Interview with Paula Cabaço, President of APRAM – Administration of the Ports of the Autonomous Region of Madeira
Ana Valado
In interviews with PRÉMIO, Paula Cabaço speaks about the repositioning of the “Ports of Madeira” brand, reflected in the slogan “Your Safe Port” and the production of new promotional materials. Stemming from the series of sanitation measures implemented within the scope of the pandemic, this message serves to strengthen the idea that these ports are safe ways of entering the region.
The APRAM president also adds how the new strategy involves strengthening the proximity to companies and participating in the major world events for the sector. Digitalisation and environmental sustainability are among the other looming challenges.
After being halted for over a year, the Ports of Madeira have resumed their activities, specifically on 10 June, Portugal Day with the arrival of the vessel World Voyager belonging to the Portuguese MysticInvest Holding. Has there been a resumption in cruise tourism activities since that day? How many ships and cruise liners have dropped anchor in Madeira over these last four months?
Subsequent to this stopover, there were another two and the fourth was planned but did not happen because it coincided with the decision by the German government to place Portugal in its “red corridor”. This operation involved around 400 passengers with APRAM playing an extremely important role to the extent that this corresponded to setting up, within the current Covid context, of a new product with a route that exclusively integrates the islands of Madeira and the Azores. The operator has already confirmed the intention of continuing with this route in 2022 and 2023. In September, we also had a technical visit from “Norwegian Breakaway”.
This month of October sees the resumption of cruise liners visiting the ports of RAM – the Autonomous Region of Madeira with a forecast of 29 stopovers, five of which will be in the Port of Porto Santo. Should everything go according to plan, by the end of December, we will have received around 100 visits from cruise liners to our ports of Funchal and Porto Santo.
Prior to the pandemic, Germany and the United Kingdom represented the priority markets for APRAM. Do these markets still top the list or are there new trends?
In the traditional Madeira tourism sector, the German and British markets are in fact very significant. In cruise tourism, especially of European origin, there is a prevalence of Germans and British but there are also many Italians, Americans and a whole series of other nationalities. We believe that the pandemic has not changed this reality!
Despite the halt in activities and with practically all ports closed worldwide, the port of Madeira took advantage to improve their infrastructures and prepared to receive visitors with the maximum of safety and ease. What did those investments involve and what was their total value?
The Regional Government, through various program contracts with APRAM, has been undertaking some major maintenance investment in the port infrastructures. Some works were already ongoing prior to March 2020 and what we did during the pandemic was to accelerate this process taking advantage of the fact that there were no vessels to work around. This was the case of the Port of Funchal, where there was the reinforcement of the protective breakwater of Pontinha and the replacement of all the mooring bollards. This investment of over half a million euros ensures the undertaking of port operations in the best safety conditions.
Work shall shortly begin on the Port and Marina of Porto Santo with investment in excess of 1.5 million euros. The project involves the maintenance and rehabilitation of those infrastructures and including the restoration of 700 metres of wharf in asphalt concrete. In the Marina, this essentially involves repairing what got destroyed in the recent storms. This takes place at a time when that marina is in great demand for passenger yachts heading to the Americas, especially in September and October.
Furthermore, we have invested strongly in improving that known as the small docks that play a very important role in both economic and social terms in the different RAM councils. This is about maintaining and improving the docking conditions for small fishing vessels while also stimulating the development of maritime-tourism activities and creating new decentralised attractions.
I cannot avoid mentioning the work undertaken by APRAM, which was a pioneer at the national level, in producing strategic documents, such as the Port Management Plan for Covid, as well as in the procurement of equipment to ensure our port installations were the best possible in terms of sanitation safety conditions taking into consideration protecting both those who visit us but also our local community in a period which is still one of pandemic.
All of this work in the field of combating and preventing Covid-19 and also in the provision of the conditions for the return of the cruise market was distinguished firstly by SGS certification for “Best Practices against Biological Risks” and more recently with the Turismo de Portugal “Clean and Safe 2021” certificate for the cruise terminal typology.
This investment was totally funded by the Regional Government. Despite various demands from the RAM President, Miguel Albuquerque, the Ports and Marinas in the region do not fall under the auspices of the PRR – the Recovery and Resilience Plan for Madeira. As the renovation work on the Port of Funchal is a “structural project” for the region, why was this not in the PRR?
This is something that we do not understand. The ports are critical infrastructures for maritime access especially in an island region like our own that depends on them both for supplies and as a port of entry for tourists. Furthermore, there are future challenges that require preparation in terms of bolstering our competitiveness. For example, the expansion of the Port of Funchal by 400 metros seeks to meet two needs: the first relates to establishing more anchoring space, especially for smaller vessels as, prior to the pandemic, there were some days when we had to refuse entry to vessels because the port was full. The second stems from reinforcing the safety conditions in lower Funchal, avoiding flooding and enabling the operation of wharf 8.
Furthermore, there are many future challenges facing the port sector, such as the growing level of digitalisation and innovation contributing towards greater efficiency in logistics processes and to the environmental sustainability that is today at the centre of every attention. The arrival of larger scale ships requires adjustments or adaptations to infrastructures. In our case, this can only take place through expansion on pains of losing competitiveness at a port that has been on the frontline of the cruise sector at the national level.
Porto do Porto Santo
Porto do Funchal
What are the APRAM expectations for the end of the year; one of the periods of the year with greatest tourism demand for Madeira?
They are good. We have ten reservations for wharf or anchorage slots. That is good news for we at APRAM but also for all Funchal residents who had become used to the New Year’s Eve having a lot of cruise ships in the bay. Just to give you an idea of that, 31 December is the day when our website gets most traffic precisely to see just how many, which and when do the cruise liners arrive to attend the end of year spectacle.
What are the main cruise liner companies visiting Madeira?
They all visit us although the companies with most visits are AIDAcruises, P&O, Thomson, TUI and MSC.
Miradouro dos Moínhos – Porto Santo
What does Madeira have to offer cruise tourists that differs from other destinations?
From the beginning, the bay continues to charm everyone who visits. There are countless witness accounts in literature, newspapers and magazines referring to the magic of arriving in Madeira. Furthermore, we have a pleasant climate, imposing nature, a range of fairly diversified services and are a safe destination. As a package, this all turns a stopover in Madeira into an unforgettable experience.
How is APRAM undertaking the promotion of the destination among the main cruise liner operators and how can you enable your competitiveness in the international cruise tourism market?
We are a port with a long history and tradition in the Atlantic corridor, which has always been in great demand due to its strategic location. Proximity with companies has always been one of our main characteristics.
In the 1990s, we set up a partnership with the Port Authorities of the Canaries and founded the brand “Cruise in the Atlantic Islands”, which united the attractions and synergies of these two Atlantic archipelagos. Indeed, this route Canaries-Madeira-Canaries transformed our island, prior to the pandemic, to become the third zone in the world for the winter season with around 30,000 stopovers and over two million tourists per year. This is a partnership that enables us to compete with the best in the world but we are of course still open to other business opportunities, including projects that bring together Portuguese ports.
During the pandemic and given the decision by the Spanish government to block vessels on the Canaries route from visiting Madeira, a measure justified by the context of preventing the spread of Covid-19, we challenged our Azorean colleagues to come up with a new product, an itinerary through the Portuguese islands, which went well.
Our strategy in commercial terms seeks to strengthen proximity with the companies, beyond participating in the major world gatherings for this sector and port associations, where we define common procedures. In effect, we seek to carry out direct public relations actions with the companies. Despite all of the technology that increasingly surrounds us, personal contacts shall remain an important added-value.
We know that you are undertaking a rebranding of APRAM, under the new slogan “Your Safe Port”. What do these changes consist of and what is the new concept behind the brand?
In this new Covid context, we felt the need to reposition the “Ports of Madeira” brand in order to convey the new values associated with the safety and security of the destination and our ports. The new slogan “Your Safe Port” seeks to highlight that, following a series of sanitation measures that were duly implemented, the ports are safe entranceways into the Region. In order to relaunch activities, following a year and a half all but paralysed, this message is fundamental to restoring the confidence of those who visit us.
This rebranding is going to take place through the new slogan but also through the production of new communications and promotional materials, especially a video, brochure and merchandising materials.
We also seek to ensure the “Safe Port” concept is interpreted in affective terms as a safe haven, a synonym of “welcoming warmly”, an attribute that so well characterises our tourism destination and our population.
In addition to the tourism market, there is also the supply and export markets, fundamental on an island as the main point of entrance and exit for all goods. Could you provide us a balance of this sector in recent months?
The Autonomous Region of Madeira imports 95% of what it consumes and of these imports 99% arrive via maritime routes. Hence, the Port of Caniçal is the main point for supplying this region. This port always remained operational even in the midst of confinement.
And analysing the variations in each month, in total, there were no major differences in the imports and exports ongoing during this pandemic period.
The Regional Government objectives include “more competitive and more efficient ports, drivers of the economic and social development of our region”. How is APRAM achieving this mission?
On islands, ports are structural to economic and social development. Competitive and efficient ports means working in order to provide the best services to our clients, through appropriately applying human and financial resources. Investing in training and valuing the APRAM staff, the constant maintenance of our vessels and onshore equipment, as well as the different infrastructures and support facilities, have been core investments.
However, to strengthen the competitiveness of the RAM ports, it is priority to embrace, in the short term, new projects for digitalisation and environmental sustainability. We have many challenges ahead. I have no doubt that this is the right path but we still have a great deal of work to do!
