The European Union will fund three new Cape Verdean civil society projects on sustainable tourism in protected areas with 2.7 million euros, to be carried out in Santo Antão, São Nicolau and Fogo, it was announced on Monday January 29.
In a statement, the European Union delegation in Cape Verde said that the funding, which will be signed this Tuesday, is made available under the Thematic Programme for Civil Society Organizations.
“This direct support for civil society organizations and partners reinforces the European Union’s commitment to sustainable tourism in Cape Verde,” said the same source, indicating that joint work will be carried out with the public and private sectors to diversify tourism.
The projects, selected under a call for proposals launched in November 2022, will be carried out on the islands by Associação Amigos da Natureza in Santo Antão, Associação de Desenvolvimento do Património de Mértola in Santo Antão and São Nicolau, and COSPE on the island of Fogo.
In 2021, the European Union and the government signed the Budget Support Financing Agreement 2021-2024, for around 18 million euros, to support the Executive in achieving the goals of eradicating extreme poverty by 2026 and guaranteeing 50% renewable sources in the country’s energy mix by 2030.
In 2007, the EU and Cape Verde signed a Special Partnership, the only one of its kind on the African continent, which covers areas such as good governance, security and stability, regional integration, technical and normative convergence, the information and knowledge society, the fight against poverty and development, and Cape Verde has already expressed its intention to introduce other pillars.