Cape Verde negotiates resumption of tourism project of €117 million in Boa Vista

The promoters of the White Sands tourism ‘resort’, which provided in 2013 for an investment of €117 million in the Cape Verdean island of Boa Vista and 500 jobs, are negotiating its resumption, according to the Government.

According to information from the Ministry of Finance and Business Development, a “memorandum of understanding” has already been signed between the state and the promoters of the project with a view to the “completion of the resort”, a work that is about 40% completed and has been stopped “for five years”, having “also suffered the consequences of the pandemic of Covid-19 painfully.

“To promote the completion of the works of the White Sands Resort and, in this way, cancel the reversion process and protect the legitimate interests of those who bought the properties in the development or invested in the project and safeguard the reputation of the destination Cabo Verde and Boa Vista, an asset that should deserve all our protection,” the same information states, adding that “the government and the project promoters intend to reach an understanding.”

It adds that in 2013, “given the importance and the economic and social impact” that the investment represented for Cape Verde and particularly for Boa Vista, the second most sought-after island by tourists in the archipelago, “the project was considered of exceptional interest,” involving, in particular, the granting of various tax benefits.

The agreement for the installation of this project, signed in 2013 between the promoters, The Resort Group PLC, and the Government, provided for an investment of €117 million and the creation of 500 jobs occupying an area of 13 hectares.

The five-star resort was to build apartments and villas with 835 rooms, restaurants, bars, swimming pools, and even a casino, among other facilities.

According to the Government, this memorandum of understanding signed with the developers is also part of the initiatives to “accelerate the recovery of tourism and economic activity on the island of Boa Vista, so devastated by the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic and multiple crises.”

“The main purpose of the referred memorandum is to create the conditions to finalize the execution of the White Sands Resort.”

“The Government of Cape Verde, considering the national interest and the impact of the project on job creation and the valorization of the destination, intends to support the project, within the framework of financial instruments and guarantees promoted by the financing ecosystem and also the financing lines provided by international financial institutions and development banks, in access to financing aimed after the project,” says the information from the Ministry of Finance and Business Development.

It is stressed, however, that “before any decision on a more specific agreement, and as it was explicitly defined,” the Government assumes that the promoters will have to create an SPV – Special Purpose Vehicle – “ensuring its best governance, in the light of best practices,” as well as conducting an assessment of the current state of the project in its various dimensions and to prepare an economic and financial feasibility study.

“Only after rigorously evaluating this information will the state be in a position to take any additional and definitive decision,” the information concludes.

With information from Lusa