Portugal president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to visit Goa this week

PANAJI: Portugal president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will visit Goa on February 15 and 16, primarily for signing a contract between a Portuguese government body and the Goa PWD. The contract is to transfer Portugal’s expertise in water and sewerage management systems and technologies to Goa.
Sources said that the protocol department of the state government held a meeting on Tuesday to review the arrangements for Sousa’s visit.
While the contract will be signed at a private hotel in Dona Paula on February 15, Sousa will be visiting the churches in Old Goa on February 16, before flying out of the state.
Sources said that talks are also on for possible exchange of MoUs between Portuguese government bodies and NCAOR, NIO and Goa Shipyard for various programmes.
Governor Satya Pal Malik may also host a dinner for Sousa, sources said.
This is the Portuguese president’s first visit to Goa and it is part of a longer visit to the country, where Sousa’s first stop will be Delhi.
In September 2018, the state government entered into an MoU with a Portuguese government agency, which was meant to help Goa transit to technologically advanced systems to improve its water management and sewage treatment facilities. But the contract was never inked. This contract will finally be signed now more than a year later between the Goa government and the body in Portugal.
The estimated cost the state government needs to shell out as part of the contract is Rs 4 crore.