efforts to promote fairer income distribution and economic stability in Cape Verde,” the MP said.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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