• GDP: US$825 million.
• Main exports: Shoes, clothes, fish, bananas, hides, salt and pozzolana (volcanic rock used in making cement).
• Main imports: Petroleum, foodstuffs, consumer goods and machinery.
• Main trade partners: Portugal, Japan, Netherlands and USA.

About one-quarter of the working population is engaged in agriculture. Maize and beans are the main crops; a variety of fruit and vegetables are also grown. The agricultural sector is especially vulnerable to the periodic droughts that afflict the islands, often lasting for several years. Meanwhile, throughout the 1990s, the fishing industry has received substantial international aid, reflected in the result that the islands’ catches now contribute almost half of the total export earnings. Cape Verde joined the International Whaling Commission in 2002 and, with the incentive of an aid package from Japan, has supported the resumption of commercial whaling. The small industrial sector is dominated by fish processing and canning factories, to which electrical and other machinery, chemicals and textiles have recently been added. Mining is confined to salt and pozzolana. Future economic development is being focused on tourism, transhipment facilities and ‘offshore’ financial services. A further vital source of national income are the remittances provided by émigré communities – some 700,000 Cape Verdeans live abroad, mainly in the USA. Cape Verde is a member of the West African Economic Community (ECOWAS).

All correspondence should be in English or French. Most of Cape Verde’s business links are with Portugal. Office hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1230 and 1430-1800.

The larger hotels on the main islands can provide conference facilities.

Câmara de Comercío Industria, Agricultura e Serviços de Barlavento
Rua de Luz 31, CP 728, Mindelo, São Vicente, Cape Verde
Tel: 328 495.
Website: www.cciasb.com

Câmara de Comercío Industria e Servícos de Sotavento
Av. Andrade Corvo, Edificio Shopping Moeda, Praia, Santiago, Cape Verde
Tel: 615 352.

Ministry for Education, Science, Youth and Sport (Information on Conferences/Conventions)
Palácio do Governo, Santiago, Praia, Cape Verde
Tel: 610 507.