According to the information released by the Employment and Vocational Training Institute, the Azores are the only national region where the number of unemployed has been decreasing for four consecutive months, being, once again, the national regions with the second lowest unemployment rate.

For Carlos César, this fact evidences the "efficiency of the implementation of the Programme for Employment and Competitiveness in the Azores and the collaboration of various institutions, including social institutions and employers, which has allowed us to reverse the negative trend that was mainly registered in the last quarter last year and the first quarter of 2012."

Due to the sudden rise of unemployment in that period of time, the President of the Government considers that "all comparisons that can be made until the last quarter of this year will always be of a growth when compared to the same month of the previous year. However, the government official stressed the downward trend which has been registered only in the Azores."

Carlos César spoke to journalists on the sidelines of the meeting held by the Council of the Government on Friday in Ponta Delgada where this subject was under analysis. According to the President of the Government, "we will continue to monitor the implementation of this programme and encourage all parties who have participated in it so that we may continue to follow this path, reassure families, maintain and create jobs, and support the income of Azorean households."