Economy of Cape Verde

Economy of Cape Verde

A market place in Praia
Currency	Cape Verdean escudo (CVE)
Fiscal year	Calendar year
Trade organisations	AU, WTO
Statistics
GDP	$1.89 billion (2011 est.)
GDP growth	2.0% (2011 est.)
GDP per capita	$3,900 (2010 est.)
GDP by sector	agriculture (9.2%), industry (16.5%), services (74.3%) (As of 2009)
line-height:1.1em	3% (2011 est.)
Population below poverty line	15% (As of 2010)
Labour force	243,120 (2010)
Labour force by occupation	food and beverages, fish processing, shoes and garments, salt mining, ship repair
Ease-of-doing-business rank	119th
External
Exports	$167 million f.o.b. (As of 2011)
Export goods	fuel, shoes, garments, fish, hides
Main export partners	Spain 56% Portugal 19.4% India 5.3% Italy 4.8% (2013 est.)
Imports	$877 million f.o.b. (As of 2011)
Import goods	foodstuffs, industrial products, transport equipment, fuels
Main import partners	Portugal 33.5% Netherlands 25.2% China 7.7% Spain 6.4% Belgium 5.6% (2013 est.)
Gross external debt	$284 million (As of 2010)
Public finances
Public debt	N/A (As of 2008)
Revenues	$480 million (2009 est.)
Expenses	$595.9 million (2009 est.)
Economic aid	$136 million (recipient) (As of 2009)
Credit rating	B+ (Domestic) B+ (Foreign) BB (T&C Assessment) (Standard & Poor's)
line-height:1.25em;padding:0.2em;

Cape Verde is a small archipelagic nation that lacks resources and has experienced severe droughts. Agriculture is made difficult by lack of rain and is restricted to only four islands for most of the year. Most of the nation's GDP comes from the service industry. Cape Verde's economy has been steadily growing since the late 1990s, and it is now officially considered a country of average development, being only the second country to have achieved such transition, after Botswana in 1994. Cape Verde has significant cooperation with Portugal at every level of the economy, which has led it to link its currency (the Cape Verdean escudo) first to the Portuguese escudo and, in 1999, to the euro.

Resources

About 75% of food is imported. Cape Verde annually runs a high trade deficit, financed by foreign aid and remittances from emigrants; remittances constitute a supplement to GDP of more than 20%. Economic reforms, launched by the new democratic government in 1991, are aimed at developing the private sector and attracting foreign investment to diversify the economy. Since 1991, the policies the government has pursued include an open welcome to foreign investors and a far-reaching privatization program.

Fish and shellfish are plentiful, and small quantities are exported. Cape Verde has cold storage and freezing facilities as well as fish processing plants in Mindelo, Praia, and on Sal. However, the fishing potential, mostly lobster and tuna, is not fully exploited.

The economy is service-oriented, with commerce, transport, and public services accounting for almost 70% of the GDP. Although nearly 35% of the population lives in rural areas, the share of agriculture in GDP in 2010 was only 9.2% (up from 8.9% in 1995); of the 1998 total, fishing accounts for 1.5%.

The Cape Verdean government established the top priorities for development as the promotion of a market economy and of the private sector; the development of tourism, light manufacturing industries, and fisheries; and the development of transport, communications, and energy facilities. In 1994-95 Cape Verde received a total of about U.S.$50 million in foreign investments, of which 50% was in industry, 19% in tourism, and 31% in fisheries and services. Prospects for 2000 depend heavily on the maintenance of aid flows, remittances, and the momentum of the government's development program.

Mineral industry

Mining is an insignificant contributor to the country's economy. Most of the country's mineral requirements are imported. As of 2007, production of mineral commodities was limited to clay on the islands of Boa Vista, Sal, and São Vicente; gypsum and iron ore on the island of Maio; limestone on the islands of Boa Vista, Sal, and Santo Antão; pozzolana on the island of Santo Antão; and salt on the islands of Maio and Sal. Cape Verde was not a natural gas or petroleum producer as of 2007.

Transportation

Cape Verde's strategic location at the crossroads of mid-Atlantic air and sea lanes has been enhanced by significant improvements at Mindelo's harbor (Porto Grande) and at Sal's international airport. Ship repair facilities at Mindelo were opened in 1983, and the harbors at Mindelo and Praia were recently renovated. The major ports are Mindelo and Praia, but all other islands have small port facilities, some of which are to be expanded in the near future. In addition to the international airport on Sal, airports are located on all of the inhabited islands. The archipelago has 3,050 kilometers (1,830 mi.) of roads, of which 1,010 kilometers (606 mi.) are paved. The new Praia International Airport is currently operative.

International recognition

Cape Verde is considered a developing country, and is included on the list of the United Nations Small Island Developing States.

In 2007 the United Nations graduated Cape Verde from the category of Least Developed Countries, only the second time this has happened to a country.

On December 18, 2007, the General Council of the World Trade Organization approved a package for the accession of Cape Verde to the WTO. Accession was effective on July 23, 2008, 30 days after ratification by Cape Verde, which took place on 23 June. The package requires Cape Verde to adapt some of its economic regulation. In particular, it will need to introduce a new Customs Code, and to introduce copyright and patent laws complying with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Cape Verde does not have legislation for industrial property, such as patents, trademarks, and industrial designs but does have a law on copyrights (Law No. 101/III/90, December 1990). Pascal Lamy, director-general of the WTO said, "I am very pleased to welcome Cape Verde as a new member. This new membership will strengthen multilateral trading system. Being part of the WTO will enable Cape Verde to continue its integration into the world economy."

See also

• Agriculture in Cape Verde
• Cape Verdean escudo

References

• CIA World Factbook

External links

• World Bank: Cape Verde - Data & Statistics
• Instituto Nacional de Estatística (Portuguese) National Institute of Statistics
• Banco de Cabo Verde (Portuguese) Central Bank of Cape Verde
• Bolsa de Valores de Cabo Verde (Portuguese) Cape Verdean Stock Exchange
• Economy of Cape Verde at DMOZ
• Cape Verde latest trade data on ITC Trade Map