Maria João Carreiro highlights importance of valuing tourism professionals and occupations as key challenge to increasing number of people employed in the sector - Communication

Secretaria Regional da Juventude, Habitação e Emprego

The Regional Secretary for Youth, Housing and Employment chaired today the opening session of the Lab Conference by Bensaúde Hotels, promoted as part of Week Food Lab, an event organised by AVEA - Association for the Economic Promotion of the Azores, which runs until Saturday, November 1, at the Pavilhão do Mar in Ponta Delgada.

Maria João Carreiro defended that valuing professionals and occupations in the areas of tourism, leisure, hospitality and catering is one of the key challenges to increasing the employed population in these growing sectors, which are creating job opportunities in the Azores.

"Tourism is made up of people, service and skills. We cannot think about the sustainability of tourism, hospitality or catering without a policy towards the development of occupations and professionals who are essential for tourism to happen," she said.

The Regional Secretary highlighted the PSD/CDS-PP/PPM coalition government's commitment to providing incentives to companies to retain workers and attract human resources to tourism.

These incentives include support for training and hiring employees and unemployed people, both young people and adults, which increases opportunities for job stability and better income for workers, and boosts companies' productivity levels.

From January 2021 to date, 2,337 active, employed, and unemployed individuals have been certified in the areas of hospitality and catering, tourism, and leisure. This includes a total of more than 180 training programmes provided under Form.Açores, Qualifica.In and the Certified Training Entities in the Region initiative.

In the past four academic years, Azorean vocational schools have introduced 34 new level 4 courses in hospitality and catering, tourism, and leisure, enrolling 580 students. In the 2025/2026 school year, 13 new courses were opened in these areas, involving 207 students.

The Regional Secretary added that, since 2021, more than 2,400 unemployed people have been placed in employment support programmes in the areas of tourism, hospitality/accommodation and catering. In the same period, more than 83% of the 3,680 jobs advertised by the Training and Employment in these areas have been filled.

The most sought-after occupations with the highest number of workers placed through the CONTRATAR measure are those in the areas of kitchen and catering: out of more than 6,100 workers with supported employment contracts since 2021, 21% have been placed in these areas.

"As part of an ambitious strategy for the present and future of tourism in the Azores, training, qualifications and job quality are fundamental to the sustainability of our offer. Accordingly, they are fundamental to ensuring that the investment in the sector generates even more value for the Region and also that tourism translates into more value for companies and workers," she emphasised.

The Regional Government, through the Regional Secretariat for Youth, Housing and Employment, is supporting the second edition of Week Food Lab with €40,000, considering its programme geared towards culinary training and innovation as well as its contribution to enhancing the catering industry. It also promotes the Region as a gastronomic tourist destination, leveraged by the training of its professionals.

The Week Food Lab will feature the following Michelin-starred national and international chefs: Alexandre Silva (Fogo and Loco, Lisbon, Portugal), Ricardo Costa (Yeatman, Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal), Octávio Freitas (Desarma, Funchal, Portugal), Elena Cerezo (Angle, Barcelona, Spain), Daniel Dal-Ben (1876 Daniel Dal-Bem, Düsseldorf, Germany) and Matteo Vergine (Grow, Albiate, Italy).

The programme includes advanced and certified training in the areas of "Room Service" and "Wines and Bartending" featuring sommeliers Gonçalo Patraquim (Double Tree by Hilton Lagoa Azores) and João Barbosa (Desarma), as well as initial training workshops on "Enhancing endogenous and local raw materials"; "Traditional Cuisine," “Upselling,” "Communication and Posture" and "Bartending and Mixology."

In addition to themed dinners at the Anfiteatro Lounge Restaurant at Portas do Mar, participants in Week Food Lab can take part in visits to regional partners and producers.

The Lab Conference by Bensaúde Hotels was held under the theme "Sustainability: A 360 Process," addressing topics such as "Innovation, sustainability, origin, and biodiversity" and "Regeneration, technology, and science: awareness and links."