A tourism boom is anticipated in Cape Verde. The archipelago was named one of the top destinations to visit in 2011 by Lonely Planet and is attracting visitors from all over the globe, with the UK, Europe and the United States the dominant markets.
Cape Verde is ideally situated to become a top tourist destination, even though it needs to tread carefully due to the rich marine life. Humpback whales feed in the waters around the island and it's a vital nesting site for loggerhead turtles.
Currently a little over 330,000 visitors go to Cape Verde each year but the government tourist organization is actively seeking to increase this number, having invested heavily in tourism and infrastructure. New international airports have recently opened up in Boa Vista, San Vincente and Santiago and it's now possible to get a direct weekly flight from Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester.
Although Cape Verde is just 455 km from Senegal the country has a much higher income per capita than many African nations, and is actively seeking to have closer ties with the EU and US.
Cape Verde declared independence from Portugal in 1975. In 2008 the United Nations promoted it from the list of the 50 least developed countries making it only the second country after Botswana to have achieved this.
Economic growth has averaged 6% over recent years and the country has recovered well from the droughts of the 20th century. Nowadays a large portion of the population lives in other countries but choose to send their money home, bringing in much-needed foreign currency.
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