On April 18, the President of the Government begins a visit to the Brazilian State of Santa Catarina at the invitation of Governor Eduardo Pinho. During this official visit, Vasco Cordeiro will hold several institutional meetings and chair the opening session of the International Congress marking the 270 years of Azorean presence in that state.
 
This official five-day visit is the first of Vasco Cordeiro's visits to Brazil as President of the Government. It follows the declaration of 2018 as the "Year of the Azores in Santa Catarina," where the first Azorean emigrants settled between 1748 and 1754.
 
Brazil was the destination of the first systematic wave of Azorean emigration starting in the 18th century, especially to the south of the country.
 
After this period, there was another major migratory flow to the States of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th and 20th centuries.
 
At the invitation of Vasco Cordeiro, the Azorean delegation will include the Presidents of the Municipal Councils of Ponta Delgada, Angra do Heroísmo and Praia da Vitória, which are twinned cities with Florianópolis, capital of the State of Santa Catarina. It also includes the members of the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, José San-Bento (PS), António Soares Marinho (PSD) and Alonso Miguel (CDS/PP).
 
These members are part of the Committee on General Policy of the Azorean Parliament, an entity that holds powers on matters pertaining to Azorean Communities, among others.
 
On the first day of this visit, Vasco Cordeiro meets with Governor Eduardo Pinho Moreira and the President of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Santa Catarina, Aldo Schneider. The meetings will be followed by a session at the State Legislative Assembly in Florianópolis.
 
Also in Santa Catarina, Vasco Cordeiro will visit the Santa Catarina Book Fair. It will feature an Azores stand and the exhibition entitled "Antero de Quental and Vitorino Nemésio: Living Words of Azorean Culture," an initiative of the Government of the Azores. The exhibition will be open at the Art Gallery of the Public Market in the context of the celebrations of the 270 years of Azorean presence in that Brazilian State.
 
On the following day, April 19, in addition to a meeting with the Mayor of Florianópolis, Gean Marques Loureiro, the President of the Government chairs the opening ceremony of the International Congress "270 Year of Azorean Presence in Santa Catarina: Sea, History, Heritage, Literature and Identity."
 
Organised by the Historical and Geographical Institute of Santa Catarina and the Santa Catarina Academy of Letters, this congress has the support of the Regional Government, the Santa Catarina Cultural Foundation, the Santa Catarina Press Association, the Florianópolis City Hall and the Universities of the Azores and Salamanca.
 
There is also a scheduled meeting with the community of Azorean descent, promoted by the House of the Azores of Santa Catarina and the Santo de Santo António de Lisboa Holy Spirit Brotherhood, and a visit to the Santa Catarina Holy Spirit Brotherhood. Moreover, the President of the Government will attend the opening of a panel evoking the 270 years of Azorean presence in this Brazilian State and visit the Federal University of Santa Catarina, where the Centre for Azorean Studies was established in 1984.
 
The official visit also comprises the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, where the President of the Government will hold meetings with the Azorean communities residing in these cities. While visiting the latter city, he will chair the launch of the book "Uma Página sobre Vitorino Nemésio" (A Page on Vitorino Nemésio) to take place at the House of the Azores of Rio de Janeiro.