Language in Cabo Verde

Portuguese is the formal language of state administration, legal acts, courts, official documentation and most education from preschool through higher education. The Constitution directs the State to promote the officialization of Língua Cabo-Verdiana at parity with Portuguese, but a completed parity statute was not evidenced as of 2026. The practical use of LCV in public information is expanding, especially through oral communication and information aimed at vulnerable groups, but no general enforceable right to submit written administrative acts in LCV has been evidenced. No universal entitlement to interpretation or translation has been evidenced either. LCV is a Portuguese-based Creole and the national mother tongue for everyday interaction, cultural identity and community life. Its varieties differ by island and are commonly grouped into Barlavento and Sotavento varieties. Cabo Verde does not impose one dialect as the school norm: the curriculum recognizes all varieties, supports shared rules and interdialectal understanding, and uses an inclusive descriptive approach. The variation therefore affects pronunciation, vocabulary and local usage without creating separate official languages for each island. ALUPEC, the Alfabeto Cabo-Verdiano, is the national graphic system for writing LCV. It was approved experimentally in 1998 and institutionalized by Decreto-Lei 8/2009. It supports all LCV varieties, while orthographic standardization remains participatory and adjustable. LCV literacy includes oral work, reading, writing and cultural content. An optional and experimental LCV school pathway begins in the 10th grade in the Humanísticas and Artes areas; a Língua e Cultura Cabo-Verdiana manual was available in 2025. No specific language fee has been evidenced. Language ability varies across the population and should not be confused with mother-tongue statistics. INE data from 2015 for people aged 12 and above recorded comprehension of a language other than Creole at 72.8%, including Portuguese at 72.2%, English at 16.5%, French at 13.5%, Spanish at 3%, Italian at 0.9% and other languages at 0.9%. These figures measure reported aptitude at that time, not a current 2026 estimate or the share of people who grew up speaking each language. Foreign languages are particularly relevant to tourism, mobility and international activity, while Portuguese remains the principal gateway to formal state, education and international participation. LCV carries contos, provérbios, Morna, Tabanca, literature, music and other oral traditions. Cabo Verde classified LCV-related intangible heritage in 2019. RTC uses LCV in radio, audio and cultural or educational programming, and school materials may use television and radio content in different varieties. Língua Gestual Cabo-Verdiana serves targeted accessibility needs and has a basic training module in the national qualifications system, but no co-official status has been evidenced. The Assembleia Nacional and the Constitution establish the legal framework; the Government and Conselho de Ministros develop policy and norms through the Boletim Oficial; the Ministério da Educação handles curricula and manuals; the Comissão Nacional para as Línguas advises on LCV, gestural language and foreign languages; INE produces language data; Presidência supports public and cultural initiatives; DGIS and UC-SNQ support gestural-language training; and RTC provides public media use. The formal status of LCV remains an open policy process rather than a completed transition.