"Following up the strategic agenda between Cape Verde and Angola and the signing of several cooperation protocols between the two governments", the Minister of Tourism and Transport, Carlos Santos, received in audience, this morning, the chairman of the executive committee of TAAG, Eduardo Fairen, and the rest of the delegation of the Angolan state airline, refer to a note from the Cape Verdean ministry.
"Among the talks held, the possibility of creating the joint Angola/Cape Verde/Angola route and other business opportunities between the two airlines stands out, within the framework of the Government's air transport policy to increase connectivity between Cape Verde and the African continent and not only", adds the information, noting that the state-owned carriers of the two countries will hold meetings this week.
Since the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic, the two African countries have not had direct air connections. TACV only operates flights to Lisbon, from Sal, São Vicente and Praia.
The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, defended last March 14, in Praia, the creation of a 'joint-venture' between the two flag airlines, to take advantage of the capabilities of each country.
"To make the best possible use of the capabilities that Angola has, in terms of air resources, of aircraft, and the capabilities that Cape Verde has in terms of airport management, of aircraft management, the capabilities that Cape Verde has in terms of having achieved over the years to be certified to fly to spaces that Angola has not been able to", said the President, after meeting with the Cape Verdean prime minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, during his State visit to the archipelago.
"We are going to combine the capabilities of the two countries in the field of civil aviation and I believe that we will all benefit from this", said João Lourenço.
At the Government Palace, the Angolan head of state and the Cape Verdean prime minister attended the signing of an agreement between the administrations of the state-owned airlines of the two countries for the transfer, by TAAG, of a Boeing 737-700, under a leasing, to Transportes Aéreos de Cabo Verde (TACV), an aircraft that arrived in Praia on the same day and which later started to guarantee the medium-haul connections of the archipelago.
"We thought to go further, to form a 'joint-venture' between TAAG and TACV to, with TAAG aircraft, and based on the city of Praia or the city of Sal - this detail passed me by, which is important is that the base will be Cape Verde -, from here, we will operate to several capitals in the West African region, known as ECOWAS, and also continue not only to Europe, but also to the United States of America", stated João Lourenço.
At the same time it was also signed a Bilateral Air Services Agreement between the two governments, a Memorandum of Understanding on Air Transport between the Transport Ministries of the two countries, and a Memorandum of Technical Cooperation between the Civil Aviation Agency of Cape Verde (AAC) and the National Authority of Civil Aviation of Angola (ANAC).
