The Minister of Defense and Parliamentary Affairs, Armindo Maur�­cio, will visit Sao Vicente beginning Wednesday. Among the items on his agenda is the sale of Armed Forces assets on the island. During his stay on the island, Armindo Maur�­cio will meet with various officials from Cape Verde's 1st Military Region, and get a first-hand look at the process through which various Armed Forces assets are being sold in Mindelo.

According to the Defense Minister, the sale of part of the Armed Forces’ vast military patrimony on the island of Sao Vicente is one of the most important points on the agenda of his visit. The sale of land and buildings owned by the Armed Forces in Sao Vicente was begun several years ago, and has progressed little since. Nevertheless, the military houses and buildings are rapidly degrading, while the plots of land, eyed by foreign and local investors alike as a result of their often superb views, grow weeds and serve as dumps for increasingly large amounts of garbage. According to a source in the Sao Vicente municipal chamber, “these infrastructures could well be used to add value to the island in terms of culture and landscape, while at the same time allowing more money to be channeled to the Armed Forces, which really needs it.”

Armindo Maur�­cio affirms that the Armed Forces is set on concluding the process as quickly as possible, and hopes to proceed with a public bid for the sale of the various buildings on the island, as well as the Armed Forces lands occupied by private residents, businesses and public institutions in Alto da Companhia and Ribeira de Julião.

In addition to meetings with the commander of the 1st Military Region of Sao Vicente, the Minister of Defense and Parliamentary Affairs is also scheduled to visit the Zeca Santos Military Instruction Center in Morro Branco.