Urban population growth (annual %) in Cape Verde
Cape Verde: Urban population growth (annual %) was 1.6% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Urban population growth in Cape Verde, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
Cape Verde recorded 1.6% for urban population growth in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.7% on the previous year and down 5.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Cape Verde peaked at 19.5% in 1964 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 2025.
That places Cape Verde 89th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Urban population growth (annual %) in Cape Verde, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.8% | — |
| 1962 | 12.2% | +218.9% |
| 1963 | 17.6% | +44.2% |
| 1964 | 19.5% | +11.0% |
| 1965 | 19.3% | -1.0% |
| 1966 | 18.0% | -7.0% |
| 1967 | 16.1% | -10.7% |
| 1968 | 13.9% | -13.6% |
| 1969 | 11.5% | -17.0% |
| 1970 | 8.6% | -25.5% |
| 1971 | 5.5% | -35.9% |
| 1972 | 3.4% | -37.3% |
| 1973 | 2.6% | -23.2% |
| 1974 | 2.4% | -10.5% |
| 1975 | 2.4% | +0.6% |
| 1976 | 2.5% | +3.2% |
| 1977 | 2.5% | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 2.7% | +9.2% |
| 1979 | 3.1% | +13.9% |
| 1980 | 3.8% | +21.6% |
| 1981 | 5.7% | +50.5% |
| 1982 | 7.8% | +37.4% |
| 1983 | 9.0% | +15.3% |
| 1984 | 9.5% | +5.1% |
| 1985 | 9.4% | -0.5% |
| 1986 | 9.0% | -4.4% |
| 1987 | 8.3% | -7.9% |
| 1988 | 7.4% | -11.2% |
| 1989 | 6.4% | -13.3% |
| 1990 | 5.7% | -10.6% |
| 1991 | 5.2% | -8.1% |
| 1992 | 4.8% | -8.3% |
| 1993 | 4.4% | -7.7% |
| 1994 | 4.1% | -7.2% |
| 1995 | 3.8% | -7.2% |
| 1996 | 3.6% | -6.7% |
| 1997 | 3.4% | -5.1% |
| 1998 | 3.2% | -4.1% |
| 1999 | 3.1% | -3.5% |
| 2000 | 3.1% | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 3.1% | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 2.9% | -5.9% |
| 2003 | 2.7% | -6.6% |
| 2004 | 2.6% | -5.4% |
| 2005 | 2.5% | -3.8% |
| 2006 | 2.4% | -1.9% |
| 2007 | 2.4% | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 2.4% | -1.4% |
| 2009 | 2.3% | -1.2% |
| 2010 | 2.2% | -6.7% |
| 2011 | 1.8% | -15.1% |
| 2012 | 1.7% | -10.2% |
| 2013 | 1.6% | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 1.6% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 1.7% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 1.7% | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 1.8% | +3.3% |
| 2018 | 1.8% | +3.0% |
| 2019 | 1.9% | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 1.9% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 2.1% | +14.3% |
| 2022 | 1.8% | -16.6% |
| 2023 | 1.7% | -6.4% |
| 2024 | 1.6% | -2.0% |
| 2025 | 1.6% | -2.7% |
Cape Verde compared with similar countries
- Cape Verde's 1.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.0%, 1.7× the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Cape Verde's 1.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.4%, 47% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Urban population growth (annual %) in Cape Verde changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | +218.9% | 3.8% | 12.2% |
| 1981 | +50.5% | 3.8% | 5.7% |
| 1963 | +44.2% | 12.2% | 17.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 14.7% | 3.8% | 19.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 3.6% | 2.4% | 8.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.6% | 3.8% | 9.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.2% | 3.1% | 5.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.6% | 2.3% | 3.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.8% | 1.6% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.8% | 1.6% | 2.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Cape Verde
More climate change data for Cape Verde
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.56 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.1352 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.3107 °C (2026)
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.0% (2100)
- Population, total, annual growth rate 0.4666 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate 1.59 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.7763 units per person (2025)
- Precipitation anomalies, annual growth rate -101.1 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Cape Verde?
- Urban population growth in Cape Verde was 1.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Cape Verde?
- The highest recorded value was 19.5% in 1964.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Cape Verde?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 2025.
- How does Cape Verde rank for urban population growth?
- Cape Verde ranks 89th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Cape Verde?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Cape Verde data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual urban population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear urban population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank total population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects.