Cape Verde, Luxembourg Strengthen Development Cooperation During PM Correia e Silva's Visit

As reported by the Luxembourg government, the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, José Ulisses Correia e Silva, is undertaking a working visit to the Grand Duchy from Thursday 16 to Sunday 19 October 2025.

On Thursday, as part of this visit, Luxembourg's Prime Minister Luc Frieden received his Cape Verdean counterpart for a meeting at the Ministry of State in Luxembourg-Ville.

According to the Luxembourg government, the two heads of government praised the "excellent friendly relations" between Luxembourg and Cape Verde, based on shared values ​​of democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights, as well as the close human ties uniting the two countries, driven by "a vibrant and well-integrated" Cape Verdean community in Luxembourg. The meeting also served as an opportunity to reaffirm the strength of the partnership between Luxembourg and Cape Verde in key areas such as sustainable development, energy transition, education and culture, as well as in the field of defence.

Moreover, Prime Minister Frieden reiterated his solidarity with the Cape Verdean people following Hurricane Erin, which hit the islands of Santo Antão and São Vicente particularly hard in August 2025. He highlighted Luxembourg's rapid mobilisation through emergency humanitarian actions led by bilateral cooperation, civil society (particularly the Cape Verdean diaspora) and the Luxembourg private sector.

Following this meeting, Prime Minister Correia e Silva and Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Xavier Bettel, signed two agreements extending the "Water and Sanitation" and "Employment and Employability" programmes funded by Luxembourg under the Development-Climate-Energy Indicative Cooperation Programme for 2021-2025. These agreements guarantee the continuity of activities until the signing of the new programme agreement, scheduled for early next year.

Minister Bettel also announced Luxembourg's willingness to assist with the rehabilitation of infrastructure in São Vicente following Hurricane Erin. He emphasised Luxembourg's commitment to continuing to invest in trusted partnerships such as the one with Cape Verde.

Discussions continued during a working lunch hosted by Prime Minister Frieden in honour of his Cape Verdean counterpart, in the presence of Minister Bettel.

Prime Minister Correia e Silva subsequently met Luxembourg's Minister of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, Serge Wilmes. Welcoming the strategic partnership on climate action established over the past ten years, Prime Minister Correia e Silva and Minister Wilmes expressed their desire to further deepen cooperation between the two countries and welcomed the extension of the "Climate Governance and Action" programme of the current Development-Climate-Energy Indicative Cooperation Programme.

((L-R) José Ulisses de Pina Correia e Silva, Prime Minister of Cape Verde; Luc Frieden, Prime Minister of Luxembourg; Photo Credit: SIP/Kary Barthelmey)