On Friday, in the city of Horta, the Regional Secretary for Employment and Social Solidarity said that the Regional Government regards the "preservation of jobs" a priority.
Ana Paula Marques made these statements at the end of an audition with the Parliamentary Commission for the Environment and Employment of the Legislative Assembly that addressed the proposals for the Medium-Term Policy Orientations (2009-2012) and for the Regional Budget and Investment Plan for 2009.
She emphasised that the 2009 Investment Plan the Regional Government has focussed on "measures designed to combat unemployment caused by the present economic conjuncture."
Citing concrete examples of these policies, Ana Paula Marques mentioned measures designed to combat seasonal unemployment and the implementation of vocational training programmes as well as other programmes that aim for the preservation of jobs.
She also said that "combating precarious work is an imperative of our employment policies" in the archipelago and that the Regional Government has reinforced its intervention in society so as to safeguard the jobs of vulnerable sectors.