The Cape Verde government announced that it will analyze alternatives to the tourism and gaming project by Macau Legend a day after it decided to terminate the land concession contracts granted to the operator, citing non-compliance by the investors.
‘The government will be looking into alternative solutions for the Gamboa and Santa Maria Islet Redevelopment Project’, reads a government statement cited by news agency Lusa.
The clarification comes following a request for clarification from the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV), the country’s main opposition party.
In the same note, the government stated that it acted ‘in good faith’ by sending ‘several letters to MLD, giving it numerous opportunities to resume the works, which have been halted for about three years, to negotiate the sale of shares or the transfer of its contractual position to a potential interested party’.
The outcome was ‘the resolution of the establishment conventions and the contracts derived from them, with the reversal of the assets,’ published on Monday in the country’s Official Bulletin.
‘To date, an eight-story building,’ which remains empty, ‘and a bridge connecting to Santa Maria Islet’ have indeed been completed, in an area of the Praia waterfront that has remained closed off.
The Cape Verde government has terminated its contracts with Macau Legend Development (MLD) due to repeated violations of obligations related to a €250 million ($264.7 million) tourism and gaming investment in Praia.
Despite providing MLD with opportunities to resume construction or negotiate alternatives, the company failed to act. The Cape Verde Council of Ministers’ decision cited various contractual violations and unauthorized transfers of ownership stakes.
Additionally, MLD’s legal issues, including court convictions against its shareholders, contributed to the government’s decision.
The project, initially announced in 2015, has not progressed since construction began in 2016, leading to significant local opposition, particularly from environmental groups. The government plans to reverse the assets involved in the project, which remains largely incomplete, with only minimal construction visible.
