Oh .. the internet ..

Here is CV Multimedia

And here is Unitel

Both offer unlimited internet. Just check the offers.

Regards,

Angelo

Is this internet through cable fiber or satellite ?

With satellite you have lag ...

Hi Saxie,

It is maritime cable/fibre optics bringing internet service into/out of the ENTIRE country. The website links I provided in the previous response are outdated and the Unitel link is no longer valid. The cellular network is 4G.

Wi-Fi services offered by the local providrs have various speeds and data limits depending on how much you want to pay. My Wi-Fi at home offers very fast upload and download speeds and provides unlimited data. I pay €65 per month for this service from CV Telecom. I have worked from my home office for years (it was painful in the beginning because the internet service was so slow, but now it's superfast).

You can remote work from any island here with no problems. There are even several shared-office locations where you can locate your business and use their unlimited Wi-Fi plus other office services (unless you want to set up a home office). For print services which I rarely need, I simply email any documents I need printed to the local printshop right around the corner from me. It costs €0.04 per page for black-and-white, so I don't have to worry about installing a printer in my home office or buying ink cartridges.

If you want to learn more about moving to Cape Verde to live or work here, check out my eGuide. There's also a French version. There'll be a Spanish version soon.

Regards,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Is this internet through cable fiber or satellite ?

With satellite you have lag ...

Hello CVAngelo,

Thanks for the extensive reply !

So I can have extensive coverage over most of the islands using my iPad ?

Since when is there cable ? I remember it used to be satellite only..

I am a traveller/backpacker , how can I come to CV without the need of showing proof of hotel reservation ?
I plan to travel around for a few months ..

Can I get this unlimited internet also as prepay  on a monthly basis without a contract ?

Olá amigo,

Here are the answers to your questions:

So I can have extensive coverage over most of the islands using my iPad ?
well if your iPad has a SIM card, then you can get internet via the 4G cellular network over all of the islands. If it is without a SIM card then you will need to connect to Wi-Fi either in your home (you have to order the service) or from any of the public Wi-Fi hotspots (most of which are very slow).

Since when is there cable ? I remember it used to be satellite only..
Cape Verde has had an underwater maritime cable for at least 20 years, and before Androids and iPhones became a thing. Of course, the service was extremely slow and expensive in the beginning but it's now fast enough to conduct international business communications. Satellite services are a more recent development, but I don't know anyone who gets their Wi-Fi via satellite. Most people who sign up for satellite are only looking for the cable TV service (hundreds of cable channels).

I am a traveller/backpacker , how can I come to CV without the need of showing proof of hotel reservation ? I plan to travel around for a few months ..
Europeans and Americans coming to CV can enter the country on a 30 day visitors visa which you get by signing up at the EASE website. However, you must indicate where you will be INITIALLY staying. You can have a hotel reservation that is not paid in advance, or an AirBNB, or whatever. But it does not need to be reserved for 30 days. When you get here, you will surely have to stay at least one night somewhere. Just indicate where that will be. You simply need to show that you have enough money to survive during your stay (€1.000 or a Visa card would be sufficient).

Can I get this unlimited internet also as prepay  on a monthly basis without a contract ?
No. Unlimited internet at home is via a prepaid contract. You can get a limited data plan (maximum 15GB) on your phone/iPad via a monthly cellular plan with either of the two providers. The cost is €50 per month with no contract. But you also get unlimited local calls plus 15 minutes of international calls. For me, CV Telecom has the best service and best coverage. You can always set your phone as a hotspot and share the WiFi signal with your other devices.

Hope this helps,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Hello CVAngelo,

Thanks for the extensive reply !

So I can have extensive coverage over most of the islands using my iPad ?

Since when is there cable ? I remember it used to be satellite only..

I am a traveller/backpacker , how can I come to CV without the need of showing proof of hotel reservation ?
I plan to travel around for a few months ..

Hi CVAngelo,

You are too helpful  and professionally...😁🤗

I will buy your guide , must be worth its weight in gold ...


Thanks

Hello CVAngelo,


Suppose I want more than 30 days , can I leave and come back for another 30 days ? How many times can I do that in a year ?


Regards

Hi Saxie,

You are too helpful  and professionally...I will buy your guide , must be worth its weight in gold...  LOL. You're very kind and I would much appreciate it! Believe me, the guide is 50 pages and chockful of years of learnings from my own experience and that of others whom I've helped along the way.

Suppose I want more than 30 days , can I leave and come back for another 30 days ? How many times can I do that in a year ? Yes, you can certainly leave and return for another 30 days. And you can repeat that as often as you'd like!

But it could turn out to be quite expensive given all the travel you'd be doing! It would be much cheaper and more convenient to apply (by mail) for a multiple-entry visa from any Cape Verdean embassy before coming to CV. Those visas are for two/five years and allow you to stay 90/180 days each time you visit. It is explained in the eGuide as well.

Cheers,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Hello CVAngelo,


Suppose I want more than 30 days , can I leave and come back for another 30 days ? How many times can I do that in a year ?


Regards

Hi CVAngelo,

On which island do you live ?

How would you define the character of each island ?


Regards

What about personal and company taxes in case you take up residency ?
Is that covered as well in the guide ?

Olá Saxie,

All of those questions are covered in the guide. The corporate tax rate is 25% of profits, but you can register a small business under a special tax regime where you pay 4% of SALES and nothing else, but your small business cannot earn more than €90.000 per year and you are preclyded from certain business activities.

There are too many islands nine inhabeted) for which to describe there characteristics here in the Forum. The eGuide covers each island. If there's a specific kind of environment you're looking for? Most backpackers will particularly enjoy Santo Antão, São Nicolau and Santiago.

Cheers,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

What about personal and company taxes in case you take up residency ?
Is that covered as well in the guide ?

Hi CVAngelo,

So you get 15 GB for 1 month and when the month is finished and you still have GB left, can you take it to the next month ?
Do you need to show your ID for this plan ?


Regards

Olá Saxie,

With Telecom/CV Móvel, any unused megas at the end of the month, you get to carry them over and they are added to the 15GB you receive when you renew for the next month. With Unitel, you lose any unused megas.

You do not need to show any ID with the cellular plans.

Cheers,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Hi CVAngelo,

So you get 15 GB for 1 month and when the month is finished and you still have GB left, can you take it to the next month ?
Do you need to show your ID for this plan ?


Regards

Hi CVAngelo,

If you take up residence ,what are the costs for health insurance ?
The best treatment facilities are in Praia , I assume ..


Regards

Hi Saxie,

As a foreign non-resident tourist, you can't buy local health insurance.

Frankly, even if you obtained a residency visa, there are no private local health insurance providers. You could join the public social insurance plan at INPS. If you are employed, the cost is 8% of your salary. If you own your own business, there is a lengthy process during which they assess your net income and determine your premium. It probably would not exceed €20-80 per month.

The benefits of the public plan are meager and you can only go to the public hospital for medical services.

Most foreigners and expats have their own private health insurance from foreign insurers.

There are several private clinics with the most in Praia. But you'll find private clinics on just about every island. Even the locals go to the private clinics.

Prices for medical services and procedures are very cheap. However, complicated medical procedures are not readily available here. If you have a serious medical problem, you will want to travel to Europe, America or to closer locations such as Dakar, the Canaries, or Brasil in the most urgent situations.

If you are in CV for the long term, you should have insurance which provides emergency evacuation. Or just live the healthiest possible lifestyle as I do. It's really easy to live healthy here.

Best regards,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Hi CVAngelo,

If you take up residence ,what are the costs for health insurance ?
The best treatment facilities are in Praia , I assume ..


Regards

Why do you want move to Cape Verde?

Hi, CVAngelo,

Thanks!

I read that 90 % of food is imported ....I see a lot of locals selling fruits and vegetables on the market ..,where do those come from ?
What are typical prices for fruits and vegetables per kilo ?


Regards

Olá Saxie,

In 2017 Cape Verde imported about €700 million of goods, mostly from Europe (80%) with the rest coming from Asia (10%) and America (6%). These goods are mainly food & beverage, cement, construction materials, cars, and all kinds of equipment.

CV does not have food security. What you heard is accurate - the overwhelming amount of food is imported. Some fruits and vegetables are grown locally. For example: corn, yam, potato, beans, mango, banana, papaya. But the the quantities are not nearly sufficient to meet the local demand, primarily because of the constant drought conditions over the recent years. Thus, even in the case of products which can be grown locally, most of what you find in the grocery stores are imported anyway. And certainly, products that cannot be grown locally - such as brussel sprouts, brocolli, strawberries, etc - are obviously 100% imported. Imported foods comprise a mixture of fresh and frozen.

The good news is that food imports are assessed low-to-zero import duties. However, there is the cost of international (maritime) transport. So they can still be somewhat pricey, especially if they are frozen. Costs vary widely depending on the particular food item. But you can get a good idea based on the following: the locally grown products are quite cheap compared to the imported variety. Prices for imported products would typically be slightly higher in the worst case than you would find for the same fresh product in Europe (we have to add the cost of shipping). Local product is cheaper.

As you can imagine, since the income levels in CV are much lower that in Europe, local residents tend to shy away from the more exotic imports and stick to the basics. But for the basics, the prices are much cheaper if you stick to the fresh local products when they are in supply (usually at the open air farmers' markets). Another advantage of the local product is that they are more organic. It is a pity not enough of it is grown to meet the local demand. CV does not spend sufficient resources to improve the efficiency and capabilities in agricultural production. Most farmers are left to fend for themselves based on traditional agricultural methods.

Regads,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Hi, CVAngelo,

Thanks!

I read that 90 % of food is imported ....I see a lot of locals selling fruits and vegetables on the market ..,where do those come from ?
What are typical prices for fruits and vegetables per kilo ?


Regards

Hi Ivanildo,

In case you didn't notice, this is the forum for expats who are considering a move to Cape Verde for whatever reasons they may have, and those reasons are likely to be personal and various. Who exactly are you expecting to find posting comments and questions here...people who are NOT considering moving to Cape Verde??? In that case, you should visit the forums for other countries!

If you would like to understand the variety of motivations, I would suggest you start a new thread in the forum entitled, "Reasons expats consider moving to Cape Verde" and post your question there. That way, you are moe likely to find the responses you seek.

Regards,

Angelo

IvanildoaBorges wrote:

Why do you want move to Cape Verde?

Yeah, the government should invest in water irrigation and other facilities to stimulate this , I guess there is enormous potential to augment local production , I don’t understand why the government doesn’t do anything about this ...

The government talks a lot about such things but they simply don't act. It's a combination of two things:

1. They have very little money and have no creative ideas about how to manufacture and export in order to earn foreign exchange - so we wait for handouts from European governments and agencies;

2. They simply have the misaligned budget priorities. Food security is very low down on the list!

Regarding point #1, there is a drip irrigation system (desalination source) that was donated by a European government (I forget which) about 20 years ago. It was implemented in Santa Cruz on the island of Santiago. That area is now like an oasis in the desert. Always green and full of fruit even during the past 3 years of total drought. I have no idea how any government official can look at this and not think, "hey, we need much more of this!" and do everything in their power to make sure that it happens.

Cheers,

Angelo

Saxie wrote:

Yeah, the government should invest in water irrigation and other facilities to stimulate this , I guess there is enormous potential to augment local production , I don’t understand why the government doesn’t do anything about this ...

Time to call Bill Gates , he probably would like to invest through  his foundation ...

I have no idea how o go about getting the attention of the Gates Foundation, but if you know how, let's call him together. LOL

Saxie wrote:

Time to call Bill Gates , he probably would like to invest through  his foundation ...

Well , I am gonna check it out...😎

Good luck. Let me know what you find out...

Hello CVAngelo,

We have purchased your e-guide book (PDF) and are finding it very helpful.
For the folks reading this thread, I recommend getting the guide. It will answer many of your questions. Obrigadu

#DeColonizeTheMind

Thank you for your kind recommendation, Geder! If you have any specific questions about relocating, please do not hesitate to post them here or send a private message if it is preferable.

Cheers,

Angelo

Geder wrote:

Hello CVAngelo,

We have purchased your e-guide book (PDF) and are finding it very helpful.
For the folks reading this thread, I recommend getting the guide. It will answer many of your questions. Obrigadu

#DeColonizeTheMind

CVAngelo,

Can you give some prices/kilo for local vegetables and fruits sold on the local market ?


Regards

Hi Saxie,

As stated earlier, prices for local fruit and vegetables can vary depending on the supply (whether or not there is a good crop yield). As of this moment, the price of some example vegetables are as follows: Tomato 50-70 escudos per kilo, Onion 100, Potato 120, Sweet potato 160. And local fruit:: Papaya 200 per kilo. Bananas are 100 escudos for a hand of 5. A mango is 120 escudos per kilo.

But this is not the way to think of the cost of living. The real question is about how much does it cost to eat for a month. You can count on a budget of at least €350 per month to eat out every day in the local no-frills restaurants (serving healthy meals). If you buy your own ingredients at the markets and groceries, but prepare yor own meals, it will cost much less...about €250. But this would be for basic meals with nothing too fancy and few imported ingredients.

If you wish to hire someone (like a domestic worker) to cook your meals 6 days a week, you would pay them a salary of €150 per month (and that person would also clean the house and wash your clothes included in that salary).

Cheers,

Angelo

Saxio wrote:

CVAngelo,

Can you give some prices/kilo for local vegetables and fruits sold on the local market ?


Regards

Hello Angelo & Saxie,

Hiring someone to cook & clean, in no small measure, sounds like making a contribution to the local economy. We are going to factor this into our budget when (whenever Covid let's us) we come to Cabo Verde.

It also sounds like we will have to brush up on the metric system! 

Ya man internet is annoyingly expensive in Cape Verde. I am a Nigerian Capeverdean. Internet is better in quality in Nigeria and much cheaper.
I spent close to a 1k dollars on internet recharge between February and October of 2020.

Hello tonycanhelp,

Your internet bill seems to be slightly over $100/mo. Since you used the word 'dollars', do you mean for that figure to be in U.S. currency?

Tell us your internet setup so we can have a better understanding of what you are paying for. For example; is that the cost for multiple hook-ups, family plans, including Netflix and all of the premium cable channels?

High speed and consistent internet connectivity is important to me. Curious minds want to know! 

#DeColonizeTheMind

Hi Tony,

One thousand dollars on internet recharge on your cell phone in 8 months??? Then you're doing something wrong! I spent $130 on my cell phone including 84G of data plus unlimited voicecalls for the entire year of 2020. For anyone who needs substantially higher data, the most expensive plan you could buy would cost $650 for the entire year and would give you 180GB of data plus unlimted calls plus 180 minutes of free international calls.

For the entire year of 2020, for very fast Wi-Fi (40 Mbps download and upload speeds) with unlimited data, I spent $900 for my business. And that was for the entire year. If you don't need unlimited data or you don't require very fast upload speeds, you can cut this WiFi by 50% or more.

For the sake of clarity, I quoted prices in US dollars based on the exchange rate today.

Might I ask what data/calling plan and what carrier you were using?

Best regards,

Angelo

tonycanhelp wrote:

Ya man internet is annoyingly expensive in Cape Verde. I am a Nigerian Capeverdean. Internet is better in quality in Nigeria and much cheaper.
I spent close to a 1k dollars on internet recharge between February and October of 2020.

@CVAngelo

Hello Angelo,

Can you give me a link for your guide ?

- @Saxio

@CVAngelo

Hi Angelo,

in those 3 years since my post , do you get a better deal now than 15 GB for 50 euro ?

Do you know where to buy fresh fish and meat at the best prices ?

    @CVAngelo

Hi Angelo,

in those 3 years since my post , do you get a better deal now than 15 GB for 50 euro ?

Do you know where to buy fresh fish and meat at the best prices ?
   

    -@Saxio

Hi Phil,

The internet prices have not changed since the last time you asked.

No matter which island you live on, you can buy fresh fish on the pier/docks where the fishermen come in with their catch of the day. It is much cheaper that way. There are other people there who will gut the fish and slice into steaks for you.

Local meat in Cape Verde is not very good. You can't really buy "fresh meat" unless you kill the animal yourself. Otherwise, you can buy meat from the grocery store in the freezer. You will find imported meat in the freezers of the grocery store as well. Or just eat meat from the menu of a restaurant.

Regards,

Angelo

@CVAngelo

Hi Angelo,

in the guide I read that you pay 10 to 15 $ for 5 to 7 GB, that is about 2$/GB

and that unitel offers unlimited local calling and 15 GB per month for 50$ , that is more than 3$ / GB

I only need internet data , not calling , what is the best deal in that case ?

I am looking for internet on my Ipad ..

thanks