During the opening ceremony for the Specialization in Medical-Surgical Nursing — Perioperative Nursing, with a focus on Surgical Instrumentation—held on Friday, September 4, the Coordinator of the Center for Integrated Project Coordination (CCIP), Nuno Gomes, highlighted the importance of investing in human resource capacity building to strengthen the health system in Cape Verde.

In his remarks, Nuno Gomes emphasized that this initiative is aligned with the government’s program for the health sector, one of whose priorities is to increase the national system’s capacity to prevent, detect, and respond effectively to medical emergencies in the country.

In this context, he noted that the government has decided to allocate part of the project’s resources to the training and specialization of health professionals, recognizing human resources as an essential component for the implementation and sustainability of public policies and for the success of the health system. The World Bank Group’s funding is specifically earmarked for training, as part of efforts to strengthen HeSP’s institutional capacity.

The CCIP Coordinator also emphasized that investing in people is particularly important for island nations and small states, such as Cape Verde, where skills development and the strengthening of national capacities are fundamental to ensuring faster and more effective responses to the challenges facing the health sector.

The Perioperative Nursing specialization program, which includes 30 nurses in its first cohort, is thus yet another initiative aimed at investing in the development of specialized skills in the country, helping to strengthen the national health system’s capacity to respond.