This, according to Minister of Finances and Public Administration Cristina Duarte, demonstrates that the fight against unemployment in the country is still far from being won.
The Institute's 2007 Basic Well-Being Indicator Questionnaire (QUIBB), showed that 51% of those surveyed qualified the country's economic and social situationit as “neither good nor bad.”
Carried out between November 2007 and January 2008, the study reveals that 25% of those surveyed consider the country’s economic and social situation bad, 4% very bad, 19% good and 1% very good. When asked to compare the current situation to the scenario four years ago, 29% of those inquired said the situation was the same, 21% said it was worse, 2% much worse, 43% better and 6% much better, Along the same lines, some 35% of those surveyed believe that their standard of living is the same as it was four years ago, while 19% believe that it is worse and 2%, much worse. Some 41% affirmed their standard of living was better, with 4% saying it was much better.
The inquiry also shows that the private sector is Cape Verde’s largest employer (35%), followed by self-employed workers (22%) and the state (17%).
Despite having fallen 5 percentage points in comparison to the 2006 inquiry, satisfaction with the country’s health situation stands at 84%. Waiting time, costs and unsuccessful treatment are considered the main factors in citizens’ dissatisfaction with the nation’s health services.
According to the QUIBB, 80% of Cape Verdeans are literate, with the figure rising to 85% in urban settings and falling to 72% in the rural world. 45% of those surveyed said they were dissatisfied with Cape Verde’s educational services, citing as their main complaints expensive school fees (26%), out-of-order restrooms in schools (13%) and lack of safety (4%).
Minister of Finances and Public Administration Cristina Fontes, who presided over the ceremony in which the figures were made public, stressed that Cape Verdeans should be proud of the numbers contained in the QUIBB, and said that it was no coincidence that Cape Verde was “doing well in its race towards obtaining the Millennium Development Objectives.” Duarte acknowledged, however, that, with regards to employment, the survey shows that the battle to lower the unemployment rate is still far from being won, although steps have been taken in the right direction.