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Africa
Page last updated: July 24, 2024
Portugal discovered and colonized the uninhabited Sao Tome and Principe islands in the late 15th century, setting up a sugar-based economy that gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century -- all grown with African slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s.
The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling among the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and failed, non-violent coup attempts in 1995, 1998, 2003, and 2009. In 2012, three opposition parties combined in a no-confidence vote to bring down the majority government of former Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA, but legislative elections returned him to the office two years later. President Evaristo CARVALHO, of the same political party as TROVOADA, was elected in 2016, marking a rare instance in which the same party held the positions of president and prime minister. TROVOADA resigned in 2018 and was replaced by Jorge BOM JESUS. Carlos Vila NOVA was elected president in 2021. TROVOADA began his fourth stint as prime minister in 2022, after his party's victory in legislative elections.
Central Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, just north of the Equator, west of Gabon
01°00' N, 07°00' E
Africa
Total : 964 km²
Land: 964 km²
Water: 0 km²
More than five times the size of Washington, DC
Total: 0 km
209 km
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
Tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)
Volcanic, mountainous
Highest point: Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m
Lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Fish, hydropower
Agricultural land: 50.7% (2018 est.)
Arable land: 9.1% (2018 est.)
Permanent crops: 40.6% (2018 est.)
Permanent pasture: 1% (2018 est.)
Forest: 28.1% (2018 est.)
Other: 21.2% (2018 est.)
100 km² (2012)
Sao Tome, the capital city, has roughly a quarter of the nation's population; Santo Antonio is the largest town on Principe; the northern areas of both islands have the highest population densities as shown in this population distribution map
Flooding
The second-smallest African country (after the Seychelles); the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes, and both are mountainous
Total: 223,561
Male: 111,553
Female: 112,008 (2024 est.)
Comparison rankings: female 183; male 183; total 183
Noun: Sao Tomean(s)
Adjective: Sao Tomean
Mestico, Angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), Forros (descendants of freed slaves), Servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cabo Verde), Tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese), Asians (mostly Chinese)
Portuguese 98.4% (official), Forro 36.2%, Cabo Verdian 8.5%, French 6.8%, Angolar 6.6%, English 4.9%, Lunguie 1%, other (including sign language) 2.4%; note - shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; other Portuguese-based Creoles are also spoken (2012 est.)
Catholic 55.7%, Adventist 4.1%, Assembly of God 3.4%, New Apostolic 2.9%, Mana 2.3%, Universal Kingdom of God 2%, Jehovah's Witness 1.2%, other 6.2%, none 21.2%, unspecified 1% (2012 est.)
Sao Tome and Principe’s youthful age structure – more than 60% of the population is under the age of 25 as of 2020 – and high fertility rate ensure future population growth. Although Sao Tome has a net negative international migration rate, emigration is not a sufficient safety valve to reduce already high levels of unemployment and poverty. While literacy and primary school attendance have improved in recent years, Sao Tome still struggles to improve its educational quality and to increase its secondary school completion rate. Despite some improvements in education and access to healthcare, Sao Tome and Principe has much to do to decrease its high poverty rate, create jobs, and increase its economic growth.
The population of Sao Tome and Principe descends primarily from the islands’ colonial Portuguese settlers, who first arrived in the late 15th century, and the much larger number of African slaves brought in for sugar production and the slave trade. For about 100 years after the abolition of slavery in 1876, the population was further shaped by the widespread use of imported unskilled contract laborers from Portugal’s other African colonies, who worked on coffee and cocoa plantations. In the first decades after abolition, most workers were brought from Angola under a system similar to slavery. While Angolan laborers were technically free, they were forced or coerced into long contracts that were automatically renewed and extended to their children. Other contract workers from Mozambique and famine-stricken Cape Verde first arrived in the early 20th century under short-term contracts and had the option of repatriation, although some chose to remain in Sao Tome and Principe.
Today’s Sao Tomean population consists of mesticos (creole descendants of the European immigrants and African slaves that first inhabited the islands), forros (descendants of freed African slaves), angolares (descendants of runaway African slaves that formed a community in the south of Sao Tome Island and today are fishermen), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (locally born children of contract laborers), and lesser numbers of Europeans and Asians.
0-14 years: 36.4% (male 41,337/female 40,106)
15-64 years: 60.3% (male 67,101/female 67,775)
65 years and over: 3.2% (2024 est.) (male 3,115/female 4,127)
2023 population pyramid:
Total dependency ratio: 77.9
Youth dependency ratio: 71.2
Elderly dependency ratio: 6.7
Potential support ratio: 14.9 (2021 est.)
Total: 20.8 years (2024 est.)
Male: 20.4 years
Female: 21.2 years
1.42% (2024 est.)
26.7 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
6 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
-6.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Sao Tome, the capital city, has roughly a quarter of the nation's population; Santo Antonio is the largest town on Principe; the northern areas of both islands have the highest population densities as shown in this population distribution map
Urban population: 76.4% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 2.96% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
80,000 SAO TOME (capital) (2018)
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
Total population: 1 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
19.4 years (2008/09 est.)
Note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29
146 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Total: 42.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male: 46.1 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 39 deaths/1,000 live births
Total population: 67.7 years (2024 est.)
Male: 66 years
Female: 69.4 years
3.31 children born/woman (2024 est.)
1.63 (2024 est.)
49.7% (2019)
Improved: urban: 100% of population
Rural: 94% of population
Total: 98.5% of population
Unimproved: urban: 0% of population
Rural: 6% of population
Total: 1.5% of population (2020 est.)
4.9% of GDP (2020)
0.49 physicians/1,000 population (2019)
2.9 beds/1,000 population (2011)
Improved: urban: 57.1% of population
Rural: 42.8% of population
Total: 53.4% of population
Unimproved: urban: 42.9% of population
Rural: 57.2% of population
Total: 46.6% of population (2020 est.)
Degree of risk: high (2023)
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and sexually transmitted diseases: hepatitis B (2024)
Water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
12.4% (2016)
Total: 4.23 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer: 0.42 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine: 3.58 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits: 0.23 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Total: 5.7% (2020 est.)
Male: 10.1% (2020 est.)
Female: 1.3% (2020 est.)
5.4% (2019)
51.9% (2023 est.)
Women married by age 15: 5.4%
Women married by age 18: 28%
Men married by age 18: 3.1% (2019 est.)
5% of GDP (2020 est.)
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 94.8%
Male: 96.5%
Female: 91.1% (2021)
Total: 12 years
Male: 12 years
Female: 13 years (2015)
Deforestation and illegal logging; soil erosion and exhaustion; inadequate sewage treatment in cities; biodiversity preservation
Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
Signed, but not ratified: Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban
Tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)
Agricultural land: 50.7% (2018 est.)
Arable land: 9.1% (2018 est.)
Permanent crops: 40.6% (2018 est.)
Permanent pasture: 1% (2018 est.)
Forest: 28.1% (2018 est.)
Other: 21.2% (2018 est.)
Urban population: 76.4% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 2.96% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
1.9% of GDP (2018 est.)
0% of GDP (2018 est.)
Particulate matter emissions: 33.75 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 0.12 megatons (2016 est.)
Methane emissions: 0.04 megatons (2020 est.)
Municipal solid waste generated annually: 25,587 tons (2014 est.)
Municipal: 10 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
Industrial: 600,000 cubic meters (2017 est.)
Agricultural: 30 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
2.18 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
Conventional long form: Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe
Conventional short form: Sao Tome and Principe
Local long form: Republica Democratica de Sao Tome e Principe
Local short form: Sao Tome e Principe
Etymology: Sao Tome was named after Saint THOMAS the Apostle by the Portuguese who discovered the island on 21 December 1470 (or 1471), the saint's feast day; Principe is a shortening of the original Portuguese name of "Ilha do Principe" (Isle of the Prince) referring to the Prince of Portugal to whom duties on the island's sugar crop were paid
Semi-presidential republic
Name: Sao Tome
Geographic coordinates: 0 20 N, 6 44 E
Time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: named after Saint Thomas the Apostle
6 districts (distritos, singular - distrito), 1 autonomous region* (regiao autonoma); Agua Grande, Cantagalo, Caue, Lemba, Lobata, Me-Zochi, Principe*
12 July 1975 (from Portugal)
Independence Day, 12 July (1975)
History: approved 5 November 1975
Amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage requires two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly; the Assembly can propose to the president of the republic that an amendment be submitted to a referendum; revised several times, last in 2006
Mixed legal system of civil law based on the Portuguese model and customary law
Has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Sao Tome and Principe
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
18 years of age; universal
Chief of state: President Carlos Manuel VILA NOVA (since 2 October 2021)
Head of government: Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA (since 11 November 2022)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, appointed by the president
Elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 18 July 2021 with a runoff on 5 September 2021 (next to be held in 2026); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president
Election results:
2021: Carlos Manuel VILA NOVA elected president in the second round; percent of vote in the first round - Carlos Manuel VILA NOVA (IDA) 39.5%; Guilherme POSSER DA COSTA (MLSTP-PSD) 20.8%; Delfim NEVES (PCD-GR) 16.9%; Abel BOM JESUS (independent) 3.6%; Maria DAS NEVES (independent) 3.3%; other 15.9%; percent of the vote in second round - Carlos Manuel VILA NOVA 57.5%, Guilherme POSSER DA COSTA 42.5%
2016: Evaristo CARVALHO elected president; percent of vote - Evaristo CARVALHO (ADI) 49.8%, Manuel Pinto DA COSTA (independent) 24.8%, Maria DAS NEVES (MLSTP-PSD) 24.1%; note - first round results for CARVALHO were revised downward from just over 50%, prompting the 7 August runoff; however, on 1 August 2016 DA COSTA withdrew from the runoff, citing voting irregularities, and Evaristo CARVALHO was declared the winner
Description: unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)
Elections: last held on 25 September 2022 (next to be held 30 September 2026)
Election results: percent of vote by party - ADI 46.8%, MLSTP-PSD 32.7%, MCI-PS-PUN 6.6%, BASTA Movement 8.8%, other 5.1%; seats by party - ADI 30, MLSTP-PSD 18, MCI-PS-PUN 5, BASTA Movement 2; composition - men 47, women 8, percentage women 14.6%
Highest court(s): Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal Justica (consists of 5 judges); Constitutional Court or Tribunal Constitucional (consists of 5 judges, 3 of whom are from the Supreme Court)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the National Assembly; judge tenure NA; Constitutional Court judges nominated by the president and elected by the National Assembly for 5-year terms
Subordinate courts: Court of First Instance; Audit Court
BASTA Movement [Salvador RAMOS]
Independent Democratic Action or ADI [Patrice TROVADA]
Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Jorge Lopes Bom JESUS]
Movement of Independent Citizens of SĂŁo TomĂ© and PrĂncipe - Socialist Party or MCI-PS [AntĂłnio Monteiro]
National Unity Party or PUN
ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, CD, CEMAC, CPLP, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Three horizontal bands of green (top), yellow (double width), and green with two black five-pointed stars placed side by side in the center of the yellow band and a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; green stands for the country's rich vegetation, red recalls the struggle for independence, and yellow represents cocoa, one of the country's main agricultural products; the two stars symbolize the two main islands
Note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia
Palm tree; national colors: green, yellow, red, black
Name: "Independencia total" (Total Independence)
Lyrics/music: Alda Neves DA GRACA do Espirito Santo/Manuel dos Santos Barreto de Sousa e ALMEIDA
Note: adopted 1975
Ower middle-income Central African island economy; falling cocoa production due to drought and mismanagement; joint oil venture with Nigeria; government owns 90% of land; high debt, partly from fuel subsidies; tourism gutted by COVID-19
$1.267 billion (2023 est.)
$1.273 billion (2022 est.)
$1.272 billion (2021 est.)
Note: data in 2021 dollars
-0.47% (2023 est.)
0.07% (2022 est.)
1.9% (2021 est.)
Note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency
$5,500 (2023 est.)
$5,600 (2022 est.)
$5,700 (2021 est.)
Note: data in 2021 dollars
$603.241 million (2023 est.)
Note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate
21.26% (2023 est.)
18.01% (2022 est.)
8.14% (2021 est.)
Note: annual % change based on consumer prices
Agriculture: 11.8% (2017 est.)
Industry: 14.8% (2017 est.)
Services: 73.4% (2017 est.)
Comparison rankings: services 57; industry 183; agriculture 81
Household consumption: 81.4% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 17.6% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 33.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 7.9% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -40.4% (2017 est.)
Plantains, oil palm fruit, taro, bananas, fruits, cocoa beans, coconuts, yams, cassava, carrots/turnips (2022)
Note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage
Light construction, textiles, soap, beer, fish processing, timber
6.59% (2022 est.)
Note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency
76,000 (2023 est.)
Note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work
14.21% (2023 est.)
14.12% (2022 est.)
15.04% (2021 est.)
Note: % of labor force seeking employment
Total: 22.9% (2021 est.)
Male: 18%
Female: 34.3%
55.5% (2017 est.)
Note: % of population with income below national poverty line
40.7 (2017 est.)
Note: index (0-100) of income distribution; higher values represent greater inequality
Lowest 10%: 2.6% (2017 est.)
Highest 10%: 32.8% (2017 est.)
Note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population
1.35% of GDP (2023 est.)
1.87% of GDP (2022 est.)
2.02% of GDP (2021 est.)
Note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities
Revenues: $95 million (2019 est.)
Expenditures: $102 million (2019 est.)
-2.4% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
88.4% of GDP (2017 est.)
93.1% of GDP (2016 est.)
26.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
-$79.437 million (2022 est.)
-$95.248 million (2021 est.)
-$59.595 million (2020 est.)
Note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars
$96.977 million (2022 est.)
$75.256 million (2021 est.)
$49.337 million (2020 est.)
Note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars
Netherlands 26%, France 11%, Belgium 11%, Portugal 8%, Angola 6% (2022)
Note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports
Cocoa beans, palm oil, gas turbines, integrated circuits, coconut oil (2022)
Note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
$219.322 million (2022 est.)
$201.145 million (2021 est.)
$160.097 million (2020 est.)
Note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars
Portugal 35%, Angola 18%, Togo 13%, China 6%, Italy 5% (2022)
Note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
Refined petroleum, ships, electric generating sets, rice, cars (2022)
Note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
$64.476 million (2022 est.)
$75.017 million (2021 est.)
$75.288 million (2020 est.)
Note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars
$292.9 million (31 December 2017 est.)
$308.5 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Dobras (STD) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
23.29 (2022 est.)
20.71 (2021 est.)
21.507 (2020 est.)
21.885 (2019 est.)
20.751 (2018 est.)
Electrification - total population: 78% (2022 est.)
Electrification - urban areas: 80%
Electrification - rural areas: 73.7%
Installed generating capacity: 30,000 kW (2022 est.)
Consumption: 95.235 million kWh (2022 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 40.95 million kWh (2022 est.)
Comparison rankings: transmission/distribution losses 34; consumption 199; installed generating capacity 202
Fossil fuels: 95.6% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)
Hydroelectricity: 4.4% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)
Imports: (2022 est.) less than 1 metric ton
Refined petroleum consumption: 1,000 bbl/day (2022 est.)
162,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 162,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)
9.873 million Btu/person (2022 est.)
Total subscriptions: 3,000 (2022 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1 (2022 est.)
Total subscriptions: 197,000 (2022 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 87 (2022 est.)
General assessment: local telephone network of adequate quality with most lines connected to digital switches; mobile cellular superior choice to landline; dial-up quality low; broadband expensive (2018)
Domestic: fixed-line is 1 per 100 and mobile-cellular teledensity is 85 telephones per 100 persons (2021)
International: country code - 239; landing points for the Ultramar GE and ACE submarine cables from South Africa to over 20 West African countries and Europe; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
1 government-owned TV station; 2 government-owned radio stations; 7 independent local radio stations; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters are available
.st
Total: 112,200 (2021 est.)
Percent of population: 51% (2021 est.)
Total: 2,512 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1 (2020 est.)
Number of registered air carriers: 1 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 1
S9
2 (2024)
Total: 1,300 km
Paved: 230 km
Unpaved: 1,070 km (2018)
Total: 25 (2023)
By type: general cargo 15, oil tanker 4, other 6
Total ports: 2 (2024)
Large: 0
Medium: 0
Small: 0
Very small: 2
Ports with oil terminals: 0
Key ports: Santo Antonio, Sao Tome
Armed Forces of Sao Tome and Principe (Forcas Armadas de Sao Tome e Principe, FASTP): Army, Coast Guard of Sao Tome e Principe (Guarda Costeira de Sao Tome e Principe, GCSTP), Presidential Guard, National Guard (2024)
Note: the Army and Coast Guard are responsible for external security while the public security police and judicial police maintain internal security; both the public security police and the military report to the Ministry of Defense and Internal Affairs; the judicial police report to the Ministry of Justice, Public Administration, and Human Rights
The FASTP has approximately 500 personnel (2023)
The FASTP has a limited inventory of light weapons (2023)
18 is the legal minimum age for compulsory military service (reportedly not enforced); 17 is the legal minimum age for voluntary service (2023)
The FASTP is one of the smallest militaries in Africa and consists of only a few companies of ground troops and some small patrol boats
In November 2022, the FASTP's headquarters was attacked shortly after the prime minister's inauguration in what São Tomé authorities described as an attempted coup (2023)