1. By Donya Miguel
Introduction:
An isolated cluster of twelve islands off the
coast of Senegal. they say that Cape Verde
were created from the crumbs that fell from
gods hands as he wiped them clean at the end of
creation. Historically Cape Verde was
uninhabited before they were e colonized in the
15th century by the Portuguese they were used
for the main trading post for slaves
Housing:
This can vary in Cape Verde from the Grand
Mediterranean-style home of the middle
classes Cape-Verdeans; to the timber mud
blocks houses of the peasants. At the last
estimate, approximately 95% of all houses only
had one floor. External walls tanks and
Photo by F H Mira cisterns, and the other sources of 2000 only
about 76.7 of the population had access to safe
drinking water .At least 54% did not have access to improved sanitation systems and 50% were
without electricity. About 15% of families were homeless.
Economy:
Cape Verde is classified as a small which lacks resources it has experienced several droughts, but
has been steadily growing since the 1190’s a country of average development being only the second
country to have achieved such a transition, after Botswana in 1994
1
2. Cape Verde is considered a developing country, and is included on the list of the United
Nations Small developing
Shopping
You don’t have you usual choice of shops at your fingertips
there are mini- markets with a couple of items, you want get the
fresh produce you get back home as there is limited
refrigeration. There’s no kind of cheese or yoghurts availalable
Eggs are small for vegetables you would need to visit a local
market and purchase: Potatoes, tomatoes, cucumber, lemons,
Photo by Manuel de Sousa bananas, apples, and mangoes
Aid
During the 1990’s, Cape Verde suffered from severe droughts which cut it’s annual harvests by
an immense 80%. This disaster lead to International aid and , as of 2006 food production has still
not returned to pre-drought levels while the annual costs of Cape Verde’s imports continues far
exceeds the value of exports
Island’s Town Population
Santo Antao Ribiera Grande 21,735
Sao Vincente Mindelo 76,107
Santa Luzia Unihabited
Sao Nicolau Ribera Grande 12,864
Sal Santa Maria 8,000
Boa Vista Sal Rei 6,233
Maio Vila do Maio 8,303
Santiago Cida de Velha 124,661
Fogo Sao Filipe 55,000
Brava Vila Nova Sintra 6,043
2
3. Cape Verde by Ingo Wölbern
Family:
As the home and family come very high on the list of expectations in Cape Verde, families often
live together in the same house, as the child rearing is often shared.
The bond of mother and child is very powerful and people are still
very superstitious on the Island’s all babies born on the seventh day
after their birth they are introduced to the family with a blessing,
they all gather in the child’s room and sing songs to protect the child
from evil spirits, every family member coddles the child.
Mothers like to carry the
Dumont d'Urville, Jules-Sébastien-César, babies on their backs and
1790-1842
this is seen often as they
walk down the streets
Schooling is available to children up until the age of
fourteen then it is no longer state funded, unfortunately
most seem to have to work in the family business missing
out on school Photo by DuncanCV
3
4. All in all the Cape Verdeans are a very physical bunch kissing and hugging g, men and women
for lengthy times this happens many times through the day.
Photo by Jørgen Carling
Conclusion:
After reading about Cape Verde there is little distinction between the rich and the poor, as the
vast population are poor even though the country is growing it is at a very slow pace. It faces
difficulties caused by its harsh landscape and climate and many droughts. As a country they still
rely heavily on aid from other countries such as the United States.
Even though they face these adversities they spirit does not seem dampened. They are placed in the
top fifty poorest infact! The hospitality you would receive from a cape-verdian home if you were
so lucky! Would be a lovely meal and lots of drink laid on and plenty of dancing lots of fun seems
to be the order of the day.
Some facts I found out about Cape Verde:
There are ten Islands in total.
It is on the Coast of Africa
My grandfather came from SanVincente a very small Island.
Colonised in the 15th century by the Portuguese
4
5. My survey: This was as a small questionnaire on how many people had been to Cape Verde.
How many people have been to Cape Verde?
14 NO
12
10 Don't Know
8
6
4
2 YES
0
YES NO Don't Know
Sources:
www.capeverdehomes.org
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com
www.sarahmelamed.com
Wikipedia (wikipedia.org) & Wikimedia
Photo by;
By F H Mira - http://www.flickr.com/photos/25894583@N08/3713207813
By DuncanCV - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gossiping.jpg
By Jørgen Carling -
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_postcard_SaoVicente2.jpg
By Manuel de Sousa -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mercado_Municipal_(S_Vicente,_Cabo_Verde).JP
G
By Ingo Wölbern -
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ilheu_de_Cima_Cape_Verde.jpg
5