Republic of Cape Verde. Island state of Africa located in the Atlantic Ocean. Formed by ten islands and several islets. The islands were discovered in 1456 by the Venetian Alvise Ca ‘da Mosto. It is located on the Atlantic, about 500 km from the Senegalese coast. It is made up of 10 islands and various islets.
Location
Cape Verde is an island state in Africa. It is located on the Atlantic, about 500 km from the Senegalese coast. It is made up of 10 islands and various islets, which are grouped into two sectors: the Barlovento islands (Santo Antonio, San Vicente, Santa Lucia, San Nicolas, Buena Vista and Isla Sal, to the north, and those of Sotavento (Mayo, San Tiago, Fuego and Brava) .The capital is divided between Mindelo, on the island of San Vicente, and Praia, the official capital, on that of San Tiago.
History
The islands were discovered in 1456 by the Venetian Alvise Ca ‘da Mosto at the service of Portugal, and explored in 1460 by Diego Gómes and Antonio da Nola, beginning their settlement. Used for trade with Africa and India, in 1470 they were officially incorporated into the Portuguese crown. At the beginning of the 16th century it was constituted as a very important center of the slave trade, being later replaced by the Gambia, which marked the beginning of its economic decline.
Already in the 20th century, there was a strong independence movement led by the PAIGC (African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde) that pitted the natives against the metropolis. Killed its leader Amilcar Cabral, in 1973, after the Portuguese revolution of 1974, an agreement that the independence of the islands to be reached was fixed in July of 1975.
The Cape Verde Flag. It was adopted on September 22, 1992.
Characteristics
It has a temperate climate, its relief and type of soil are conditioned by its volcanic origin. Fogo, a volcano located on the island of the same name and which erupted in 1951, is the highest altitude in the archipelago, at 2,829 meters. The lands are dry and poor, resulting in insufficient subsistence agriculture.
Economic development
The main crops are corn, sugar cane, coffee, sweet potatoes, and cassava. The hot and dry climate makes it difficult to grow irrigated crops. In order to retain the water, small dams have been built which, together with reforestation, try to alleviate the problem.
Fishing, the importance of which is still limited, constitutes a possible basis for the development of the country. As for industry and crafts, they only employ 2% of the active population. The high deficit in its trade balance makes the country depend largely on foreign aid.
The country has serious water shortages exacerbated by long-term drought cycles. The service economy is oriented to commerce, transportation, and public services. The country imports about 90% of the food it consumes. The potential of fishing, especially lobster and tuna, is not fully exploited.
The main ports are Mindelo and Praia, but the rest of the islands have small port facilities, some of which need to be expanded in the near future.
Social development
Education
According to andyeducation, the preschool program is from three to 6 years old. The Net Enrollment Rate (NER) is 51%. At this level there are 959 teachers, of which 7% have received adequate training. The Pupil Teacher Ratio (NAD) is 22: 1. Primary education is compulsory for ages 6-11. It should be free but it is not, since parents have to pay different expenses. Secondary school is free only for children whose family earns an annual income of less than USD 1,951 (CVE 160,000).
Culture
Its population is based on the island culture and the African culture. It is a mixture of African culture with European culture. Cape Verde has above all a wide spectrum of music that reflects the diverse origins of its population. The morna is one of the most popular musical styles of Cape Verde.
It is a fusion of the Portuguese fado, with the modiha of Brazil and the Argentine tango, as well as the typical cantes of Angola. The zouk is also a musical style widely used by Cape Verdeans, it is an Afro-Caribbean musical rhythm, which was born in the French West Indies. On the other hand, Creole is also part of the Cape Verdean culture, it is the language that is widely spoken in the country, an Africanized Portuguese. It has also been a place where literature has had its place, and writers have used both Portuguese and Creole.