Cristina Fontes Lima facts for kids

Maria Cristina Lopes Almeida Fontes Lima, born in 1958, is a lawyer and politician from Cape Verde. She held important roles in her country's government for many years. She served as the Minister of Justice, then the Minister of Defence, and later as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health.

Early Life and Education

Maria Cristina Fontes Lima was born in 1958. She studied law and earned her degree in 1981 from a university in Lisbon, Portugal. Later, in 1996, she earned a master's degree in public administration from Southern Illinois University in the United States.

Political Career

Maria Cristina Fontes Lima is a member of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde, which is a political party in Cape Verde.

Becoming a Minister

On January 13, 2001, she was chosen by Prime Minister José Maria Neves to join the government as the Minister of Justice. She worked in this role until March 8, 2006. After that, she was appointed as the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Minister of State Reform, and Minister of Defence.

Leading Health Efforts

In 2011, Fontes Lima became the Minister of Health and also the Deputy Prime Minister. As the Minister of Health, she was in charge of Cape Verde's response to major health challenges. This included dealing with the Ebola outbreak in nearby countries and the Zika outbreak that affected over 7,000 people in Cape Verde. In February 2014, she helped sign an important national agreement to improve health services.

Party Leadership and Elections

In December 2014, Prime Minister Neves decided not to run for another term. Maria Cristina Fontes Lima became a candidate to lead her political party. She finished third in the vote. She left her government positions after her party lost the election in 2016.

In September 2016, Fontes Lima ran for a seat on the city council in Praia, the capital city. However, she was not elected, losing to Oscar Santos from the Movement for Democracy party.

See also

In Spanish: Cristina Fontes Lima para niños