The recent launch by the Government of the Impulso Jovem measure – Strategic Plan for Youth Employability Initiatives and Support for SMEs – received harsh criticism from António Eusébio, Mayor of São Brás de Alportel and vice-president of AMAL, Association of Municipalities of the Algarve, which he says is being a real discrimination against the Algarve, at a time when the region most needs support in the fight against unemployment.
“We cannot accept that this Government forgets the young people of the Algarve, at a time like this, putting them on the sidelines of the new national measure to promote employment! This situation is absolutely inexplicable, unfair and inconsistent with what should currently be the country's priorities”, said António Eusébio.
“Since the Algarve is the region that is reaching the highest levels of unemployment, which greatly affects young people, with absolutely frightening levels of youth unemployment, it is impossible to understand how young people in the Algarve can be excluded from this measure. it is precisely what the region needs, to stimulate youth employment and support small and medium-sized enterprises! How can we be excluded from the measure that we most need to counteract the downward trend in the economy that has victimized our society? ”, added the mayor.
“The only conclusion we can make is clear: with this attitude, the current Government reveals, unfortunately, a manifest insensitivity to the difficulties that the Algarve is going through and continues to leave us on the sidelines of opportunities! This aggravates the already catastrophic situation of our economy, suffocated by the countless difficulties that have been placed on it... with the introduction of tolls on Via do Infante, the increase in VAT on restaurants and the entire tourist sector and with all the repressive measures which are paralyzing the economy and destroying, at a frightening rate, the business fabric of the region!”
And the mayor adds: “if the Government intends to justify the exclusion of the Algarve from the Impulso Jovem measure, integrated in the Strategic Plan of Initiatives for Youth Employability and Support to SMEs, due to the fact that the Algarve is not covered by Objective 1 in the QREN – Table of National Strategic Reference – a situation that is in itself completely unjustified given the current situation and context, will have to explain to all of us, and especially to our young people, who struggle daily with the drama of unemployment, how it intends to fight this which is the greatest scourge of Portuguese society”.
“The Algarve, due to its specific characteristics, needs specific measures and solutions that allow the economy to relaunch, rather than paralyze, so that this region can continue to contribute to the country's economy as it has always done!… And unfortunately it seems that the Government has forgotten about that!”, concluded António Eusébio.
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