Cape Verde will participate next week in the 16th International Agriculture and Agribusiness Fair in Fortaleza, the capital of the Brazilian state of Ceará. The Cape Verdean delegation is made up of a multi-disciplinary team of 65 members, 48 of them farmers. The other 17 are technicians and representatives of community associations from seven islands. Only Sal and Maio are not represented in the delegation.

“This trip to Brazil is the first of its kind by a multi-disciplinary group, made up of 48 farmers and 17 technicians and representatives of community associations from all of Cape Verde’s islands, with the exception of Sal and Maio,” according to project coordinator Cândida Cardoso.

The delegation will include Cape Verdean agricultural producers, animal farmers and agribusiness entrepreneurs, who will get a first-hand look at the experimentation being carried out in Brazil aimed at improving agricultural profitability. Seeing how new technology is used to overcome the fickleness of nature and to reduce the unpredictability of agricultural activities, becoming familiar with the progress being made in farming in order to reduce physical effort and increase output, and getting to know potential markets through useful contacts are among the objectives of Cape Verde’s participation in the 16th edition of the Ceará International Agriculture and Agribusiness Fair. The initiative comes from the agribusiness sector of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Animal Farming, which hopes it will help lead farming and agricultural products to be given greater value in Cape Verde. Travel costs are being footed by the participants themselves, with the Ministry of the Environment, Rural Development and Marina Resources having negotiated a special package price for the trip.