By Mark Longyen

The First Lady of Cape Verde, Mrs Debora Carvalho, on Monday called on foreign investors to take advantage of the abundant investment opportunities offered by her country.

Mrs Carvalho made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Praia, the country’s capital.

According to her, Cape Verde has enormous potentials for economic development that will position them for higher levels of growth.

She said the numerous tourist attractions in the country’s tourism sector constituted about 25 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“We have a lot of opportunities. Cape Verde has beautiful islands, oceans, and sea.

“Tourism is also an important area and it represents 25 per cent of our GDP.

“We have a lot of other potentials. Each of the 10 islands has different realities with specific opportunities,” she said.

Mrs Carvalho added that the country has the advantage of being accessible by both sea and air, with a potentially vibrant transport sector.

She said that the country is endowed with a vibrant youth population, 70 per cent of which is below 30 years old.

“We have a good transportation system – air and maritime transport.

“We also have rocks. I always say we don’t have gold, we don’t have diamond, but we have beautiful rocks that can be used in civil construction.

“And, of course in our youth population, we have enormous potential.

“70 per cent of our society is less than 30 years old. So this is strong,” she said.

She expressed delight in the ECOWAS Small Business Coalition’s (ESBC) decision to hold a training for MSMEs in the country, saying it provides an opportunity for West African small businesses to share experiences.

“So, I think it’s a really important opportunity for sharing the experiences, the reality, the policies that are being taken.

“Definitely, it’s a promotion for the country, but it’s basically a way of sharing and complementing the opportunities,” she said.

The first lady described the International Women’s Day, which is celebrated annually in March as a day of reflection for the womenfolk.

“I see it as a month of reflection for everything we achieve, for the victories, but we still have challenges for women and girls.

“So, for me, it’s a month of reflection, celebrating what we achieve, but standing strong for those that we have yet to achieve,” she added(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Emmanuel Yashim