The Madeira Archipelago is situated between latitude 32º22’20″N and 33º7’50″N with its longitude between 16º16’30″W and 17º16’38″W. The island of Madeira has a surface area of 741 km2. The island is 500 kms from the African coast and 1000 kms from the European continent, which is the equivalent of a 1 hour 30 minute flight from Lisbon.
The archipelago, discovered in 1419 by two captains of Prince Henry the Navigator, João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira, is made up of the islands of Madeira, Porto Santo and the uninhabited islands of Selvagens and Desertas.
It’s known for its namesake wine and warm, subtropical climate. The main island of Madeira is volcanic, green and rugged, with high cliffs, pebbly beaches and settlements on deltas of the Fajã River. Capital Funchal has botanic gardens and is known for its harbour and a large New Year’s fireworks show.
Madeira offers not only an all year round summer climate and wonderful fauna and flora – Madeira is also virtually crime free and one of the safest holiday destinations in the world!
Famous for being the birthplace of footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, the international airport on the island will be renamed after him at the end of 2016.
Safe Communities Madeira (SCM) is an operating name of Associação SCP Safe Communities Portugal (SCP), the country’s only registered national non-profit association providing a “one stop shop” of crime prevention information available to all members of the community.
SCM would like to thank the PSP, GNR, Judicial Police, SEF and the Civil Protection Authority in Madeira for their collaboration in providing input to the pages on this website.
The aim of SCM is to promote safer communities, enhance security awareness and reduce the risk of becoming a victim of crime. It also works closely with the Civil Protection Authority to promote public safety especially in respect of forest fires. It does this through a number of specific objectives covering police/public engagement; communication and awareness; as well as public support in the fight against crime.
For residents living in, or persons visiting Madeira, and certain districts in Portugal, SCP has created specific “safe communities”, detailing the services it provides in those areas. The first of these was the Algarve, the second is Lisbon and the third Madeira.
SCP provides a diverse range of free services to the public which can be found under our How we help you page. These include emergency contacts; keeping kids safe and reporting a crime.
With over 90 downloads the Crime Prevention Advice page has the most comprehensive range of crime prevention material available in Portugal. These range from protecting your home to reducing the risk of pet theft.
Madeira is one of the safest destinations in Europe and in order to keep it so please visit our Safe Tourism page which has crime prevention advice in ten different languages.
Find out more about policing in Madeira we have an overview of the law enforcement agencies in the Region, including the GNR who deal with specialist matters such as SEPNA and GIPPS. Day to day policing is undertaken by the PSP. Please visit the page of the Judicial Police to find out more about their work as well as the border and immigration service SEF in the area.
To keep up to date with various crime arrests, crime prevention seminars, displays and other exhibitions organized by SCP in conjunction with the various government agencies, please visit our Latest News/Events page.
Am emergency can happen at any time and it is important to summon help quickly. Our Emergency Contacts page provides the most comprehensive list of contact details available including various national hotlines. If you see something suspicious then you can report this to the GNR, PSP or Judicial Police using our “Report Suspicious Activities” page. Doing this will help keep the community safe.
SCP’s responsibility in the area of public safety includes creating awareness of issues such as wildfires which are a major risk in Portugal. Visit our Civil Protection page on ways you can help keep the forests safe.
In order to receive the latest updates and news about crime prevention please sign up for free newsletter on this page. This is published fortnightly or more frequently if there are matters that need to be circulated urgently. Crime prevention involves us all.
Find out more about the history of SCP, our team, our supporters and protocols with various authorities.
If you have any suggestions for crime prevention topics that you feel would be of interest to the community, or need advice or help concerning policing and crime prevention issues please contact us.
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