Diasporic Links and Tourism Development in Cape Verde. The Case of Praia

Abstract

Since the 1990s, Cape Verde has been counting on tourism for its development, which has led to the construction of large tourist resorts in the areas of biggest interest for international investments. However, other smaller tourism infrastructures are being developed at the same time, by Cape Verdean investors and emigrants. This article analyses the relationship between Cape Verdean emigration and the country’s recent tourism development on two scales: the archipelago, on the one hand, and the city of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on the other. The results show how Cape Verdean emigration adopts the role of tourism developer in the archipelago from different perspectives and how this role does not always produce desired consequences, sometimes generating productive and social imbalances.