In 2002, Cape Verde was a small island nation located off the coast of West Africa. The archipelago of ten islands was home to over 400,000 people, most of whom were descendants of African slaves brought to the island by Portuguese colonists in the 16th century. The majority of the population lived in two major cities on the main island: Praia and Mindelo. According to computerannals, Cape Verde had a tropical climate with an average temperature of 25°C (77°F). Its economy was based primarily on fishing and subsistence agriculture, with some income from tourism. Despite its small size and lack of natural resources, it had experienced rapid economic growth throughout the 1990s. In 2002, it had one of the highest per capita incomes in Africa and enjoyed relative political stability. Education was highly valued and literacy rates were among the highest in Africa at nearly 90%. Healthcare services were provided by both public and private institutions, though access to healthcare was limited in rural areas due to lack of infrastructure. Despite its progress since independence in 1975, poverty remained a problem for many Cape Verdeans.
In 1997, unemployment remained at 25%. In the middle of the year, the Prime Minister announced the signing of an agreement with Italy on increased tourism investment. The African Development Bank provided a $ 4.9 million loan for a road reconstruction project. The country also received assistance from China and entered into an agreement with the Government of Angola on joint investments in areas such as health and social care.
Disclosures about police brutality against detainees continued through 1998 and 99. Detainees in prison significantly exceeded the capacity of the prisons and their condition is already miserable.
According to Countryaah website, national day of Cape Verde is every July 5. The opposition criticized the government media for failing to fulfill their control functions towards the government. Self-censorship is frequent in the government-controlled media. The authorities apply the laws at their discretion, and judge and punish editors and journalists who criticize members of the government.
Opposition politicians criticized the country’s official media for failing to carry out their control functions against power. Self-censorship is widespread in the media controlled by the government. Authorities are bending the laws at will and accusing them, or imposing fines and jail sentences on editors and journalists who dare to criticize the government.
Human and economic geography
Island state in the Atlantic Ocean, located off the coast of Senegal, at the western end of the African continent. The intense demographic growth of the country continued, which at the 2000 census reached 434,625 residents (they were 341,491 at the previous census of 1990; while according to a 2005 estimate they reached 507,000 residents). However, migratory flows also remained intense, directed in particular to the United States, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Angola: in 2004 the Cape Verdeans living abroad, about 700,000, were much more numerous than those remained at home. From 1998 the local currency, the CV escudo, was convertible to the Portuguese escudo, and the country actually entered the euro area.
Despite the scarcity of natural resources and recurrent droughts, for years the country has continued to record constant economic growth (+ 4 % in 2002, + 7 % in 2003). The government managed foreign debt prudently, respecting the agreements agreed with the International Monetary Fund, and adopted a liberal policy to attract investments. The economy was dominated by international aid, emigrant remittances and services: the latter contributed more than two thirds to the formation of the GDP and, in particular, tourism represented the real strategic pole of this sector, despite the underdeveloped infrastructures. . Agriculture, vulnerable from the climatic point of view, did not provide a production that allowed food self-sufficiency, consequently around 85% of the country’s needs were imported. The light manufacturing industry formed the basis of the secondary sector. In terms of telecommunications, CV possessed technologically advanced infrastructures, and was connected to the rest of the world by submarine cables and satellite links, attracting numerous foreign telecommunications companies interested in low labor costs.
