A joint staff working document published by the European Commission on 16 July 2026 assesses Cabo Verde's compliance with the EU's Special Incentive Arrangement for Sustainable Development and Good Governance (GSP+) for the period 2023-2025, finding the country maintains high compliance with core human rights, labour, environmental, and governance obligations but identifying key gaps in reporting and implementation. The assessment accompanies the Commission's joint report to the European Parliament and the Council on the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) covering the same period.
Cabo Verde's GSP+ eligible exports to the EU totalled EUR 63.8 million in 2024, with EUR 11 million in duties saved. The country moved from lower- to upper-middle income status in 2025, which may affect future eligibility. Positive developments include the adoption of progressive legal frameworks, improved press freedom (ranked 30th in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index), gender equality (45.8% of parliamentary seats held by women), and a declining child labour rate to 4.2%. However, the document highlights several persistent concerns: overdue reporting to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) since 2006 and to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR); a pending anti-discrimination law since 2022; prison overcrowding; only 15 labour inspectors for roughly 200,000 workers; and no ban on hazardous work for 16-18 year olds.
The assessment sets priorities for the period from 2027 onwards, including adopting anti-discrimination legislation, strengthening social dialogue, improving environmental convention reporting, and bolstering anti-drug trafficking efforts. The document is a joint staff working document (SWD(2026)189) from the Commission's trade department.
For Cabo Verde, the assessment confirms continued preferential access to the EU market but signals that legislative and enforcement gaps must be addressed to maintain GSP+ status under the new framework from 2027. EU importers benefit from continued duty savings on Cabo Verdean exports, while EU civil society organisations may push for stricter conditionality. The European Parliament and Council are expected to review the assessment as part of the broader GSP report, with potential implications for the design of the post-2027 GSP+ scheme.