Praia, March 19, 2025 (Lusa) - The Vinci group expects the number of passengers to grow every year at Cabo Verde's airports until it reaches 10 million after 40 years, at the end of the airport concession that began in 2023, according to documents put out for public consultation.
"In terms of passenger traffic, starting from 2.6 million passengers transported throughout Cabo Verde's territory by air in 2023, it is expected to reach a figure close to 10 million in the last year of the concession," in 2063.
The information is contained in each of the master plans for the four international airports and three domestic aerodromes that the Civil Aviation Agency has made available for public consultation on its website until 11 April.
The plans show the current state of the traffic and airport infrastructure on each island, showing the works already underway and planned in the concession to Cabo Verde Airports (Vinci group) and possible developments.
All the runways include works to adapt to the international rules of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), improvements to the passenger terminals and the implementation of environmental sustainability and energy efficiency measures.
Sal Airport, the main tourist island, will continue to be the busiest and will feature resurfacing of the runway, more aircraft parking and expansion of the passenger terminal, considering tourism growth forecasts with the entry of new low-cost airlines (from 2024).
One of the most important projects for the second main tourist island, Boa Vista, is extending the runway by 400 metres and marking it to allow night operations. This is in addition to expanding the passenger terminal and building a new cargo terminal.
The work will allow it to receive more international flights. Plans also include more aircraft parking spaces and new corridors next to the runway.
The passenger terminal at Praia Airport, the country's capital, is being modernised and extended, and the runway should gain two more aircraft parking spaces.
The airport on the island of São Vicente, which also receives international flights, will also benefit from an extension to the passenger terminal, lighting for night operations of certain aircraft, improvements to the pavement and the reconfiguration of a platform.
The master plans for the remaining three aerodromes (Fogo, Maio, and São Nicolau), which are dedicated to domestic flights, also include improvements to the facilities.
Cabo Verde beat the record of 1.2 million guests in 2024 and intends to improve domestic connections to distribute the growing number of tourists across all the islands, which is the economy's engine.
The opening of new air routes on the island of Sal, which receives the majority of foreign tourists, is creating a "critical" situation of capacity and an "opportunity" for hotel investment, the executive director of the airport concessionaire, Jorge Duarte, said last week.
LFO/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
