Event Summary: ‘Small Island States in an Uncertain Global Economy’ – Reflections from a Conversation with the Prime Minister of Cabo Verde
By Faiz Nawab
When the Republic of Cabo Verde’s Fifth Prime Minister José Ulisses de Pina Correia e Silva visited Boston University on September 29th for a public conversation organized by the BU Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center), the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and the African Studies Center, students, faculty and community members gathered to hear how a small island nation is managing an increasingly unpredictable global environment. As a small island state located off the west coast of Africa, Cabo Verde is home to just over half a million people spread across ten volcanic islands. Despite its limited natural resources, the country has achieved notable development milestones in democratic governance, renewable energy expansion and climate resilience.
The event opened with a series of welcoming remarks that underscored how meaningful this visit was for Boston University and the broader Massachusetts community. Pardee School Dean Scott Taylor framed the gathering as a collaboration among the Pardee School, the GDP Center and the African Studies Center, each committed to advancing research and dialogue on global challenges. BU President Melissa Gilliam followed by highlighting the deep ties between Cabo Verde and Massachusetts, noting that Boston and Brockton are home to the largest Cabo Verdean community in the United States and that BU has long benefited from Cabo Verdean students and alumni. Kevin Gallagher, director of the GDP Center, then situated the conversation within BU’s effort to bring global leaders to campus and emphasized the value of hearing directly from policymakers who are shaping today’s development landscape. Together, their remarks set the tone for a thoughtful and forward-looking discussion.
Throughout his address and subsequent conversation with African Studies Center Director Nimi Wariboko, Prime Minister Correia e Silva spoke with a steady sense of realism about Cabo Verde’s position. Small states, he noted, do not have the option of distancing themselves from global turbulence. Economic shocks, political uncertainty, climate events and fluctuations in energy prices disproportionately impact them. Cabo Verde has had to build stability by accepting that change is constant.
A central theme of the discussion focused on economic vulnerability. Cabo Verde’s heavy dependence on imported energy means that international market shifts become domestic challenges almost immediately. For families, businesses and policymakers, this reality complicates everything from budgeting to long-term development planning. The government’s commitment to expanding solar, wind and desalination capacity over the next two decades reflects a broader effort to reduce exposure to economic shocks and build a more reliable energy foundation.
Yet energy reform is only one part of building resilience. The prime minister emphasized that long-term stability depends on sustained investment in people. He described reforms aimed at broadening English-language education, deepening STEM training and enhancing overall education standards. The government’s goal is to prepare a generation capable of working in fields not constrained by geography—such as digital services, cybersecurity, technology development and other knowledge-based sectors.
Cabo Verde’s emerging network of technology parks reflects this strategy. Now hosting companies from more than twenty countries, the parks aim to connect local talent with professional opportunities within their own country. The prime minister acknowledged that brain drain remains a long-standing challenge, but he framed talent retention through a practical lens: people stay when the conditions for staying make sense. That requires decent wages, stable jobs, support for innovation and a consensus that the future can be built locally, not only abroad.
Women’s economic participation came up repeatedly as part of that future. The government of Cabo Verde has introduced financing and training programs for young female entrepreneurs, aiming to expand the number of women who can launch and sustain businesses. These initiatives are aimed at cultivating a more diverse and resilient workforce with the capacity to widen the country’s economic base.
Climate vulnerability was a recurring theme in the conversation. The prime minister recalled a rare hurricane that struck the island of São Vicente, dropping a year’s worth of rainfall in just four hours. Homes were damaged, families displaced and infrastructure pushed beyond its limits. The rapid government response—temporary housing, compensation and emergency services—helped stabilize the situation, but the incident underscored how climate shocks can alter national priorities in an instant. Cabo Verde’s resilience planning now includes upgraded urban protections, improved drainage and long-term strategies to reduce exposure to extreme weather.
The discussion also turned to international finance. Cabo Verde’s transition to upper-middle-income status in 2025 reduced its access to concessional funding, even though its structural vulnerabilities remained unchanged. The prime minister described ongoing conversations with global financial institutions about developing frameworks that better capture the realities faced by small island states—where climate risk, limited opportunities for economic diversification and geographic constraints complicate traditional assessments of creditworthiness.
Across the prime minister’s remarks, a coherent vision emerged. Cabo Verde’s development model now rests on strengthening education, expanding digital capacity, supporting women entrepreneurs, diversifying energy sources, adapting to climate extremes and negotiating fairer terms within the global financial system. For a nation spread across ten islands, the challenge is ensuring these priorities advance cohesively and in a unified manner.
The prime minister’s visit offered a window into how small states navigate a complex set of pressures while striving for a more secure and innovative future. It illustrated a broader idea: resilience is not just the ability to withstand disruption but the determination to keep reshaping what is possible.
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Faiz Nawab was a Fall 2025 Communications Fellow at the GDP Center. He is a graduate student at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University.