Cape Verde Flag

Description

The Cape Verde flag is available from Flags Online in full-size and desk formats, printed on both sides and made to last outdoors.

About the Cape Verde Flag

Blue covers most of the Cape Verde flag, with a narrow horizontal band of white-red-white stripes set below centre and a circle of ten yellow five-pointed stars arranged around the point where the blue field meets the striped band. The design is quite different from the flag used in the years immediately after independence, and marks a deliberate change of direction taken in the early 1990s.

Colours and Symbolism

The blue field on the Cape Verde flag represents the sky and the surrounding sea. The white and red stripes running behind the stars stand for the Cape Verdean people’s desire for peace and their efforts in building the nation. The ten stars represent the archipelago’s ten main islands, arranged in a circle to symbolise unity among them. Unlike many African flags, this design does not use the red-yellow-green combination common across the continent, a deliberate choice made when the flag was redesigned.

History of the Cape Verde Flag

At independence from Portugal in 1975, Cape Verde adopted a flag modelled on that of the PAIGC, the liberation movement it had shared with Guinea-Bissau, with horizontal yellow and green stripes and a vertical red band at the hoist bearing a black star framed by ears of corn and a sea shell. As the country’s politics diverged from Guinea-Bissau through the 1980s, and following a move away from single-party rule, a new flag was designed to give Cape Verde a separate identity. The current blue-based Cape Verde flag was adopted on 25 September 1992, replacing the earlier PAIGC-style design entirely rather than adapting it.

Flying and Displaying the Flag

The flag is flown at government buildings across the islands and on Cape Verdean vessels. Because the ten stars must be evenly spaced in a precise circle and the striped band positioned at a fixed distance from the bottom edge, accurate reproduction matters more for this flag than for simpler tricolour designs. It is raised fully for Independence Day on 5 July and other national occasions and lowered to half-mast on days of national mourning. Because the current design is still relatively young compared with many national flags, some older Cape Verdean households and community groups still hold onto the earlier yellow-and-green flag as a piece of the country’s post-independence history.

Cape Verde Flag Sizes and Pricing

• 180 x 120cm — R860
• 22 x 15cm Desk Flag (10 units) — R800
• 10 x 15cm Desk Flag (10 units) — R650
• 90 x 60cm — R400

Material and Construction

Made from 100% polyester bunting material and digitally printed on both sides. Hemmed all around with two rows of stitching and finished with a polyester webbing heading. Rope and toggle for hoisting included.

Supplied in packs of 10. Printed on both sides onto polyester and supplied with a black plastic stick and removable base — take the base off and it doubles as a hand waving flag.

Ordering and Delivery

Every Cape Verde flag is printed to order and dispatched from our Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) and Johannesburg branches, with courier delivery nationwide. Bulk and school orders are welcome — contact us for volume pricing on quantities of 10 or more.

Additional information