“There are parts of the country that are forgotten by emigrant businesspeople who returned to the coast, paying little attention to opportunities in the interior of the country”, stated João Gomes Cravinho.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs said that there is “a great desire on the part of the diaspora business community to invest in a country that is far from being the country their parents left 20, 30 or 40 years ago, a country with complex challenges, one of them being the problem of territorial cohesion and desertification of the interior”.

João Gomes Cravinho considered the diaspora council “as an institution with which the Government must work to implement the ESG strategy approved in September, together with public institutions, such as city councils, and business associations”.

The government official also addressed new concerns linked to environmental sustainability, governance and social issues (ESG), considering that they evolved from a marketing issue.

“The requirements that will be legally imposed form 2027 onwards, with ESG requirements for companies, have evolved from simple “branding” or marketing concerns, decades ago, when we thought climate change would be problem that our grandchildren would have to deal with”, said João Gomes Cravinho.

“In 15 or 20 years, we realised that it would not be a problem for our grandchildren, but for ourselves”.