José Maria Neves | |
|---|---|
 Neves in 2023 | |
| 5thPresident of Cape Verde | |
| Assumed office 9 November 2021[1] | |
| Prime Minister | Ulisses Correia e Silva |
| Preceded by | Jorge Carlos Fonseca |
| Prime Minister of Cape Verde | |
| In office 1 February 2001 – 22 April 2016 | |
| President | António Mascarenhas Monteiro Pedro Pires Jorge Carlos Fonseca |
| Preceded by | Gualberto do Rosário |
| Succeeded by | Ulisses Correia e Silva |
| Personal details | |
| Born | José Maria Pereira Neves (1960-03-28)28 March 1960 (age 65) |
| Nationality | Cape Verde |
| Political party | African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde |
| Spouse | Débora Katisa Carvalho[2] |
| Education | Getúlio Vargas Foundation |
José Maria Pereira Neves (Portuguese:[ʒuˈzɛmɐˈɾiɐpɨˈɾejɾɐˈnɛvɨʃ]; born 28 March 1960) is aCape Verdean politician who is currently the president of Cape Verde,[1] having previously served as thePrime Minister of Cape Verde from 2001 to 2016. He is a member of theAfrican Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV). In the2021 presidential election, he was elected with 51.7% of votes, beating his nearest rivalCarlos Veiga who got 42.4% of the total votes.
Neves was born on the island of Santiago in 1960.[3] He became interested in the politics of Cape Verde as a teenager and was the leader of a nationalist youth organization during the country's transition from Portuguese rule to independence and democracy in 1975.[3] Part of his higher education was at theSão Paulo School of Business Administration of theGetúlio Vargas Foundation inBrazil.[4]
He returned to Cape Verde in the 1980s and worked as a clerk in different state institutions. From 1987 to 1989, he was coordinator of the Project Administrative and Reform and Modernization. From 1988 to 1988, he was director of the National Training Centre for Public Administration. From 1989 to 1998, he was consultant in the field of National Training and Development of Human Resources Management.
In 1989, he became member of the PAICV party. As a candidate for the party leadership at PAICV's September 1997 congress, he facedPedro Pires;[5] Pires defeated Neves in the leadership election, winning 68% of the vote.[6] In May 2000, Neves—then serving as President of theSanta Catarina Town Council—announced that he would seek the PAICV presidency again at the June 2000 party congress; Pires was leaving the PAICV presidency in anticipation of his candidacy in the next year'snational presidential election.[7]
After he became prime minister, he established diplomatic relations with thePeople's Republic of China. In 2002, he signed a "special treaty" with theEuropean Union, it was discussed on 15 November 2005.[8] In 2007, he called for a special relationship with the European Union due to the archipelago's proximity to the other islands ofMacaronesia, which are regions of Spain and Portugal.[9] A meeting with theCPLP (Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries) was held in November 2002. He also metAlamara Nhassé, Prime Minister ofGuinea-Bissau. He held additional portfolio ofMinister of Finance from 2003 to 2004.[10]
In August 2005, he visited Brazil, where he toured sixstates and had an audience with PresidentLula da Silva. A topic of discussion was investment in Cape Verde, including in theUniversity of Cape Verde, the first public university in the archipelago.[11]
He won the2006 parliamentary election on 22 January with 52.28% of the votes and got 41 seats.[12] and on 7 March, he served his second term as prime minister.[13] TheWorld Bank and theIMF judged favorably on its economic and financial policies.
While acknowledging the harmful effects of slavery and colonialism on Africa, Neves said in December 2006 that African leaders were primarily responsible for the continent's present-day problems, and that they "must assume their responsibility to develop a clear strategy for Africa's future that takes advantage of all of its human capabilities and natural resources."[14]
On 2 January 2007, he wanted to give Cape Verde a special status withECOWAS.[15]
A new government under Neves was announced on 27 June 2008, with six ministers joining the government and four ministers leaving it. Three of the new ministers were women, making it the first government in Cape Verde with a female majority (eight out of 15 portfolios).[16]
On 6 February 2011, he waselected to his third term by most Cape Verdean voters with 52.68% over MpD and 38 out of 72 seats, thus reinforcing his party's influence in the Cape Verdean parliament.[17]
He visited a trading conference, the 4thGlobal Review of Aid for Trade in from 8 to 10 July 2013.
On 6 September 2014, he announcedanother government.Janira Hopffer Almada succeeded Neves as president of the parliamentary section of the PAICV party. After the2016 parliamentary elections on 22 April, he was succeeded byUlisses Correia e Silva as prime minister.[18][19]
In October 2021, José Maria Neves, won the presidential election in the first round of 17 October. According to the first results published on an official website, he won 51.5% of the vote, an absolute majority necessary to be elected in the first round.[20]
Neves is also author of books and some news articles. Some of these were published in other African countries and in parts of Europe and in Brazil. He wrote:
Luxembourg:
Knight of theOrder of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau (23 May 2023)
Portugal:
Grand Collar of theOrder of Prince Henry (28 July 2022)
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Cape Verde 2001–2016 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of Cape Verde 2021–present | Incumbent |
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