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CABO VERDE
MAIN MESSAGES
VOLUNTARY NATIONAL REVIEW ON IMPLEMENTATION OF
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
2021
- Facing COVID-19
In the last 5 years Cabo Verde faced 3 terrible years of drought but still recovered its economic growth, but in 2020, like other SIDS, the country faced a harsh recession of 14.8%, due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. The year 2021 should be the year of consolidation of the first cycle of sustainable development, but instead it will be the year of sustainable recovery. The existing social vulnerabilities are amplified, therefore health, economic and social emergency are the budget priorities, with the support of the international community specially on the implementation of the National Plan for Response, Recovery and Promotion of the Economy. Also, with the support of the international community, Cabo Verde aims to vaccinate a minimum of 70% of adults in 2021 with full coverage by 2023.
- Gender Parity
Cabo Verde made remarkable progress in the area of gender equality that will be shared with the international community, with emphasis on significant and sustainable reduction of GBV crimes, and full achievement of gender parity in political decision-making bodies, with the implementation of the parity law. Cabo Verde aspire to be a country without gender discrimination, by promoting economic opportunities for women and girls, stimulating diversified educational and professional paths, deepening the equal participation of women and men in spaces and positions of power and decision-making, and developing policies and measures to eliminate all forms of gender-based violence.
- Human capital
Cabo Verde elected the development of human capital as the main accelerator of sustainable development and young people are the most important segment, with increasing elderly population. The country made remarkable progress in the last 4 years on education, becoming one of the few countries with free primary and secondary education. Reforms to promote technical and professional education from the 9th grade onwards will contribute to the massification of the professional qualification of young people. With these reforms coupled with those underway in higher education, and with investment in health for all, the aim is to develop human capital, to accelerate economic growth and reduce inequality and poverty. We urge the international community to accompany the country's efforts, within the framework of the strategic plan for human capital development.
- Diversifying the economy
This pandemic reinforces the imperative of diversifying the economy as an essential measure of resilience to external shocks. Cabo Verde Ambition 2030 set the commitment for the diversification of the economy, by integrating the country into new global value chains. The Cabo Verdean authorities prioritize, the acceleration of energy transition, development of sustainable tourism, digital economy, industry, culture and creative industries, transition to the blue economy, international health platform and transformation of agriculture. The national authorities invite the international community to invest in Cabo Verde, especially through public-private partnerships.
- SIDS the financing of sustainable development
The losses suffered by SIDS economies and the slow recovery, jeopardizes the continuity of the national effort for financing development under the Addis Ababa Action Plan. The need for better consideration of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index as a specific criterion for these states, subject to disasters and more vulnerable to climate change, in accessing official development assistance and concessional financing is deepened, as well as the creation of a SIDS Compact as the mechanism per excellence for financing sustainable recovery. The national authorities propose to promote with other SIDS countries and with the support of the United Nations and other development partners, the creation of an international commitment on "Post-COVID-19 economic recovery and sustainable development financing in SIDS".
- Debt Forgiveness
From the COVID-19 pandemic and Cabo Verde Ambition 2030, structural changes and priorities emerge, regarding the fight against impoverishment, health security and specially the diversification of the economy. It´s therefore, unavoidable the expansion of public investment, in a context of over-indebtedness aggravated by the pandemic and of Middle-Income Countries. It is therefore vital to forgive, even partially, the foreign debt, so that investments with a transformative impact are not postponed, but also to avoid the blockage, if not the collapse of the state, the regression and the destruction of the dreams of all Cabo Verdeans.
