The Brazilian Air Force will inaugurate its official flight to West Africa today, April 10. In an initial phase, the flight will cover Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau and Senegal. The decision to carry out regular flights to the West African region is aimed at “creating better conditions for cooperation and humanitarian assistance.”

Cape Verde will serve as the gateway for a new form of cooperation between Brazil and Africa. This cooperation will have as its base a regular Brazilian Air Force flight, the frequency of which has yet to be decided, that will cover three West African countries.

According to a diplomatic source in Praia, the main objective of the flight will be “logistical and administrative support for Brazil’s embassies in Praia, Bissau and Dakar, and, in addition, for the Brazilian communities in these countries.” The flight will also represent the reinforcement of cooperation between Brazil and the countries in question.

A sign of this is the fact that the inaugural flight will be used to emphasize Brazil’s investment in cooperation. During its stop in Cape Verde, the 14-metric-ton-capacity Brazilian Air Force military plane will bring materials for the construction of the Chã d’Areia Professional Training Center and medical kits to be donated to the Ministry of Health.

In addition, the inaugural flight will bring eight Guinean students who traveled to Brazil to carry out their university studies. After completing their studies, the students did not have the financial resources to return home, and the flight will help free them from the difficult and ambiguous situation in which they had found themselves.

But in addition to helping respond to this type of situation, the flight will also serve to bring Brazilian artists to Cape Verde within the framework of cultural cooperation projects between the two countries, and could be used to benefit Brazilian citizens in case of need.