Study site description: Ribeira Seca, Cape Verde

Table of Contents

1. Responsible IP partner
2. General information
3. Bio-physical description
4. Socio-economic description
   1. Population density and structure
   2. Level of education
   3. Level and sources of income
   4. Major livelihood sources
   5. Impacts of land degradation on livelihoods
   6. Major challenges to land resource management
   7. Major drivers of land degradation processes
   8. Other relevant socio-economic indicators
5. Institutional and political setting
6. Relevant end-users / stakeholder groups
7. Past and on-going projects

Level and sources of income

The main economic activities are in the primary sector, which still employs a substantial portion of the active labour force; the tertiary sector (in particular trade) is very dynamic and a strong contributor to the formation of the GDP. The Cape Verde Government has an interesting public investment in infrastructures that contracts the local populations, especially those population sectors that are more in danger due to their lack of access to resources.

The population's economic activities are largely dominated by the rain-fed agriculture, irrigated agriculture, livestock breeding and fishing. Other activities are equally practiced, namely cultivation of sugar-cane for rum production (Aguardente/Grogo). Ribeira Seca has the best potential for irrigated agriculture in the whole of Santiago. With the construction of the first large dam of the archipelago, this sector will certainly be quite dynamic.

Another important source of income is from family members abroad or in the city; that sometimes is the only source of income for certain families