On April 20, the RIU chain inaugurated a Solidarity Clinic for Children's Health on Isla de Sal, Cape Verde, and signed the conservation agreement for the Ponta Sinó Nature Reserve. For the first case, the hotel has had the support of the Ministry of Health and the collaboration of África Avanza. The second, has been carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and Projeto Biodiversidade. The chain, which operates with three hotels on the Isla de Sal, has been working with both entities since 2014 and 2016 respectively, as part of its commitment to the local community and the biodiversity of the destination.
The Children's Health Solidarity Clinic (CSSI) will enable around 10,000 boys and girls from 0 to 13 years of age on the Island of Sal to receive permanent and free health care. The inauguration of the clinic, held at the Châ de Matias Community Center, where the clinic is located, was attended by Filomena Gonçalves, Minister of Health of Cape Verde. Representatives of the alliance between RIU and África Avanza were attended by Joan Trian Riu, Managing Director of RIU Hotels & Resorts, and Iñaki Gascón, president of the África Avanza Association. Arminda Ramos Fortes Lopes, president of the Associação Chã de Matias, also attended.
At the head of the CSSI is Dr. Manuela Santos Lima, a native of Cape Verde, who has the permanent support of a committee of volunteer experts made up of four Spanish pediatricians. As a novelty in the destination, the office has an electronic medical record software for recording and monitoring the evolution of the patients treated. Likewise, the project promotes professional qualification activities in pediatric care and awareness-raising activities. The office also makes it possible to refer patients treated in the missions of the Solidarity Doctors program in Cape Verde who require surgeries or specialized treatments. RIU has been collaborating with this program since 2014, which contributes to alleviating pathologies and health problems and reducing waiting lists for medical care.
On the other hand, the Ponta Sinó conservation agreement aims to protect this area located in the tourist area of Santa María, one of the four Natural Reserves of Isla de Sal. It is made up of a white sand beach and a dunes that temporarily shelter one of the few wetlands on the island. During the summer, the common turtle (or Caretta caretta) spawns on its beach, sheltered from the line of frontal dunes. Behind these, there is a wetland that is flooded with the great tides and where it is possible to see different species of both resident and migratory birds. This agreement allows us to continue protecting and restoring these natural spaces and biodiversity of Isla de Sal.
The agreement was signed by Ethel Rodrigues, National Director of the Environment, and Joan Trian, Managing Director of RIU Hotels & Resorts. The hotel chain will collaborate with Projeto Biodiversidade to carry out the protection actions included in the agreement. RIU has been working with this NGO, which has been committed to protecting wildlife since 2016, to guarantee the conservation of the common tortoise on the Isla de Sal, a species classified as threatened due, among other things, to the occupation and degradation of the beaches where they lay their nests.
With the opening of this Solidarity Clinic for Children's Health and the implementation of the Ponta Sinó conservation agreement, RIU reinforces its commitment to children, the local community and the biodiversity of Isla de Sal, thus working on the three main lines of CSR of the company RIU's contribution to this project is part of the hotel company's objective of increasing its social investment in all the destinations in which it operates, balancing its business presence and its involvement in local development.