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Cabo Verde / Cape Verde - Religion

Western religion, to some extent, has diluted African cultural traditions. Roman Catholicism, brought by the Portuguese, is Cape Verde’s primary religion, though some Protestant sects (especially Seventh Day Adventists, Mormons, and Nazarenes) have attracted followers. Despite bans by the Portuguese colonists, some vestiges of African animism remain in superstitions and traditional rituals.

The U.S. government estimates the total population at 546,000 (July 2015 estimate). The national government’s statistics indicate that 77 percent of the population is Roman Catholic, 10 percent Protestant, 2 percent Muslim, and 1 percent does not identify with any religion. The second-largest Christian denomination is the Church of the Nazarene. Other Christian denominations include Seventh-day Adventists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), the Assemblies of God, the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, and other Pentecostal and evangelical groups. There are small Bahai and Jewish communities.

The constitution states freedom of conscience, religion, and worship are inviolable rights and protects the right of individuals to choose, practice, profess, and change their religion, and to interpret their religious beliefs for themselves. It provides for the separation of religion and state and prohibits the state from imposing religious beliefs and practices on individuals. It prohibits political parties from adopting names associated with particular religious groups. The constitution prohibits ridiculing religious symbols or practices. Rights may only be suspended in a state of emergency or siege under the constitution.

The law codifies the constitution’s religious freedom provisions by providing for equal rights and guarantees for all religions in accordance with the constitution and international law. The law separates religion and state, but allows the government to sign agreements with religious entities on matters of public interest. Specific sections of the law guarantee the protection of religious heritage, the right to religious education, freedom of organization of religious groups, and the free exercise of religious functions and worship.

In April 2016 a concordat between the government and the Holy See recognized the legal status of the Catholic Church and its right to carry out its apostolic mission freely. The concordat further recognizes Catholic marriages under civil law and the right of Catholics to carry out religious observances on Sundays and specified Catholic holidays. It protects places of worship and other Catholic properties and provides for Catholic educational institutions, charitable activities, and pastoral work in the military, hospitals, and penal institutions, as well as Catholic teaching in public schools. The concordat exempts Church revenues and properties used in religious and nonprofit activities from taxes and makes contributions to the Church tax deductible.

The government granted privileges to the Catholic Church other groups did not receive. Some organizations said this practice strengthened the perception that the government favored the Catholic Church over other religious groups. The government used Catholic Church representatives to inaugurate public buildings throughout the country. Public television transmitted paid religious programming, most of which was of Catholic services. A Brazilian-owned television network (TV Record) covered the religious activities of the Universal Church. Other religious groups received minimal TV broadcast time reportedly because they did not request it or had no means to pay for it.