Map of Cabo Verde | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background:


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Location: Western Africa, group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Senegal

Geographic coordinates: 16 00 N, 24 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 4,033 km²
Land: 4,033 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than Rhode Island

Land boundaries
Total: 0 km

Coastline: 965 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone:

Climate: temperate; warm, dry summer; precipitation meager and erratic

Terrain: steep, rugged, rocky, volcanic

Elevation
Highest point: Mt. Fogo (a volcano on Fogo Island) 2,829 m
Lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Natural resources: salt, basalt rock, limestone, kaolin, fish, clay, gypsum

Land use
Agricultural land: 18.6% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land arable land: 11.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent crops: 0.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent pasture: 6.2% (2018 est.)
Forest: 21% (2018 est.)
Other: 60.4% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land: 35 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal
Municipal: 1.6 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Industrial: 400,000 cubic meters (2017 est.)
Agricultural: 30 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

Total renewable water resources: 300 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

Natural hazards: prolonged droughts; seasonal harmattan wind produces obscuring dust; volcanically and seismically active

Geography
Note: strategic location 500 km from west coast of Africa near major north-south sea routes; important communications station; important sea and air refueling site; one of four North Atlantic archipelagos that make up Macaronesia; the others are Azores (Portugal), Canary Islands (Spain), and Madeira (Portugal)


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Population
Distribution: among the nine inhabited islands, population distribution is variable; islands in the east are very dry and are only sparsely settled to exploit their extensive salt deposits; the more southerly islands receive more precipitation and support larger populations, but agriculture and livestock grazing have damaged the soil fertility and vegetation; approximately half of the population lives on Sao Tiago Island, which is the location of the capital of Praia; Mindelo, on the northern island of Sao Vicente, also has a large urban population as shown in this [link]: 603,901 (2023 est.)
Growth rate: 1.19% (2023 est.)
Below poverty line: 35% (2015 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Cabo Verdean(s)
Adjective: Cabo Verdean

Ethnic groups: Creole (Mulatto) 71%, African 28%, European 1%

Languages: Portuguese (official), Crioulo (a Portuguese-based Creole language with two main dialects spoken in Cabo Verde and in the Cabo Verdean diaspora worldwide)

Religions: Roman Catholic 77.3%, Protestant 4.6% (includes Church of the Nazarene 1.7%, Adventist 1.5%, Assembly of God 0.9%, Universal Kingdom of God 0.4%, and God and Love 0.1%), other Christian 3.4% (includes Christian Rationalism 1.9%, Jehovah's Witness 1%, and New Apostolic 0.5%), Muslim 1.8%, other 1.3%, none 10.8%, unspecified 0.7% (2010 est.)

Demographic profile: Cabo Verde’s population descends from its first permanent inhabitants in the late 15th-century - a preponderance of West African slaves, a small share of Portuguese colonists, and even fewer Italians, Spaniards, and Portuguese Jews. Over the centuries, the country’s overall population size has fluctuated significantly, as recurring periods of famine and epidemics have caused high death tolls and emigration.

Age structure
0-14 years: 26.68% (male 80,974/female 80,143)
15-64 years: 67.18% (male 198,503/female 207,205)
65 years and over: 6.14% (2023 est.) (male 14,099/female 22,977)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 47.2
Youth dependency ratio: 39.2
Elderly dependency ratio: 8
Potential support ratio: 12.5 (2021 est.)

Median age
Total: 28.3 years (2023 est.)
Male: 27.5 years
Female: 29.2 years

Population growth rate: 1.19% (2023 est.)

Birth rate: 18.2 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate: 5.8 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution: among the nine inhabited islands, population distribution is variable; islands in the east are very dry and are only sparsely settled to exploit their extensive salt deposits; the more southerly islands receive more precipitation and support larger populations, but agriculture and livestock grazing have damaged the soil fertility and vegetation; approximately half of the population lives on Sao Tiago Island, which is the location of the capital of Praia; Mindelo, on the northern island of Sao Vicente, also has a large urban population as shown in this [link]

Urbanization
Urban population: 68% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 1.83% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 168,000 PRAIA (capital) (2018)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation due to demand for firewood; water shortages; prolonged droughts and improper use of land (overgrazing, crop cultivation on hillsides lead to desertification and erosion); environmental damage has threatened several species of birds and reptiles; illegal beach sand extraction; overfishing
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
International agreements signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants
Particulate matter emissions: 31.08 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 0.54 megatons (2016 est.)
Methane emissions: 0.13 megatons (2020 est.)

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio: 42 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 23 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
Male: 27 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 18.8 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 74 years (2023 est.)
Male: 71.7 years
Female: 76.4 years

Total fertility rate: 2.11 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 55.8% (2018)

Drinking water source
Improved urban: 100% of population
Improved rural: 90% of population
Improved total: 96.7% of population
Unimproved urban: 0% of population
Unimproved rural: 10% of population
Unimproved total: 3.3% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure: 6% of GDP (2020)

Physicians density: 0.83 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

Hospital bed density: 2.1 beds/1,000 population

Sanitation facility access
Improved urban:
Unimproved urban:

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 11.8% (2016)

Alcohol consumption
Per capita total: 4.7 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita beer: 2.28 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita wine: 1.82 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita spirits: 0.6 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Tobacco use
Total: 11.4% (2020 est.)
Male: 17.3% (2020 est.)
Female: 5.4% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: NA

Education expenditures: 7.6% of GDP (2020 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 90.8%
Male: 94.2%
Female: 87.4% (2021)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 13 years
Male: 12 years
Female: 13 years (2018)

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 34.3% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 29.9%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 40.7%


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Cabo Verde
Conventional short form: Cabo Verde
Local long form: Republica de Cabo Verde
Local short form: Cabo Verde
Etymology: the name derives from Cap-Vert (Green Cape) on the Senegalese coast, the westernmost point of Africa and the nearest mainland to the islands

Government type: parliamentary republic

Capital
Name: Praia
Geographic coordinates: 14 55 N, 23 31 W
Time difference: UTC-1 (4 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: the earlier Portuguese name was Villa de Praia ("Village of the Beach"); it became just Praia in 1974 (prior to full independence in 1975)

Administrative divisions: 22 municipalities (concelhos, singular - concelho); Boa Vista, Brava, Maio, Mosteiros, Paul, Porto Novo, Praia, Ribeira Brava, Ribeira Grande, Ribeira Grande de Santiago, Sal, Santa Catarina, Santa Catarina do Fogo, Santa Cruz, Sao Domingos, Sao Filipe, Sao Lourenco dos Orgaos, Sao Miguel, Sao Salvador do Mundo, Sao Vicente, Tarrafal, Tarrafal de Sao Nicolau

Dependent areas

Independence: 5 July 1975 (from Portugal)

National holiday: Independence Day, 5 July (1975)

Constitution
History: previous 1981; latest effective 25 September 1992
Amendments: proposals require support of at least four fifths of the active National Assembly membership; amendment drafts require sponsorship of at least one third of the active Assembly membership; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly membership; constitutional sections, including those on national independence, form of government, political pluralism, suffrage, and human rights and liberties, cannot be amended; revised 1995, 1999, 2010

Legal system: civil law system of Portugal

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Cabo Verde
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Jose Maria Pereira NEVES (since 9 November 2021)
Head of government: Prime Minister Jose Ulisses CORREIA e SILVA (since 22 April 2016)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
Elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 17 October 2021 (next to be held in October 2,026); prime minister nominated by the National Assembly and appointed by the president
Election results:

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (72 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
Elections: last held on 18 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2,026)
Election results: percent of vote by party MPD 50.2%, PAICV 39.6%, UCID 9.0%, other 1.2%; seats by party - MPD 38, PAICV 30, UCID 4; composition as of October 2023 - men 42, women 30, percent of women 41.7%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice (consists of the chief justice and at least 7 judges and organized into civil, criminal, and administrative sections)
Judge selection and term of office: judge appointments - 1 by the president of the republic, 1 elected by the National Assembly, and 3 by the Superior Judicial Council (SJC), a 16-member independent body chaired by the chief justice and includes the attorney general, 8 private citizens, 2 judges, 2 prosecutors, the senior legal inspector of the Attorney General's office, and a representative of the Ministry of Justice; chief justice appointed by the president of the republic from among peers of the Supreme Court of Justice and in consultation with the SJC; judges appointed for life
Subordinate courts: appeals courts, first instance (municipal) courts; audit, military, and fiscal and customs courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, CD, CPLP, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Jose Luis do Livramento MONTEIRO ALVES DE BRITO (since 23 December 2020)
In the us chancery: 3,415 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 965-6,820
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 965-1207
In the us email address and website:
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador John "Jeff" DAIGLE (since 10 September 2019)
From the us embassy: Rua Abilio Macedo 6, Praia
From the us mailing address: 2,460 Praia Place, Washington DC 20,521-2,460
From the us telephone: [238] 260-8,900
From the us FAX: [238] 261-1355
From the us email address and website:

Flag description: five unequal horizontal bands; the top-most band of blue - equal to one half the width of the flag - is followed by three bands of white, red, and white, each equal to 1/12 of the width, and a bottom stripe of blue equal to one quarter of the flag width; a circle of 10 yellow, five-pointed stars is centered on the red stripe and positioned 3/8 of the length of the flag from the hoist side; blue stands for the sea and the sky, the circle of stars represents the 10 major islands united into a nation, the stripes symbolize the road to formation of the country through peace (white) and effort (red)

National symbols: ten, five-pointed, yellow stars; national colors: blue, white, red, yellow

National anthem
Name: "Cantico da Liberdade" (Song of Freedom)
Lyrics/music: Amilcar Spencer LOPES/Adalberto Higino Tavares SILVA
Note: adopted 1996

National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites: 1 (cultural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales:


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Economy overview: tourism-dominated economy benefits from the country’s relative close proximity to Europe; 2009 Financial Crisis halted economic growth for seven years; leveraging export-based growth; COVID-19 decimated economic growth and recovery; high external debt

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 50.1% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 18.3% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 32.2% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 1.9% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 48.6% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -51.1% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 8.9% (2017 est.)
Industry: 17.5% (2017 est.)
Services: 73.7% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: sugar cane, tomatoes, bananas, cabbages, coconuts, cassava, pulses, vegetables, milk, goat milk

Industries: food and beverages, fish processing, shoes and garments, salt mining, ship repair

Industrial production growth rate: 11.76% (2021 est.)

Labor force: 234,300 (2021 est.)

Unemployment rate:

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15 24 total: 34.3% (2021 est.)
Rate ages 15 24 male: 29.9%
Rate ages 15 24 female: 40.7%

Population below poverty line: 35% (2015 est.)

Gini index
Coefficient distribution of family income: 42.4 (2015 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10%: 1.9%
Highest 10%: 40.6% (2000)

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $583 million (2019 est.)
Expenditures: $619 million (2019 est.)
Surplus  or deficit: -3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Taxes and other revenues: 20.09% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Public debt:

Revenue
From forest resources: 0.38% of GDP (2018 est.)
From coal: 0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance:

Exports:
Note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.
Partners: Spain 65%, Portugal 14%, Italy 8% (2019)
Commodities: tuna, mackerel, aircraft, other processed and frozen fish, postage stamps and title bond paper documents, mollusks (2021)

Imports:
Partners: Portugal 36%, Netherlands 16%, Spain 11%, China 6% (2019)
Commodities: refined petroleum, delivery trucks, coal tar oil, cars, rice (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

Debt external:

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Access electrification-total population: 95.2% (2021)
Access electrification-urban areas: 94.8% (2021)
Access electrification-rural areas: 96.8% (2021)
Installed generating capacity: 205,000 kW (2020 est.)
Consumption: 436.854 million kWh (2019 est.)
Exports: 0 kWh (2019 est.)
Imports: 0 kWh (2019 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 32.146 million kWh (2019 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels: 80.2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources solar: 2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources wind: 17.8% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)

Coal
Production: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Consumption: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Exports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Imports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 metric tons (2019 est.)

Petroleum
Total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
Refined petroleum consumption: 6,500 bbl/day (2019 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products imports: 5,607 bbl/day (2015 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions: 1.002 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From coal and metallurgical coke: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 1.002 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)

Energy consumption per capita: 26.539 million Btu/person (2019 est.)


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 57,020 (2022 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 9 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 590,171 (2021 est.)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 100 (2021 est.)

Telephone system

Broadcast media: state-run TV and radio broadcast network plus a growing number of private broadcasters; Portuguese public TV and radio services for Africa are available; transmissions of a few international broadcasters are available (2019)

Internet
Country code: .cv
Users total: 413,000 (2021 est.)
Users percent of population: 70% (2021 est.)

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 24,839 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 5 (2020 est.)


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Military expenditures:

Military and security forces: Cabo Verdean Armed Forces (FACV): Army (also called the National Guard, GN; includes a small air component), Cabo Verde Coast Guard (Guardia Costeira de Cabo Verde, GCCV) (2023)
Note: the National Police are under the Ministry of Internal Affairs

Military service age and obligation: 18-35 years of age for male and female selective compulsory military service; 24-month conscript service obligation; 17 years of age for voluntary service (with parental consent) (2023)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 2 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 5
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 140,429 (2018)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,728,152 (2015) mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: D4

Airports: 9 (2021)
With paved runways: 9
With paved runways note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways
Total: 1,350 km (2013)
Paved: 932 km (2013)
Unpaved: 418 km (2013)

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 47 (2022)
By type: general cargo 16, oil tanker 3, other 28

Ports and terminals
Major seaports: Porto Grande


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Disputes international: none identified

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Stateless persons: 115 (2022)

Illicit drugs: narcotraffickers transit cocaine, cannabis, and other drugs to Africa and Europe; domestic trafficking contributes to increased consumption of illicit substances;