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You still haven’t heard? This year RIU is celebrating 20 years in Cape Verde! It has been no less than two decades since the hotel chain first arrived in this wonderful destination, famous for the morabeza of its people, which is simply put, their incredible hospitality. Since then, the Mallorcan company has grown in terms of hotel numbers, but also in experience, memories and the individuals that form part of the incredible RIU family in this archipelago.
To celebrate this special date, the Riu Funana hotel, located on Sal Island, hosted the Cape Verde 20th Anniversary Gala in its Barracuda Theatre. No one wanted to miss the event, which was attended by important government figures, members of Cape Verdean society, collaborating partners, suppliers and friends from the press. In addition, for the first time, this celebration brought together all the managers of RIU’s hotels in Cape Verde as well as the entire Operations management team.
RIU was honoured to have its event presided over by His Excellency Dr. Ulisses Correia e Silva, Prime Minister of Cape Verde, together with His Excellency Mr José Luis Sá Nogueira, Cape Verde’s Minister of Tourism; His Excellency Mr Vítor Coutinho, Minister of Infrastructure, Spatial Planning and Housing; and Félix Casado, member of the RIU Board of Directors and RIU’s chief executive in Cape Verde.
It was a very special night, packed with unique moments and memories from the last 20 years. Attendees also heard an emotional speech from Félix Casado, who highlighted the enormous value of the destination and explained that “Cape Verde has changed us as a company. I’m not going to say it’s been an easy journey. The early days were particularly challenging. Let me tell you all that your extraordinary “morabeza” makes you unique and that, fortunately, we feel that it has also touched the soul of RIU.”
As expected, the event was attended by colleagues who have played an important role in the history of the chain in the country, including Carlos Almeida, Director of Human Resources in Cape Verde, who has been, and continues to be, a pivotal figure. In the early days, he was also responsible, alongside Félix, for recruiting workers for that first hotel, visiting different neighbourhoods to present the RIU project. That is why the chain awarded him a prize in the “Employees” category, for his outstanding career.
A total of 35 awards were presented to key partners, suppliers and social organisations that have played a fundamental role in the chain’s growth. RIU has both witnessed and helped drive forward the country’s tourism evolution, always committed to local talent. Many of our current leaders and trainers started here!
RIU began its journey in Cape Verde 20 years ago and today it is one of our main destinations, with six hotels, more than 3,500 rooms and 3,120 local employees. Thank you, Cape Verde! Here’s to 20 more years full of morabeza!
