The government intends to reduce the tax burden on fuels, according to statements made Friday, June 6, by cabinet spokeswoman Cristina Fontes Lima. The measure, she explained, "will serve the guarantee the stability of prices for both social and economic reasons." She stressed, however, that the highway maintenance service fee will be maintained, defining it as "necessary, for without it various future highway investment projects will be jeopardized."

The spokeswoman of the Council of Ministers, Cape Verde's cabinet, spoke after the government's ministers met to discuss the impact of fuel and grain price increases on the Cape Verdean economy. The previous day, Prime Minister José Maria Neves had asked for Cape Verdeans' understanding in the face of the current worldwide price crisis, and announced that difficult times lay ahead.

As such, the Council of Ministers decided to submit a proposal to the National Assembly for the reduction of the tax burden - specifically, of the Value Added Tax charged on fuels. But the government does not intend to backtrack on the recently instituted Highway Maintenance Service Fee, which it considers necessary and vital for maintaining certain types of foreign financing.