The President of the Government stated that the current situation of the cooperative sector of São Jorge Island is quite different from the one that was recently experienced. However, he called for the need to continue working in order to overcome the challenges regarding the promotion of dairy products.
"If it is true that today we are in a situation when the cooperative sector has overcome some straggles, it is true that today we are aware that not all problems are solved," said Vasco Cordeiro. The President of the Government spoke at the opening of the water abstraction borehole in Ribeira do Nabo (stream) on São Jorge Island.
The President of the Government stressed that the current situation in the local cooperative sector is not just the result of the Government's actions.
"Firstly, it is the result of the actions taken by São Jorge producers and leaders of the cooperative sector. The Government is also part of this struggle to overcome the difficulties that the sector faced," said Vasco Cordeiro.
On the second day of the statutory visit to São Jorge, the President of the Government defended the need to increasingly focus on the dairy sector, not only at a local level but also at a regional level, taking into consideration the improvement of producers' income.
"After overcoming a challenge, this continuous and permanent search for the tools that will allows us to win the next challenge is fundamental for the sector to succeed and overcome future challenges," said the government official.
In his speech, Vasco Cordeiro stressed that this path represents the fulfilment of scheduled commitments in the strategy the Government has been implementing, which also includes investments to supply water and electricity to farms and provide them with better access roads.
In this regard, Vasco Cordeiro pointed out the example of the construction and improvement of agricultural roads of Cancela de Água and Canada Velha, located within the Agricultural Perimeter of Santo Antão/Topo, the construction of a metal reservoir in Norte Grande, the improvement of the water collection system in Cancela de Água and a groundwater abstraction borehole in Ribeira do Nabo.
In the course of this statutory visit, the Council of the Government will proceed with the launch of public tenders for the construction of the agricultural roads of Serroa and Preguiça, an investment over 430 thousand Euros, and the construction of the road connecting Ponta to Sete Fontes Park, with a base value over 350 thousand Euros.
At today's ceremony, the Government signed with Velas Town Hall a protocol for the operation and maintenance of the agricultural water supply system from the borehole located in Ribeira do Nabo (stream). It will cover 90 farms, stretching over 900 hectares in the villages of Manadas, Urzelina and Santo Amaro. This intervention represented an investment of 600 thousand Euros.