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The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa or CPLP) is a multilateral forum for mutual friendship between the lusophone nations across the world where Portuguese is an official language.
CPLP was formed in 1996 with seven countries, Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and São Tomé and Príncipe, five of them are in Africa. East Timor joined the community in 2002 after regaining independence from Indonesia.
The CPLP is a bloc in the process of construction and the societies of the eight member nations have little knowledge of each other. One of the unique features of the CPLP is that its members are linked by a common language and shared cultural features, which form a bridge between countries separated by great distances and different continents.
The Portuguese-speaking countries are home to more than 223 million people located across the globe but having similar cultures and a shared history. The CPLP nations have a combined area of about 10,742,000 square kilometers, much larger than the USA or Canada.
Since its formation, the CPLP has already helped to solve problems in São Tomé and Príncipe and in Guinea-Bissau, because of two different coup d'etats in those countries. These two problems were solved, and in fact, have helped these two countries to take economic reforms (in the case of São Tomé) and democratic ones (in the case of Guinea-Bissau).
The leaders of CPLP believe that peace in Angola and Mozambique as well as East Timor's independence will favour the further development of the CPLP and a strengthening of multilateral cooperation.
The Organization’s Executive Secretariat is responsible for designing and implementing CPLP´s projects and initiatives. It is located in Lisbon, Portugal. The Executive Secretary has a two-year mandate, and can be re-elected only once.
CPLP´s guidelines and priorities are established by biannual Conference of Heads of State and the Organization’s plan of action is approved by the Council of Foreign Ministers, which meets every year.
There are also monthly meetings of the Permanent Steering Committee that follow specific initiatives and projects.
The CPLP is mainly financed by its eight member states.
The eight Portuguese-speaking nations signed agreements to facilitate the cross-border circulation of their citizens, including multiple-entry visas for businesspeople and others who travel frequently, a streamlining of the requisites and fees paid for short visits, and the right to medical treatment and residency permits for all CPLP citizens in every one of the member countries.
However, a proposal for the adoption of common citizenship failed because Angola and Mozambique opposed. The statute, which is already in force between Brazil and Portugal, would provide equal civil and political rights for the citizens of any nation of CPLP.
Some Galicians want the autonomous region of Galicia (Galiza) in Spain to take part in this Union, because their language (Galego) is closely related to Portuguese (in fact many consider one to be a dialect of the other). The two languages (or dialects) have a common origin in Galicia and northern Portugal. A similar case happened with East Timor. But before independence East Timor had the status of Observer, although the exiled government of East Timor tried to gain full member status before independence.
When CPLP was formed, Equatorial Guinea has also asked for an observer status. Equatorial Guinea has some territories where Portuguese Creole is spoken and cultural conection with São Tomé and Príncipe and Portugal is felt. Nevertheless, the country has recently cooperated with Portuguese-speaking African countries and Brasil in educational level. In, the CPLP summit of July 2004, in São Tomé and Príncipe, the member states agreed to change the statutes of the community to accept Equatorial Guinea as an observer.
The Instituto Internacional de Macau, from Macao as a observer status in the community. Its aim is to approach Macanese youngsters to the CPLP nations and culture. Thus, assuring the different identity of the territory within China.
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