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[Music] welcome to C [Music] ver it's just one word for C bir [Music] wow Cape ver is made up of 10 unique Islands spread across the Atlantic Ocean just off the coast of West Africa. I had the chance to explore three of the islands: Santiago, San Vicente, and Sal.
With a population of around 600,000, Cape Verde's official language is Portuguese, but most people speak Creole. Think of it like the Portuguese version of pigeon English. What makes Cape Verde unique is its blend of Africa, Europe, and Brazil. Around 71% of the population have a mixed heritage of African and Portuguese ancestors. These people are known as mulato.
"My grandmother is from G, South. My grandfather is from Portugal." Around 28% of the population have African ancestry, while the remaining 1% are Portuguese or other European immigrants. "The place is Africa, but walking around, you don't get the same vibe as if you're in Lagos or you're in Accra."
"They don't have like this political problems, right? And they don't have like a tribal problems, right?" That is not African. I'm just joking, I'm joking. For a small country with a population of 600,000, no major resources, and a service-oriented economy that relies on tourism, it's actually impressive what they're able to achieve, right? In terms of education, in terms of healthcare, in terms of infrastructure. This is the most democratic country in Africa with one of the highest literacy rates. They have a government that's continuously investing in its citizens by subsidizing education, healthcare, and housing. I saw a housing project where locals pay as little as $10 to $20 a month.
"It seems like you guys are running on Socialism or something like that." "Oh, we're not socialist at all. Although we have a party that defends the way, but it's it's a mix of of both. It's capitalism with liberal social social policies, right? So we have like housing for people and we have free education and low healthcare."
"So how many tribes do you have in Cape Verde?" "So we don't have tribes in Cape Verde because of our history. So there's no such thing as tribalism here. No, no, there is not." [Music]
The minimum wage in Cape Verde is about 15,000 escudos. That's three times more than Nigeria and Ghana. A teacher would receive something like 80, a cop something like 50, a physician something like 80. Taking all of this into account, life in Cape Verde is definitely impressive compared to many other African nations.
There's also another factor that sets Cape Verde apart, which is there are more Cape Verdians outside of Cape Verde than in Cape Verde. Like the streets are literally empty. You walk, you walk around the streets, sometimes you don't see anyone because many families travel. For example, in Fogo Island, people have many family in the Americas. Today, the large diaspora population of Cape Verde is bringing in steady remittances and foreign investments that support the local economy. Though the population loss means a smaller workforce and fewer industries for Cape Verde, they can easily compensate for this by welcoming migrants from other West African countries because as a member of ECOWAS, it has this free movement policy for citizens from other ECOWAS countries.
But they're not embracing this at all. I know this because of my experience at the airport. So here I am at the Amílcar Cabral International Airport. And before I crossed here, before they allowed me entry here, before they allowed me to get in, bro, it was like more than 30 minutes just struggling there because apparently, to go to Cape Verde, prior, you need like a return ticket, right? They got to allow you in without a return ticket. And for me, my return ticket is for, you know, for Guinea-Bissau. I don't, I don't need to come back to Praia from Cape Verde, I'm going straight to Guinea-Bissau. But they said no, they will not allow me if I don't have a ticket back to Praia. You know, those are the because apparently they, the Cape Verdeans deport a lot of like, uh, Nigerian sailors. You have to provide a hotel, you have to provide your return ticket, you have to provide like $1,000 or $500, something you have to show that you have money to stay here. I had all those things, so they let me in. But what happened to free movement of goods and people? You know, imagine with your ECOWAS passport, and then they make it really this difficult for you. Alhamdulillah, of course, uh, this guy, Matar, he made it, you know, he allowed me to get in and then he facilitated everything for me. So shout out to Matar for that. But then, but then that is, it's really sad, you know, as Africans, we all have the same, you know, ECOWAS, as you know, we say there's free movement of goods and people, and then I need to provide a return ticket, I need to provide a hotel, I need to provide this, they make it really difficult, man. They are part of Africa, part of West Africa, but they feel like they are more like in Europe, you know, which, you know, to me, it's like unfair, you know. [Applause]
Bro, Cape Verde surprised me. Walking through this city, I was struck by the level of organization and beauty. From the overall aesthetics and architecture to the public parking spaces and even the electric cars and charging stations, it feels like like Europe, even though I've never been there. And then the people, wow, super nice people. Even though some parts of the architecture and aesthetics made me feel like I was not in Africa, but these warm smiles and hospitality reminded me that I was still in Africa. Currently, I'm standing right next to the presidential palace. They have no problem with me filming. We even went to the military guys, they allowed us to film them. You can only have that in Cape Verde. [Music]
This woman, Fátima, said, "Fátima Soares, Soares, XX." [Music] Let's go get something to eat. [Music]
Man, as I walked into the market, I was struck by how clean and organized everything was. The markets were spotless, and food sellers kept things so well arranged. Okay, mhm. Beans, chicken, fries. Cape Verde, really, really good. Alhamdulillah. The next day, I went on to try Cape Verde's national dish. This [Music] Cachupa. Yeah, side note, if you don't eat pork, always ask what's in the food because they put pork in a lot of dishes here. I learned that the hard way. So, as you know, Cape Verde is a Muslim minority country. Currently, I'm at the central mosque. Every country that I visit, I go to the central mosque and pray there, and then go to the beach and swim. So now it's about time to get in there and pray. Two. [Applause] [Music] [Music]
In the 15th century, when Portuguese explorers discovered these uninhabited islands off the coast of West Africa, they quickly claimed them as their own and eventually became the first settlers. Their first settlement was on this town called Cidade Velha. This area was the the beginning of everything. The Portuguese soon brought enslaved people from the coasts of Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau, turning Cape Verde into one of the most important slave trade harbors of the 16th century. Cape Verde became the first European overseas colony. By the 19th and 20th centuries, it became deeply segregated and hierarchical. At the top of the hierarchy were the Portuguese-born whites. They were the government officials, soldiers, and the upper clergy. The next group were the local whites. These are the whites and mixed descendants of the earliest European settlers. Below them, you have the free blacks and mulatos. At the bottom, you have the slaves. Today, as I went around and explored Cape Verde, I didn't see signs of that segregation. People here seem to live as one and in harmony. But what I noticed was that some Cape Verdians still lean more towards the European heritage than the African roots. Believe me when I say this, there are even some dark-skinned folks who feel they are culturally white. And then there are those who, "No, no, I'm African. I'm a real African." "Yeah, I feel like African because I was, I, I can speak for myself." "Mhm." "But, but generally, generally people feeling like Europeans, but we are Africans." Like there are two countries especially that I see that have a lot of influence here, that is Brazil and Portugal. Their liberalization of everything, and sometimes we get lost in our own culture. We don't know why we do certain things. And if we do certain things, like I see that with this new generation from 2000 and forward, like a lot of our identities being lost because it's getting mixed with other things, which is not really, really bad, but it's not bad only if you know your, yeah, like your roots and you try to get attached to it. Because if we lost our identity as people, like you do everything now, it's like we are more focused in Europe and America than Africa, which is sad, especially because Africa is like, in terms of culture, I think the most beautiful continent there is. Like, so that's the way I see it.
Cape Verde was the first African Portuguese colony to have an institution of higher education. By the time of independence, one quarter of the population were literate. Yes, even though there was slavery, segregation, and all of that, the Portuguese treated Cape Verdians differently than other African colonies. And I think the reason is because of their European ancestry. This kind of played a role in the push for independence. When leaders like Amílcar Cabral and other pan-Africanists began an independence movement based in Guinea-Bissau, the vision was simple: to secure freedom for both Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde. Sadly, Cabral was assassinated in January 1973. Guinea-Bissau gained independence in September of that year, and Cape Verde followed in 1975. The two countries adopted a constitution envisioning unity, but after the 1980 coup, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde stepped away from that plan. But you know what's sad? The fact that I've never heard of Amílcar Cabral or this remarkable independence movement before stepping foot in Cape Verde.
Now that the history lesson is out of the way, let me tell you another thing I noticed in Cape Verde. The family and social dynamics here are completely different compared to where I'm from. We don't care about his marriage, this, you know, people marry if they are young. Just see religion. I notice many young girls and women with one or multiple children. So I asked him if this trend could negatively affect the fabric of society, especially since some of these children might grow up without one or both parents actively present in their lives.
"So that's how you do here." "I have four." "You have four?" "And you're not thinking about getting married?" "Married? Yeah, maybe, but not now. Not now. No more. No more kids too." "But before going on, having kids, is it not better to marry someone and just focus on that?" "You are young. You think you want to marry now?" "Yeah, I want to marry now." "But how do you think that that shapes your society?" "This is normal. It's normal here." "Oh, wow." "My, my, I don't have my, my mom and my dad. They have just just me in child, you know. Okay. Just me. But my mom has six, my dad has six. But we are, we're in too close. Yeah, we're close. If my daddy has a lot of babies, mom, no problem for us, you know. We're brothers. Doesn't matter."
This travel I did across Africa has been one of the most transformative experiences of my life. I came across people and cultures that challenged my beliefs and the way I was accustomed to living. And these experiences reshape the way I see the world and how I connect and coexist with others.
"Bro, you look like Rashford." "Huh?" "You look like Rashford, the footballer." "The football? You know, you don't know Rashford?" "Manchester, Manchester, yes." "You watch, you watch football?" "No, I like basketball." "Oh, basketball. Google, Google Rashford." "Go." "Ah, okay. You look like him." "Yeah, okay. Yeah." [Music]
Today I'm in Tarrafal, a stunning beach town on the northern tip of Santiago Island, famous for its crystal clear waters. [Music] [Music] Who's the sa? Yeah. [Music]
From Santiago, the main island, I flew to Sal, the tourist hotspot. This is the most popular island amongst tourists. This island does not only attract visitors, but a good number of Europeans have made it their home too. [Music] I've traveled all over the world working in different places, and Sal is one of the first places that I decided to stay longer than I initially planned to do. Even though there might not be so much to do around on the island compared to other places, it's just a nice place to be. One of the first places I visited in Sal was Pedra de Lume, a true natural wonder of Cape Verde. Similar to the Dead Sea, this lake's high salt concentration makes it impossible to sink, so no matter what you do, you'll effortlessly float. This lake sits in the crater of an extinct volcano and was once a major site for salt production. [Music]
After 2 days, I have done pretty much everything. So I spent the remaining days playing football, swimming, and reading. Life in Cape Verde moves at a very slow pace. It's too still for my liking, and one thing about me, I hate stillness. If I were to describe Cape Verde in few words, I'd say it's relaxed, it's a tropical paradise, it's chaos-free, it's a haven for holidaymakers. If the beach and then the parties, those are your vibe, you'll like it here because there's a lot of that. But if that is not your vibe, I think if you're coming here, stay for 3 days and leave. Cape Verde is not a slow country, it's just a no-stress country. The phrase is like "no stress." I was bored out of my mind because of that "no stress," right? I mean, you don't walk around and see an uncle whose car breaks down and then they ask you for a push, and then you push them, and then they pull the whole neighborhood, pull the whole environment, and then you go to the, you get into the van. These vans, they don't have any conductors, you know, so there's no one to argue with. You know, the places where it's supposed to be three passengers, they carry three passengers instead of four, you know. So, so all those things, right, all those things, you know, and then the drivers, they also, they all have the change ready. Everything is ready. You get into the car, when you reach your destination, you get down and you pay, they give you your change instead of telling you before you get in, "I don't have change," you know. So, yeah, everything is like [Music] order. What would I do without your smart me? You get me out. Got my SP. No kidding. I [Music] [Music]
From Sal, I took a ferry to São Vicente, the island that's often referred to as the cultural island of Cape Verde. It has a unique blend of African, Portuguese, and Brazilian influences. It is the most colorful and most beautiful island I've visited. [Music] It's too much. That is too much. It's too much. Thank you, bro, very much. You can, you can do it in your language. Do it in your language. H. You, you understand my language. I don't understand. [Music]
One of the first things I did on this island was to visit this small coastal village called São Pedro. In this village, I snorkeled and swam alongside turtles. It was such a beautiful and pleasant experience. [Music] [Music] What is it? What is it? It's the pork. Oh, pork. Yes. Oh, okay. I thought I don't eat pork. Earlier on, I mentioned how Cape Verde hasn't fully embraced the ECOWAS free movement policy. To be fair, I think they kind of did because as I moved from one island to another, I saw a lot of Senegalese and Guineans running their small businesses here. But from what I've observed across various sectors, it's the Chinese that dominate the business landscape. They have it, it's life here, I think, because they don't, they don't pay a lot of things, yeah. But maybe because the government used that as a strategy to bring, because this is an island, so it's easier. China, China, they produce a lot of things, so it's easier for them to bring it here. I think that is in your best interest. But then, if the things are expensive, then it is not good. Yeah. But they, they, they, they sell things. No, not too expensive, but it's normal. Normal, yeah. Foree.