Sent to Macau on a mission from his government, Nuno Furtado is tasked to help in the promotion of economic and commercial activities between Macau and Cape-Verde.

Life Overview

Born and raised in a small town named Tarrafal 47 years ago, Nuno Furtado was sent to Macau as the delegate of the Cape-Verdean government while performing the functions of the Permanent Secretariat of Forum Macau accompanied by his wife and children. Resident here in Macau a little over 6 years, he has done significant work targeted at the improvement of the political-diplomatic relationship between China and Cape-Verde, with Macau as the bridge between these two countries. Nuno has provided ideas and opportunities to many investors on where and what to invest in Cape-Verde.

Initially, Nuno´s dream career was to be a pilot, but due to financial issues he could not go through with his dreams. Before acquiring the scholarships to study in China and Russia, he worked in the BCA bank of Cape Verde for a short period. After seeing that he could not become what he dreamed to be at the time, he changed his focus towards diplomacy.

After concluding his initial studies in Cape-Verde, as most Cape-Verdeans during that time, Nuno’s academic journey took him to study abroad. He chose to study International politics at the People’s University of China in Beijing, China. During his time there he distinguished himself as an exceptional student, consistently pushing his limits as a student and person. There he would consolidate his knowledge on Mandarin and would create various connections with his peers.

Nuno could have chosen between Russia and China as the destination for his undergraduate degree, but he always preferred to choose a different path.

“I chose China because it seemed like something new. The common knowledge in Cape-Verde is that Russia takes in a lot of Cape-Verdean students. China seemed like something new for me”.

Professional Life

In 2002, after finishing his course, the Delegate went back to Cape-Verde where in 2003 he would end up joining the National Assembly of the country. Nuno then started working permanently in the Assembly from 2003 to 2017 where he would end up performing numerous functions, such as superior technician of the National Assembly, consultant, and the special consultant of the president of the national assembly for diplomacy issues.

Nuno Furtado’s work here in Macau has contributed significantly to the improvement of economical and commercial relationships between Cabo-Verde and China. Macau serves as the bridge for economic trades between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. His function in Macau to work towards promoting Cape-Verde as a destination for investments. “We have searched together with partners and Chinese enterprises to attract more investments for the country, as well as to bring Cape-Verde and China together in political-diplomatic and cultural terms”, says Nuno.

Macau and the Cape-Verdean community

Being in Macau for over 6 years, Nuno states that Macau is an interesting place to live and that it’s easy to adapt to the city and culture. “Even though it’s small, it has a lot of advantages comparatively, and that gives us a warranty of an easier integration”, he notes

The 47-year-old states that relatively, the Cape-Verdean community in Macau is very well integrated and is composed of many professionals in different fields. From pilots to doctors, he believes that the Cape-Verdean community has been impacting Macau positively in recent years. Before the pandemic, there were around 97 students from Cape-Verdean in Macau and it kept decreasing over the years. Nuno and his colleagues keep working towards the goal of acquiring more scholarship opportunities for students and increasing the number of new students.

The Delegate from Cape-Verde wants the community to keep focusing on what is important, such as the embracement of the new students and to try keeping the community close, and to continuously work with the Cape-Verde’s best interest in mind.

The Delegate from Cape-Verde wants the community to keep focusing on what is important and to keep working with the Cape-Verde’s best interest in mind. “ We have this important community, which we want it to keep being and integrative community and for it to keep focusing on what is essential: promote Cape-Verde; promote the culture of Cape-Verde and contribute to the development of the country with the knowledge they have and to then consolidate the good relationships we have with Macau”, says Nuno.

Plans for the future

The Delegate is on his second 3-year mandate and believes that he can still work for another one. Ever since coming here Nuno has grown to appreciate his current position, as it allows him and his family to acquire many experiences they would not be able to acquire in Cape-Verde. Nonetheless Nuno believes that he is ready to accept new job opportunities and whatever challenges may come in the future . After the end of his mission in Macau, he plans on listening to other offers that might appear in the future. “But I would like to keep working in the aspect of promoting Cape-Verde as an attractive destination for investments”, highlights Nuno. Even though there are multiple possibilities for the future, he likes his current position in life.