José Maria Neves

José Maria Pereira Neves ( born March 28, 1960 in Santa Catarina ) is since February 2001 Prime Minister of Cape Verde.

Early years

Neves was on Santiago, the main island of Cape Verde, born in the district of Santa Catarina. He studied in Brazil at the Institute Fundação Getúlio Vargas government entities. After his return to Cape Verde, he joined the management service.

Political career

In the late 1980s he was active in the youth organization of the former single party Partido Africano da Independencia de Cabo Verde ( PAICV ). In 1996 he was for the district of Santa Catarina deputy PAICV, now opposition party in Parliament, and Parliament vice president. In March 2000 he became mayor of Santa Catarina.

The PAICV chose him in June 2000, the party's leadership. Under his leadership, the party won the parliamentary elections on 14 January 2001. On 1 February 2001 he became Prime Minister. World Bank and International Monetary Fund to assess its economic and financial policies positively.

The parliamentary elections on 22 January 2006, the PAICV won again. On 7 March 2006, he became prime minister for another five years. The parliamentary elections on February 6, 2011, he has won with slightly more than 50 % of the vote for his party. He has been confirmed for the third time in a row as Prime Minister.