Cape Verde is a republic made of ten islands and thirteen islets in the Atlantic Ocean, 350 miles off the West African coast. With a total population of 553,300, the country covers a total land area of 4,033 square kilometers (Cape Verde Population 2018). Cape Verdeans are creole having originated from European male and African female ancestry. The country is poorly rain-fed with limited fresh water and natural resources. Therefore, Cape Verde’s agricultural production from only four of her major islands cannot sufficiently support the population, leading to dependence on imported food. The only minerals in place include pozzolana and salt.
The country’s economy is mainly service-oriented whereby more than 70% of the GDP is supported by public service, transport, and commerce industries. Almost 70% of the population is rural-based with agriculture and fish farming as their economic activities that contribute to an estimated 9% of GDP. Today, Cape Verde has most of her population living abroad thus contributing about 20% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) (Bernardino, Rusu, & Guedes Soares, 2017, p. 316).
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Cape Verde’s energy consumption relies mainly on two renewable energy resources namely sun and wind. The country has heavily invested in solar power plants and wind turbines in four of her largest islands. These sources produce more than a third of Cape Verde’s energy needs and strategies are in place to ensure that by 2025, the country shall be fully running on renewable energy resources (Withnall, 2016). The country’s political class has the goodwill to drive this goal and is committed to ensuring that the country achieves a state-of-the-art renewable energy industry.
The country experiences a mild climate with its region falling under tropical Africa giving it an advantage and potential for generation of solar photovoltaic electricity. Also, the country receives northeasterly trade winds that are very significant in the production of wind power. The country already has wind farms in 3 of her islands generating more than 25% of power consumption (Withnall, 2016). The volcanic archipelago also contributes to geothermal power generation. Lastly, the country strategic islands receive tides and waves that facilitate harnessing of wave energy. All these factors coupled with her developed technology places the country in a suitable position to advance her plans for full dependence on renewable energy resources.
References
Bernardino, M., Rusu, L., & Guedes Soares, C. (2017). Evaluation of the wave energy resources in the Cape Verde Islands. Renewable Energy , 101 , 316-326. doi:10.1016/j.renene.2016.08.040
Cape Verde Population 2018 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/cape-verde-population/
Withnall, A. (2016, September 29). Cape Verde: The African country that plans to run on 100% renewable energy by 2020. The Independent [London]. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/cape-verde-the-african-country-that-plans-to-run-on-100-renewable-energy-by-2020-a7337426.html
