Primary school education in Cape Verde is mandatory between the ages of 6 and 14 years and free for children ages 6 to 12.
Cape Verdean cuisine owes much to European influences and to the life in the sea around the archipelago. Perhaps the most ubiquitous dish is catchupa, a dish of ground maize, beans and sometimes meat or chicken.
The culture of Cape Verde features literature including Claridade, Negrume, and others and writers including Sergio Frusoni, Manuel Lopes, Ovídio Martins, and more. The culture also has music proprieties including morna, funaná, coladera, tabanka, and more. Cesária Évora, Tcheka, and other Cape Verdean singers throughout the world.