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80-409: The Guinea-Bissau Civil War was fought from 7 June 1998 to 10 May 1999 and was triggered by an attempted coup d'état against the government of President João Bernardo Vieira led by Brigadier-General Ansumane Mané . Government forces, backed by neighbouring states, clashed with the coup leaders who had quickly gained almost total control over the country's armed forces. The conflict resulted in

160-600: A government of national unity and hold elections by the end of March 1999. In January 1999, Fadul announced that presidential and legislative elections would not take place in March as envisaged in the Abuja accord, and would be delayed until the end of the year. Also in January agreement was reached between the government, rebels and ECOWAS on the strength of the ECOMOG interposition force, which

240-576: A ceasefire. On 26 July, following mediation by a delegation from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), the government and the rebels agreed to implement a truce enforced by the Portuguese, still occupying Bissau and other major urban centers. On 25 August, representatives of the government and the rebels met under the auspices of the CPLP and ECOWAS on Sal Island , Cape Verde , where an agreement

320-640: A meeting of ECOWAS foreign ministers held in Togo in May 1999, Vieira's overthrow was condemned and demands were made for him to be permitted to leave Guinea-Bissau. It was also decided that ECOMOG forces would be withdrawn from the country. The last ECOMOG troops left in early June. That month Vieira was permitted to leave Guinea-Bissau to seek medical treatment in France. Sanhá cited humanitarian reasons for allowing Vieira's departure, but stressed that he would return to stand trial. In

400-707: A meeting of the ruling bodies of the PAIGC that month, Manuel Saturnino da Costa was appointed to replace Vieira as party leader. At a tripartite meeting conducted in late May by representatives of the government, the military junta and the political parties, agreement was reached that Vieira should stand trial for his involvement in arms trafficking to the Casamance separatists and for political and economic crimes relating to his terms in office. Vieira subsequently agreed to stand trial, but only after receiving medical treatment abroad, after which he pledged to return to Guinea-Bissau. At

480-563: A military depot of the Guinea-Bissau armed forces. In March 1998, following protest by opposition parties at delays in the organization of legislative elections , an independent national elections commission was established. The elections were due to be held in July. In April, Mané publicly accused the Minister of Defense and a group of officers in the armed forces of involvement in arms trafficking to

560-563: A number of international organizations. It also participates in most international conferences on economic and political issues. Since 2007, Cape Verde has a special partnership status with the EU , under the Cotonou Agreement , and might apply for special membership , in particular because the Cape Verdean escudo , the country's currency, is indexed to the euro . In 2011 Cape Verde ratified

640-622: A second coup on May 7 by the rebel military junta, leading President Vieira to seek asylum in Portugal . For a week-long period, Ansumane Mané became the country's temporary head of state. On May 14, Malam Bacai Sanhá was installed as acting president. Cape Verde Cape Verde ( / ˈ v ɜːr d ( i )/ , VURD( -ee) ) or Cabo Verde ( / ˌ k ɑː b oʊ ˈ v ɜːr d eɪ / KAH -boh VUR -day , / ˌ k æ b oʊ -/ KAB -oh -⁠ , local Portuguese: [ˈkabu ˈveɾdɨ] ), officially

720-557: A successful operation to put an end to a drug trafficking group which smuggled cocaine from Colombia to the Netherlands and Germany using the country as a reorder point. The operation took more than three years, being a secret operation during the first two years, and ended in 2010. In 2016, Cape Verdean Armed Forces were involved in the Monte Tchota massacre , a green-on-green incident that resulted in 11 deaths. The Cape Verde archipelago

800-514: A truce mediated by the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) was agreed upon. A month later on August 25, the existing truce was transformed into a cease-fire . Further talks in September and October failed, with the government rejecting rebel demands for withdrawal of Senegalese and Guinean troops, and the rebels in turn rejecting a proposal for a buffer zone. Fighting resumed in October in

880-533: Is Santiago, which hosts the nation's capital, Praia, the principal urban agglomeration in the archipelago. Three of the Cape Verde islands, Sal, Boa Vista, and Maio, are fairly flat, sandy, and dry; the others are generally rockier with more vegetation. Geologically, the islands, covering a combined area of slightly over 4,033 square kilometres (1,557 square miles), are principally composed of igneous rocks , with volcanic structures and pyroclastic debris comprising

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960-507: Is called Cidade Velha ("Old City"), to distinguish it from a town of the same name on a different Cape Verdean island ( Ribeira Grande on the island of Santo Antão ). The original Ribeira Grande was the first permanent European settlement in the tropics . In the 16th century, the archipelago prospered from the Atlantic slave trade . Pirates occasionally attacked the Portuguese settlements. Francis Drake , an English privateer , twice sacked

1040-701: Is in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 570 kilometres (350 mi) off the western coast of the African continent, near Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania as well as part of the Macaronesia ecoregion . It lies between latitudes 14° and 18°N , and longitudes 22° and 26°W . The country is a horseshoe-shaped cluster of ten islands (nine inhabited) and eight islets, that constitute an area of 4033 km (1557 sq mi). The islands are spatially divided into two groups: The largest island, both in size and population,

1120-428: Is usually defined as terrain that receives less than 250 mm (9.8 in) of annual rainfall. Sal's total of 145 mm (5.7 in) confirms this classification. Most of the year's rain falls in September. Sal, Boa Vista, and Maio have a flat landscape and arid climate, whilst the other islands are generally rockier and have more vegetation. Because of the infrequent occurrence of rainfall, where not mountainous,

1200-503: The April 1974 revolution in Portugal , the PAIGC became an active political movement in Cape Verde. In December 1974, the PAIGC and Portugal signed an agreement providing for a transitional government composed of Portuguese and Cape Verdeans. On 30 June 1975, Cape Verdeans elected a National Assembly which received the instruments of independence from Portugal on 5 July 1975. Immediately following

1280-626: The Macaronesia ecoregion , along with the Azores , the Canary Islands , Madeira and the Savage Isles . The Cape Verde archipelago was uninhabited until the 15th century, when Portuguese explorers discovered and colonized the islands, thus establishing the first European settlement in the tropics. Because the Cape Verde islands were conveniently located to play a role in the Atlantic slave trade , Cape Verde became economically prosperous during

1360-529: The Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MDFC), an insurgent separatist group from the Senegalese region of Casamance , were killed and another forty were arrested following clashes with the armed forces in two towns on the northern border of Guinea-Bissau. The armed forces deployed reinforcements along the border with Casamance to prevent the separatists from entering the country. In late January, following

1440-655: The November 1980 coup in Guinea-Bissau , relations between Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau became strained. Cape Verde abandoned its hope for unity with Guinea-Bissau and formed the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV). Problems have since been resolved and relations between the countries are good. The PAICV and its predecessor established a one-party system and ruled Cape Verde from independence until 1990. Responding to growing pressure for pluralistic democracy,

1520-534: The Portuguese language Cabo Verde ('green cape'), the name that Portuguese explorers gave the cape in 1444, a few years before they came across the islands. On 24 October 2013, the country's delegation to the United Nations informed it that other countries should no longer use Cape Verde or any other translations of Cabo Verde as part of its official name: all countries should use Republic of Cabo Verde as

1600-478: The Republic of Cabo Verde , is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about 4,033 square kilometres (1,557 sq mi). These islands lie between 600 and 850 kilometres (320 and 460 nautical miles) west of Cap-Vert , the westernmost point of continental Africa. The Cape Verde islands form part of

1680-801: The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court . In 2017 Cape Verde signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons . The judicial system consists of a Supreme Court of Justice – whose members are appointed by the president, the National Assembly, and the Board of the Judiciary ;– and regional courts. Separate courts hear civil, constitutional, and criminal cases. Appeals are to

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1760-557: The (then) capital Ribeira Grande in 1585 when it was a part of the Iberian Union . After a French attack in 1712, the town declined in importance relative to nearby Praia , which became the capital in 1770. The decline in the slave trade in the 19th century resulted in an economic crisis. Cape Verde's early prosperity slowly vanished. However, the islands' position astride mid-Atlantic shipping lanes made Cape Verde an ideal location for re-supplying ships. Because of its excellent harbour,

1840-561: The 16th and 17th centuries, attracting merchants, privateers , and pirates . It declined economically in the 19th century after the suppression of the Atlantic slave trade by the British Empire, and many of its inhabitants emigrated during that period. However, Cape Verde gradually recovered economically by becoming an important commercial center and useful stopover point along major shipping routes. Cape Verde became independent in 1975. Since

1920-472: The 2016 parliamentary elections , taking back parliamentary majority after 15 year-rule of African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV). In April 2021, the ruling center-right Movement for Democracy (MpD) of Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva won the parliamentary election . In October 2021, opposition candidate and former prime minister, Jose Maria Neves of PAICV, won Cape Verde's presidential election. On 9 November 2021, Jose Maria Neves

2000-574: The Cape Verde Islands. These are referred to as Cape Verde-type hurricanes . These hurricanes can become very intense as they cross warm Atlantic waters away from Cape Verde. The average hurricane season has about two Cape Verde-type hurricanes, which are usually the largest and most intense storms of the season because they often have plenty of warm open ocean over which to develop before encountering land. The five largest Atlantic tropical cyclones on record have been Cape Verde-type hurricanes. Most of

2080-465: The Cape Verde archipelago are Diogo Dias , Diogo Afonso, Venetian Alvise Cadamosto , and Diogo Gomes (who had accompanied António de Noli on his voyage of discovery, and who claimed to have been the first to land on the Cape Verdean island of Santiago, and the first to name that island). In 1462, Portuguese settlers arrived at Santiago and founded a settlement they called Ribeira Grande. Today it

2160-495: The Casamance separatists. At the sixth PAIGC congress held May 1998, President João Bernardo Vieira was re-elected president of the party. Vieira dismissed the suspended Mané and appointed General Humberto Gomes to replace him on 6 June 1998. On 7 June, rebelling troops led by Ansumane Mané seized control of military barracks in Bissau as well as other strategic locations including the international airport. Mané subsequently demanded

2240-591: The National Assembly ;– MpD (36), PAICV (25), and the Cape Verdean Independent Democratic Union (UCID) (3). The two main political parties are PAICV and MpD. Movement for Democracy (MpD) ousted the ruling African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV) for the first time in 15 years in the 2016 parliamentary election, at which time its leader, Ulisses Correia e Silva, became prime minister. Jorge Carlos Almeida Fonseca

2320-667: The PAICV called an emergency congress in February 1990 to discuss proposed constitutional changes to end one-party rule. Opposition groups came together to form the Movement for Democracy (MpD) in Praia in April 1990. The one-party state was abolished on 28 September 1990, and the first multi-party elections were held in January 1991. The MpD won a majority of the seats in the National Assembly, and MpD presidential candidate António Mascarenhas Monteiro defeated

2400-559: The PAICV's candidate with 73.5% of the votes. Legislative elections in December 1995 increased the MpD majority in the National Assembly. A February 1996 presidential election returned President Monteiro to office. Legislative elections in January 2001 returned power to the PAICV, with the PAICV holding 40 of the National Assembly seats, MpD 30, and Party for Democratic Convergence (PCD) and Labour and Solidarity Party (PTS) 1 each. In February 2001,

2480-513: The PAICV-supported presidential candidate Pedro Pires defeated former MpD leader Carlos Veiga by only 13 votes. President Pedro Pires was narrowly re-elected in 2006 elections . President Jorge Carlos Fonseca led the country after the 2011 Cape Verde presidential election and he was re-elected in the 2016 election . He was supported by the Movement for Democracy Party. MpD also won in

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2560-526: The PAIGC, winning 72% of the vote. He was sworn in on 17 February 2000. 1998 Guinea-Bissau coup attempt The failed coup was caused by the dismissal of the Brigadier-General from his position as Chief of Staff by President Vieira following alleged involvement in an arms smuggling scandal with a separatist group in Senegal, namely the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC). Pressured by

2640-719: The Supreme Court. The military of Cape Verde consists of the National Guard and the Coast Guard; 0.7% of the country's GDP was spent on the military in 2005. Having fought their only battles in the war for independence against Portugal between 1974 and 1975, the efforts of the Cape Verdean armed forces have turned to combating international drug trafficking. In 2007, together with the Cape Verdean Police , they carried out Operation Flying Launch ( Operacão Lancha Voadora ),

2720-675: The United States maintain embassies in Praia. Cape Verde maintains a vigorously active foreign policy, especially in Africa. Cape Verde is a founding member state of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), also known as the Lusophone Commonwealth, an international organization and political association of Lusophone nations across four continents, where Portuguese is an official language. Cape Verde has bilateral relations with some Lusophone nations and holds membership in

2800-463: The aegis of ECOWAS in Abuja, Nigeria , resulted in the signing of a peace accord on 1 November. Under the accord's terms, the two sides reaffirmed the cease-fire of 25 August and resolved that the withdrawal of Senegalese and Guinean troops from Guinea-Bissau be conducted simultaneously with the deployment of an ECOMOG (ECOWAS Cease-fire Monitoring Group) interposition force, which would guarantee security on

2880-451: The air temperature is cooler than in Senegal, but the sea is warmer. Due to the relief of some islands, such as Santiago with its steep mountains, the islands can have orographically induced precipitation, allowing rich woods and luxuriant vegetation to grow where the humid air condenses soaking the plants, rocks, soil, logs, moss, etc. On the higher islands and somewhat wetter islands, exclusively in mountainous areas, like Santo Antão island,

2960-477: The armed forces, it revealed that President Vieira's presidential guard had been heavily implicated in arms trafficking. The United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office in Guinea-Bissau was subsequently established to monitor the general elections and the implementation of the Abuja Agreement. In early May 1999, Vieira announced that legislative and presidential elections would take place on 28 December, but he

3040-475: The base of towering mountains. Ocean cliffs have been formed by catastrophic debris landslides . Cape Verde's climate is milder than that of the African mainland because the surrounding sea moderates temperatures on the islands and cold Atlantic currents produce an arid atmosphere around the archipelago. Conversely, the islands do not receive the upwelling (cold streams) that affect the West African coast, so

3120-510: The basic principles of its government. The president is the head of state and is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The prime minister is the head of government and proposes other ministers and secretaries of state. The prime minister is nominated by the National Assembly and appointed by the president. Members of the National Assembly are elected by popular vote for five-year terms. In 2016, three parties held seats in

3200-465: The basis of the two nations' independence movement. Moving its headquarters to Conakry , Guinea in 1960, the PAIGC began an armed rebellion against Portugal in 1961. Acts of sabotage eventually grew into a war in Portuguese Guinea that pitted 10,000 Soviet Bloc -supported PAIGC soldiers against 35,000 Portuguese and African troops. By 1972, the PAIGC controlled much of Portuguese Guinea despite

3280-412: The border with Senegal. It was also agreed that a Government of National Unity would be established to include rebel representatives and that presidential and legislative elections would be held no later than March 1999. In early November 1998, an agreement was reached on the composition of a joint executive commission to implement the peace accord. Later that month the commission approved the structure of

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3360-519: The capital and other cities, with the government imposing a nationwide curfew. By then, rebel forces controlled approximately 99% of the country. On November 1, a peace accord mediated by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was signed in Abuja , Nigeria . Included in the treaty were a formal ceasefire, the withdrawal of foreign troops, and the formation on a National Unity Government (NUG) with elections planned for March of

3440-568: The capital's airport in Bissau , proclaiming himself head of the Junta Militar afterwards - a transitional military council. Ansumane Mané called for Vieira's resignation and for fresh elections to be held. Supported by some three thousand Senegalese and Guinean troops, government forces unsuccessfully tried retaking rebel-held territory, leading to heavy fighting. Around three thousand foreign nationals were evacuated, and approximately two hundred thousand residents fled Bissau. On July 26,

3520-412: The city of Mindelo , located on the island of São Vicente , became an important commercial centre during the 19th century. Diplomat Edmund Roberts visited Cape Verde in 1832. Cape Verde was the first stop of Charles Darwin 's voyage with HMS  Beagle in 1832. With few natural resources and inadequate sustainable investment from the Portuguese, the citizens grew increasingly discontented with

3600-414: The city, prompting fears of a humanitarian disaster, with the hostilities preventing aid organizations from distributing emergency food and medical supplies to the refugees. Fighting continued into July, with many members of the Guinea-Bissau armed forces reportedly defecting to the side of the rebels. Portuguese marines were dispatched to occupy Bissau to both rescue Portuguese citizens and attempt to force

3680-466: The climate is suitable for the development of dry monsoon forests, and laurel forests . Average temperatures range from 22 °C (72 °F) in February to 27 °C (80.6 °F) in September. Cape Verde is part of the Sahelian semi-arid belt, with nothing like the rainfall levels of nearby West Africa . It rains irregularly between August and October, with frequent brief heavy downpours. A desert

3760-592: The colonial masters, who refused to provide the local authorities with more autonomy. In 1951, Portugal changed Cape Verde's status from a colony to an overseas province in an attempt to blunt growing nationalism . In 1956, Amílcar Cabral and a group of fellow Cape Verdeans and Guineans organized (in Portuguese Guinea ) the clandestine African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC). It demanded improvement in economic, social and political conditions in Cape Verde and Portuguese Guinea and formed

3840-410: The country as a precondition to a definitive peace agreement, which was rejected by the government. The rebels, in turn, rejected a proposal for the establishment by Senegal of a buffer zone within Guinea-Bissau territory along the border with Casamance. In October the rebels agreed to a government proposal for the creation of a demilitarized zone separating the opposing forces in the capital. Before

3920-515: The country's official name. Speakers of English have used the name Cape Verde for the archipelago and, since independence in 1975, for the country. In 2013, the Cape Verdean government determined that it would thenceforth use the Portuguese name Cabo Verde for official purposes, including at the United Nations , even when speaking or writing in English. The archipelago of modern-day Cape Verde

4000-447: The country. On 23 October, Brigadier-General Mané agreed to observe a 48-hour truce to allow Vieira time to clarify his proposals for a negotiated peace settlement and agreement was subsequently reached for direct talks to be held in Banjul , The Gambia . At the talks, which took place on 29 October, the rebels confirmed that they would not seek Vieira's resignation. Further talks held under

4080-587: The deaths of hundreds if not thousands of people and the displacement of hundreds of thousands. An eventual peace agreement in November 1998 provided for a national unity government and new elections in the next year. However, a subsequent and brief outbreak of fighting in May 1999 ended with the deposing of Vieira on 10 May 1999 when Vieira signed an unconditional surrender. Guinea-Bissau gained independence from Portugal in 1974 after an eleven-and-a-half-year-long war of independence . In January 1998, ten fighters from

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4160-441: The early 1990s, Cape Verde has been a stable representative democracy and has remained one of the most developed and democratic countries in Africa. Lacking natural resources, its developing economy is mostly service-oriented, with a growing focus on tourism and foreign investment. Its population of around 596,000 (as of 2022) is of mostly of Sub-Saharan African and minor European heritage, and predominantly Catholic , reflecting

4240-402: The following year. In January 1999, hostilities resumed once again in the capital, displacing some two hundred and fifty thousand residents from the city. On February 9, a cease-fire agreement was reached. By mid-March, foreign troops had withdrawn from the country. In May, President Vieira announced legislative and presidential elections would be held in December, yet he was later overthrown in

4320-402: The governments of Senegal and France to identify the culprit, the president placed the blame on him despite remonstrations of innocence. Thus, President Vieira suspended Chief of Staff Mané for purported dereliction of duty. A report from an appointed committee tasked to investigate the scandal implied President Vieira was aware of the arms trafficking, leading Ansumane Mané to publicly accuse

4400-421: The humid mountain. Most rainfall precipitation is due to condensation of the ocean mist. In some islands, like Santiago, the wetter climate of the interior and the eastern coast contrasts with the drier one on the south/southwest coast. Praia, on the southeast coast, is the largest city on the island and the largest city and capital of the country. While most of Cape Verde receives little precipitation throughout

4480-488: The immediate withdrawal of Senegalese and Guinean troops. At a meeting held in Lomé, Togo on 17 February, João Bernardo Vieira and Ansumane Mané pledged never again to resort to armed conflict. On 20 February the new Government of National Unity was announced. The disarmament of rebel troops and those loyal to the president, as provided for under the Abuja accord, began in early March. The withdrawal of Senegalese and Guinean troops

4560-484: The island of Fogo. The islands lie on a bathymetric swell known as the Cape Verde Rise . The Rise is one of the largest protuberances in the world's oceans, rising 2.2 kilometres (1.4 miles) in a semi-circular region of 1200 km (460 sq mi), associated with a rise of the geoid . Pico do Fogo , the largest active volcano in the region, erupted in 2014. It has an eight-kilometre-diameter (five-mile) caldera ,

4640-525: The landscape is so arid that less than two percent of it is arable. The archipelago can be divided into four broad ecological zones – arid, semiarid, subhumid and humid, according to altitude and average annual rainfall ranging from less than 100 millimetres (3.9 inches) in the arid areas of the coast as in the Deserto de Viana (67 millimetres (2.6 inches) in Sal Rei ) to more than 1,000 millimetres (39 inches) in

4720-460: The legacy of Portuguese rule. A sizeable Cape Verdean diaspora community exists across the world, especially in the United States and Portugal, considerably outnumbering the inhabitants on the islands. Cape Verde is a member state of the African Union . Cape Verde's official language is Portuguese. The recognized national language is Cape Verdean Creole , which is spoken by the vast majority of

4800-445: The majority of the archipelago's total volume. The volcanic and plutonic rocks are distinctly basic; the archipelago is a soda-alkaline petrographic province, with a petrologic succession similar to that found in other Macaronesian islands. Magnetic anomalies identified in the vicinity of the archipelago indicate that the structures forming the islands date back 125–150 million years: the islands themselves date from 8 million (in

4880-519: The new government, which was to comprise ten ministers and seven secretaries of state. On 3 December, Francisco Fadul was appointed Prime Minister and later that month Vieira and Mané reached agreement on the allocation of portfolios to the two sides. The first contingent of 100 ECOMOG troops arrived in late December. At the same time, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1216 which called for both parties to form

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4960-484: The opposition Social Renewal Party (PRS) winning 38 of 102 seats making it the largest party represented in the National People's Assembly. The long ruling African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) won 24 seats. The PRS presidential candidate, Kumba Ialá , placed first winning 38.81% of the vote. In a run-off held on 16 January 2000, Ialá easily defeated acting President Malam Bacai Sanhá of

5040-493: The population. As of the 2021 census the most populated islands were Santiago , where the capital Praia is located (269,370), São Vicente (74,016), Santo Antão (36,632), Fogo (33,519) and Sal (33,347). The largest cities are Praia (137,868), Mindelo (69,013), Espargos (24,500) and Assomada (21,297). The country is named after the Cap-Vert peninsula, on the Senegalese coast. The name Cap-Vert , in turn, comes from

5120-425: The presence of the Portuguese troops, but the organization did not attempt to disrupt Portuguese control in Cape Verde. Portuguese Guinea declared independence in 1973 and was granted de jure independence in 1974. A budding independence movement — originally led by Amílcar Cabral , assassinated in 1973 — passed on to his half-brother Luís Cabral and culminated in independence for the archipelago in 1975. Following

5200-506: The president of agreeing to the illegal trade. As a result, the president replaced the Brigadier-General with Humbert Gomes as Chief of Staff on June 6, 1998. A disgraced Ansumane Mané launched his coup the following day. Having gathered support from rebellious elements of the military long dissatisfied over issues of pay and government corruption, him and his forces seized control of the Bra Military Barracks Complex and

5280-476: The presidential palace and forced its surrender. Vieira subsequently took refuge at the Portuguese embassy, where on 10 May 1999 he signed an unconditional surrender. The President of the National People's Assembly , Malam Bacai Sanhá , was appointed acting president of the republic until elections were held. The Government of National Unity, including the ministers appointed by Vieira, remained in office. At

5360-405: The proposal could be formally endorsed, the cease-fire collapsed as fighting erupted in the capital and several other towns. On 20 October, the government imposed a nationwide curfew, and on the following day President Vieira declared a unilateral cease-fire. By that time almost all of the government troops had defected to the side of rebel forces, which were believed to control approximately 99% of

5440-468: The resignation of Vieira and his administration and the conduct of free and democratic elections in July. With the support of 1,300 Senegalese and 400 Guinean soldiers, troops loyal to the government attempted unsuccessfully to regain control of rebel held areas of the city and heavy fighting ensued. In the following days more than 3,000 foreign nationals were evacuated from the capital by ship to Senegal. An estimated further 200,000 residents of Bissau fled

5520-529: The rim of which is at an elevation of 1,600 metres (5,249 feet) and an interior cone that rises to 2,829 metres (9,281 feet) above sea level . The caldera resulted from subsidence, following the partial evacuation (eruption) of the magma chamber, along a cylindrical column from within the magma chamber (at a depth of 8 kilometres (5 miles)). Extensive salt flats are found on Sal and Maio. On Santiago, Santo Antão, and São Nicolau, arid slopes give way in places to sugarcane fields or banana plantations spread along

5600-479: The same month Sanhá asserted that presidential and legislative elections would take place by 28 November. In July, constitutional amendments were introduced that limited the tenure of presidential office to two terms and abolished the death penalty . It was also stipulated that the country's principal offices of state could only be held by Guinea-Bissau nationals born of Guinea-Bissau parents. On 28 November 1999, presidential and legislative elections were held with

5680-480: The seizure in Guinea-Bissau of a cache of weapons, a number of officers of the armed forces were arrested on charges of supplying arms to the Casamance separatists. On 30 January 1998, Guinea-Bissau's defense minister announced the suspension of the Chief of Staff of the armed forces, Brigadier-General Ansumane Mané on the grounds of dereliction of duty as the weapons impounded in the previous month had been taken from

5760-410: The west) to 20 million years (in the east). The oldest exposed rocks occurred on Maio and the northern peninsula of Santiago and are 128–131 million-year-old pillow lavas. The first stage of volcanism in the islands began in the early Miocene , and reached its peak at the end of this period when the islands reached their maximum sizes. Historical volcanism (within human settlement) has been restricted to

5840-547: The year, the northeastern slopes of high mountains see significant rainfall due to orographic lift, especially in areas far from the sea. In some such areas this precipitation is sufficient to support a rainforest habitat, albeit one significantly affected by the islands' human presence. These umbria areas are identified as cool and moist. Cape Verde lies in the Cape Verde Islands dry forests ecoregion. Western Hemisphere-bound hurricanes often have their early beginnings near

5920-464: Was completed that month following an extension of the deadline from 28 February to 16 March, owing to logistical problems. In April, a report was released by the National People's Assembly, which exonerated Mané on charges of trafficking arms to the Casamance rebels. Although the report, which had been due for release in June 1998 when hostilities began, called for the reinstatement of Mané as Chief of Staff of

6000-704: Was elected president in August 2011 and re-elected in October 2016. He is also supported by the MpD. In November 2021, Cape Verde opened its first embassy in Nigeria. In 2013 then United States President Barack Obama said Cape Verde is "a real success story". Among other achievements, it has been recognized with the following assessments: Cape Verde follows a policy of nonalignment and seeks cooperative relations with all friendly states. Angola, Brazil, China, Libya, Cuba, France, Guinea-Bissau, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Russia, Luxembourg, and

6080-531: Was formed approximately 40–50 million years ago during the Eocene era. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Cape Verde Islands were uninhabited. They were discovered by Genoese and Portuguese navigators around 1456. According to Portuguese official records, the first discoveries were made by Genoa-born António de Noli , who was afterwards appointed governor of Cape Verde by the Portuguese king Afonso V . Other navigators mentioned as contributing to discoveries on

6160-502: Was overthrown by the rebel military junta on 7 May, to widespread condemnation by the international community. Fighting had erupted in Bissau on the previous day when rebel troops seized stockpiles of weapons that had been held at the international airport since the disarmament of the rival forces in March. The rebels, who claimed that their actions had been prompted by Vieira's refusal to allow his presidential guard to be disarmed, surrounded

6240-450: Was reached to transform the existing truce into a cease-fire . The accord provided for the reopening of the international airport and for the deployment of international forces to maintain and supervise the cease-fire. In September 1998, talks between the government and the rebels resumed in Abidjan , Côte d'Ivoire . The rebels demanded that all Senegalese and Guinean forces be withdrawn from

6320-547: Was sworn in as the new President of Cape Verde . On 2 February 2024, Cape Verde became the third African country to be free of malaria . Cape Verde is a stable semi-presidential representative democratic republic . In 2020 it was the most democratic nation in Africa , ranking 2023 as 45th in the world, according to the electoral democracy score of the V-Dem Democracy indices . The constitution – adopted in 1980 and revised in 1992, 1995 and 1999 – defines

6400-404: Was to comprise some 710 troops. Agreement was also reached on a timetable for the withdrawal of Senegalese and Guinean troops from Guinea-Bissau. At the end of January 1999, hostilities resumed in the capital resulting in numerous fatalities and the displacement of some 250,000 residents. On 9 February, talks between the government and the rebels produced agreement on a cease-fire that provided for

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