António Costa Silva, the executive president of Partex chosen by Prime Minister António Costa to advise him on the Economic Recovery Plan, was challenged for this mission in April at a lunch in the Palace of Belém and needed only two days to draw the general lines of the plan, to be delivered to Brussels, which will be developed in ten years.
“I didn’t know him, nor had I ever been with him. This challenge presented me, to respond to the crisis and develop a plan for the day after“Said Costa Silva, who recalled that this lunch took place on April 24 and that in two days he had the essentials of the plan ready.
As he explained in an interview with RTP, what the Left Bloc called paraminister, will not coordinate ministers, much less negotiate with the parties. “My mission is not to negotiate, it is to make the plan. Who will make the choices and establish the priorities is the Government, ”he said.
In the interview, Costa Silva explained with what “Strategic lines” is that the country will relaunch economic activity. The plan is “ambitious” and has been designed for “Next 10 years”. But it also has answers for immediate problems which, according to the manager chosen by António Costa to coordinate the recovery, are two: “saving the economy and protecting employment”. And for that, “strong State intervention” is needed. Or said more clearly – “More state in the economy”.
“This crisis showed that the role of the State has to be revalued. The State is the last protector of all types of threats ”, stresses the manager, who despite assuming as an independent, not being responsible for“ making decisions or negotiating ”, admits that in the case of TAP, the State must also intervene – with the clear objective of preventing “profitable companies from sinking and falling into a coma”.
Independent Costa Silva will not rule over ministers, nor negotiate with parties, will advise Costa
Still on the terms of a probable capitalization of TAP by the Stateo, Costa Silva recognizes that it will have to be subject to conditions, such as the “preservation of jobs” or the “qualification of workers”.
In the medium and long term, the plan is made up of “two strategic axes” which, the manager points out, are “limited to the financial resources” available. At first, the bet is on the modernization of the country’s physical structures, such as “qualifying the road network” or “intervening in port structures”, or “energy”, which are fundamental to leverage the country’s exports.
At the same time, it is necessary to “accelerate the digital transition” in public administration and, in particular, in the business fabric of small and medium-sized companies – one of the points of the second axis, more focused on digital infrastructures. And it anticipates the “huge impact on the economy” that the increase in digital skills may have.
Costa Silva also speaks of “extending optical fiber to the entire national territory”, after the use of technologies, during the pandemic, having mirrored social inequalities among students.
To RTP, the manager assured that the National Health Service, after responding to pressure from Covid-19, will see the “reinforced investment”, in a clear bet on “equipment and human resources”, concluded Costa Silva.
António Costa puts economic recovery plan in the hands of the president of oil company Partex
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