Praia, July 28, 2025 (Lusa) - The Cabo Verde government announced on Monday that it will launch an international tender in September for the construction of the Cabo Verde National Hospital (HNCV), budgeted at around €210 million, with work scheduled to begin in mid-2026.
“In September, we will move forward with the launch of the tender, in December we will receive the bids, and in mid-2026, we will begin construction,” said Minister of Health Jorge Figueiredo in Praia, on the sidelines of the presentation of the project for the construction of the hospital.
The HNCV had already been announced in 2021, with an initial budget of €65 million, but had not yet been launched.
According to the minister, the postponement was due to the need to carry out studies and identify partners and sources of funding.
“The hospital will be built in accordance with the country’s possibilities and with the aim of meeting demand. Only now has it been possible to find the right strategy,” he explained.
The feasibility study was completed between 2023 and 2025 and the government is preparing the specifications and the tender documents.
The infrastructure, which will have a budget of US$246 million (€210.96 million), will be built in the Achada Limpo area of Praia and will occupy an area of 30,000 square metres, with a capacity for 144 beds, including general medicine, oncology, cardiology, orthopaedic trauma, neurosurgery and vascular surgery services.
The hospital will specialise in the treatment of highly complex clinical and technological cases, with access via medical referral. Outpatient consultations, a day hospital and scheduled admissions are also planned, ensured by specific protocols.
The structure will also have 30 outpatient consultation rooms, 10 operating theatres and modern equipment, such as Computed Tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging, angiography and linear accelerators.
Although it will not replace the two existing central hospitals - Agostinho Neto, in the city of Praia, and Baptista de Sousa, on the island of São Vicente - the new hospital will complement the healthcare provision and reduce medical transfers abroad, particularly to Portugal.
The financing model will be based on a public-private partnership, with contributions from the National Social Security Institute (INPS), Imobiliária, Fundiária e Habitat (IFH), multilateral development banks, investment funds and international institutions.
The Cabo Verdean prime minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, pointed out that it will be the first hospital built from scratch in the country since independence, with state-of-the-art technology and qualified professionals integrated into the national health system.
"It should also be a space for innovation and access to technologies at the service of advanced medicine, including artificial intelligence. The aim is to create a hospital of international standing, reduce the transfer of patients abroad and improve the care provided to the public," he said.
The government also intends to position Cabo Verde as a regional centre for specialised healthcare, aimed at citizens of Portuguese-speaking Africa, West Africa, the Cabo Verdean diaspora and tourists.
RS/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
