Algarve Situation Report Wednesday 9^th June 2021

 

Awareness raising action for the situation of refugees arrives at Mar Shopping.

The action is promoted by the IKEA Foundation which, in collaboration with several partners, has the mission to support and help people in vulnerable communities to have better living conditions.

In a statement, the MAR Shopping Algarve and MAR Shopping Matosinhos shopping centers make it known that they will receive, until June 20, an installation by Better Shelter, an entity dedicated to building shelters for refugees and displaced persons forced.

This action includes installations of real shelters (Better Shelters), which will enable visitors to understand how this solution can help and improve the lives of people who, due to war, natural disasters, political instability or economic insecurity, are forced to leave their homes and to become refugees.

Additionally, it will be possible to follow, through the social networks of the MAR Shopping malls, real stories of people who, thanks to the work of the IKEA Foundation and its partners, now have a more positive outlook for the future.

The same statement goes forward that MAR Shopping Algarve and MAR Shopping Matosinhos are part of eight Ingka Centres shopping centres that will exhibit Better Shelter shelters, in order to raise awareness of the situation of 80 million people currently living displaced throughout the world. These shelters are temporary and versatile solutions that allow us to offer the basic conditions of housing, security and privacy for those in a refugee situation.

Arrested suspected of kidnapping man in Alcoutim for alleged debt.

A man suspected of kidnapping another in Alcoutim as a result of an alleged debt was arrested and presented to the Faro Court, subject to presentations to the authorities.

The 34-year-old defendant was present on Monday at the first judicial interrogation at the Faro Criminal Instruction court, which also determined the prohibition of contact with the 31-year-old victim, according to a statement from the Faro District Attorney.

The suspect’s arrest followed a warrant issued by the Department of Investigation and Criminal Action (DIAP) of Faro, after an investigation by the Judiciary Police, which carried out the arrest.

The abduction, which took place at the end of April, will be the result of the sale of a high-end vehicle to the victim and the fact that his payment “is in default”, he adds.

According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, “the suspect and three individuals went to the victim’s workplace” in Alcoutim, and on the spot they approached the victim, “punching and kicking” him.

The men “introduced the victim into a car” and transported her to Loulé.

The victim managed to flee when the suspect and the other three men tried to get hold of a vehicle.

Albufeira creates “Cabinet SOS Empresas” in partnership with ACRAL.

The municipality of Albufeira signed a co-operation protocol with ACRAL – Association of Commerce and Services of the Algarve, for the creation of the “Cabinet SOS Empresas”.

It is a structure that aims to support, guide, inform, monitor and promote the economic fabric of the municipality of Albufeira, improving the response to the serious problems that local entrepreneurs are experiencing, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A situation that, in the opinion of the mayor of Albufeira, “has uncovered the weaknesses of the economic sector that was most prospering”.

Following the experience acquired with the “Cheque-Prenda” program, an initiative carried out with ACRAL, José Carlos Rolo underlined that “that association promoted a consultation with its members to understand the difficulties they have felt in evaluating the measures that have been taken being decreed by the government over time, as well as to inquire about the need to implement new measures to support the regional economy”.

The mayor justifies that to overcome the urgent need to support companies in the municipality that suffer from a too gradual recovery and without financial return for long periods, the need arose to create the “Cabinet SOS Empresas”, an initiative based on a multi-disciplinary team that “aimed at providing answers in sensitive areas such as legal, accounting or financial, banking, support and applications, among others fundamental to the survival of companies”.

The Office is dedicated to providing quick information, with guidance on the incentives and support available to companies in financial difficulties, presenting solutions in various aspects, streamlining procedures and developing partnerships that can enhance economic activity, encouraging the recovery of suffocated companies by the economic crisis caused by Covid-19.

Vodafone expands optical fibre in Vila Real de Santo António and in the municipality of Lagos.

Vodafone Portugal announced in a statement that it has extended the coverage of its fibre service in the centre of Vila Real de Santo António, and to the parishes of Luz, Santa Maria, São Sebastião and Odiáxere in the municipality of Lagos.

According to the company, this expansion is part of the commitment assumed to take its fibre optic network to 5.3 million families and companies in the country, “allowing consumers greater freedom of choice and ensuring access for all to the benefits of digital economy”.

The expansion of Vodafone Portugal’s optical fibre in Vila Real de Santo António and Lagos also enables companies to access integrated telecommunications and information technology services, such as fixed internet solutions, cybersecurity, cloud applications, Internet of Things, among other innovative services, was said in the same statement.