Cape Verde is an island state formed by ten islands of volcanic
origin, located in the tropical north-western Atlantic Ocean, on
the African continent, 500km off the coast of Senegal. With
landscapes varying from dry plains to high active volcanoes with
cliffs rising steeply from the ocean, islands in the east are arid
and only sparsely settled to exploit their extensive salt deposits,
while the more southerly ones receive more precipitation and
support larger populations, but agriculture and livestock grazing
have impacted the soil fertility and vegetation.
Despite, at first glance, appearing to be scarce in natural
resources due to its inherent aridity, the archipelago's
geographical, geologic, and climatic characteristics allow the
production of unique products (mainly foodstuff and beverages) that
provide its habitants with a valuable inheritance, that, under
certain requirements, may be passible of protection via
designations of origin or geographical
