Africa-Press – Cape verde. Cape Verde is among the African countries with the best performance in public service delivery, according to the Public Service Delivery Index (PSDI) 2024, published by the African Development Bank.
Out of 54 countries analyzed, the archipelago ranks 12th with an overall score of 51.69 out of 100, exceeding the continental average of 45.39 points. This result places the country above several larger continental states and also ahead of most other African archipelagos.
Among the African island countries evaluated — Cape Verde, Seychelles, Mauritius, São Tomé and Príncipe and Comoros — only Mauritius (59.96 points) and Seychelles (54.87) surpass Cape Verde in the overall index. In turn, Cape Verde outperforms São Tomé and Príncipe (45.86 points) and Comoros (40.54 points), consolidating its position as the third best-positioned archipelago in Africa in terms of the effectiveness of public services.
Strengths and weaknesses
Cape Verde obtained particularly high scores in the areas of socioeconomic inclusion (66.81) and access to electricity and energy use (64.21), reflecting the continued investment in public policies aimed at social well-being, digitalisation and energy transition.
In the area of regional integration, the country also obtained a good result (45.94), mainly due to its performance in the indicators of freedom of movement and air connectivity, being among the few countries with liberal visa policies.
However, the data also reveal challenges, especially with regard to food sovereignty (39.58 points) and industrialisation (47.32), areas where the country still faces structural limitations and external dependence.
Comparison with island peers
Country PSDI 2024 Score
Mauritius 59.96 (1st place)
Seychelles 54.87 (7th place)
Cape Verde 51.69 (12th place)
São Tomé and Príncipe 45.86 (26th place)
Comoros 40.54 (43rd place)
While Mauritius leads the African continent in terms of the quality of its public administration, Cape Verde stands out for its resilience and consistency, despite the natural constraints associated with its insularity and scarcity of natural resources. The country surpasses other more populous and continental economies in the overall ranking, such as Angola (40.14), Mozambique (44.05) and Guinea-Bissau (35.74).
Citizens recognise improvements
The perception survey carried out among Cape Verdean families reinforces the technical assessment: citizens express high levels of satisfaction with public services, especially in terms of access to health, education, drinking water and digital administrative services.
The positive assessment of the quality of electricity, despite still having limitations in more remote areas, was one of the strengths.
Report recommendations
The AfDB report points out that Cape Verde could further consolidate its position if it invests in agricultural diversification and local value chains to reduce dependence on external food, increases investment in industrial parks and more dynamic business environments to accelerate industrialisation and strengthens digital literacy, especially outside urban centres.
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