Sao Tome and Principe

Geography

Economics

Demographics

Military

Politics

Surface

Surface (in square kilometers)

Surface (in square miles)

Surface (water)

Water Surface (in square kilometers)

Water Surface (in square miles)

Share of water (%)

Temperature

Average temperature (in Celcius)

Average temperature (in Farenheit)

Average high temperature (in Celcius)

Average high temperature (in Farenheit)

Average low temperature (in Celcius)

Average low temperature (in Farenheit)

Rainfall

Average rainfall (mm)

Average rainfall (inch)

Distance to other capitals (kilometers)

Distance to other capitals (miles)

Proximity

Economic organizations

Gross Domestic Product (US$)

Gross Domestic Product per capita

Amount of memberships (economic organizations)

Absolute earnings for every 1$

Relative earnings

GDP in PPP per capita (in US$)

GDP in PPP per capita

Gross Domestic product (in million US$)

GDP per capita (in US$)

Surface GDP

GDP per square kilometer (in US$)

GDP per square mile(in US$)

Relative GDP in PPP

Population

Population density

Emigration

Immigration

Literacy

Health

Population density (in km2)

Population density (in mi2)

Religion

Christianity (share of the total population)

Islam (share of the total population)

Buddhism (share of the total population)

Hinduism (share of the total population)

Judaism (share of the total population)

Other religions (share of the total population)

Non-religious (share of the total population)

Military spending (in % of GDP)

Military spending

In total, Sao Tome and Principe spends US$1 million on its military, or 0.24 percent of its GDP. This makes Sao Tome and Principe the 169th highest military spender in the world and represents les than 0.00001 percent of total global military expenditure.

The military of São Tomé and Principe consists of an army and navy. Regional security is mainly provided by the United States.

Military membership

Sao Tome and Principe is also a member of 3 international military organizations. This makes it the 174th most militarily connected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
Non-Aligned Movement

Military membership

International wars

Sao Tome and Principe has not partaken in international wars.

Number of international wars fought

Military spending (in US$ million)

Membership (international political organizations)

In total, Sao Tome and Principe is a member of 8 international political organizations. This makes it the 178th most connected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Member state of the United Nations
International Labour Organization
African Union
Member states of the Organization internationale de la Francophonie
Community of Portuguese Language Countries
Interpol
Association of World Election Bodies
World Organization for Animal Health

Political Membership

Democracy/dictatorship rating

Aside from its recent coups, São Tomé and Principe faces many other democratic deficits such as corruption, a weak judicial system as well as large wealth discrepancies.

Democracy/Dictatorship

The politics of São Tomé and Principe are in the form of a semi-presidential republic where the Prime Minister is head of government and the president is head of state which can serve two five-year terms. Since its independence, there have been several amendments to its constitution which resulted in several military coups between 1988 and 2011. Since 2016, it has returned to an unstable democracy.

If you liked this page, and you want to support us, please take a look at the support options on the top bar.

If you want to know more about other states, click on the flag on the right to discover Saudi Arabia.

Located off the coast of Western Africa, São Tomé and Principe is an island state which consists of two large islands each of which have a central mountain range. Most of its terrain is covered by densely forested areas.

It is the 170th largest state with a total surface area of 969 square kilometers or 374 square miles. This makes Sao Tome and Principe slightly smaller than Kiribati and slightly larger than the Comoros.

It has a total water surface area of 2 square kilometers or 1 square mile. Which can mainly be found in its small rivers that flow from its central mountain range.

Below, a graph is shown which displays the absolute amount of water of each state in square kilometers and square miles.

With its largest island located on the equator, São Tomé and Principe has a tropical climate which is known to have a wet and a dry season. The average temperature is 24.4 degrees Celsius or 76 degrees Fahrenheit. This makes Sao Tome and Principe the 74th warmest state in the world.

The average high temperature is 27.5 degrees Celsius or 82 degrees Fahrenheit.

The average low temperature is 22.6 degrees Celsius or 72.7 degrees Fahrenheit.

São Tomé and Principe experiences a high amount of rainfall due to its location. Its rainfall mainly occurs during the wet season which is between December and May. On average, Sao Tome and Principe receives 174.5 centimetres or 68.7 inches of rainfall per year which ranks it as the 41st highest in the world.

The capital of São Tomé and Principe is São Tomé which is located on the northeastern part of the largest island. The closest capital is Libreville, Gabon, with a distance of 293 kilometers or 182 miles. The capital that is the furthest removed is Funafuti, Tuvalu, with a distance of 18.803 kilometers or 11.684 miles.

Before its independence as well as after its independence, the economy of São Tomé and Principe is mainly in agricultural economy. However, it's economy remains fragile due to internal and external factors which have played a large role for its agricultural output in the past. Other sectors are underdeveloped due to a lack of infrastructure. Most of its exported goods are cocoa beans as well as palm oil which are mainly exported to Nigeria which is solely responsible for 25 percent of all exports. Most of its imports comes from Portugal and Angola which combined represent nearly 70 percent of all imports.

Sao Tome and Principe is a member of 10 international economic organizations. This makes it the 163rd most connected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Alliance for Financial Inclusion
African development Bank
International Monetary Fund
World Bank Group
World Customs Organization
World Trade Organization
Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States
International Renewable Energy Agency
International Solar Alliance
Group of 77

It has a GDP of US$412 million, which makes it the 188th highest in the world and represents 0.00049 percent of total global GDP.

Its GDP per surface area is the 101st highest in the world with US$425.665 per square kilometer or US$1.103.067 per square mile.

Its GDP per capita is the 148th highest in the world with US$1940.

The absolute earnings (GDP per capita) reflect the average yearly income. The figure below shows how much, on average, an inhabitant of another state earns for every $1 earned by a citizen of this state.

Its purchasing power parity per capita is the 157th highest in the world with US$3727.

The relative Gross Domestic Product in Purchasing Power Parity compares the purchasing power of this state with that of the rest of the world. The graph on the left shows how much purchasing power of 1$ compared to the purchasing power of other states

With a total population of just over 200,000 people, São Tomé and Principe is the 176th most populous state in the world. The majority of the population are descendants from enslaved Africans and speak Portuguese as their official language due to its colonial past.

It has the 45th highest population density in the world with 219 people per square kilometer or 567 people per square mile.

17.8 percent of the population, or just over 35,000 people have migrated to other states. This makes it the 177th state with the highest number of emigrants and represents 0.014 percent of total global emigration. The largest destination has been Portugal which is solely responsible for more than 50 percent of all migrants.

0.5 percent of the population, or around 1000 people have migrated to São Tomé and Principe. This makes São Tomé and Principe the 162nd state with the highest number of immigrants and represents less than 0.001 percent of total global emigration. The largest supplier of migrants to São Tomé and Principe has been people from Cabo Verde.

The literacy rate in São Tomé and Principe is 86.2 percent which is the 128th highest in the world. Even though education is compulsory, a lack of finance which results in low-quality textbooks as well as unqualified teachers has been the main reason for this percentage.

The health care system of São Tomé and Principe is underdeveloped, and the main threats are considered to be easily preventable diseases. Currently, communicable diseases are the leading cause of death with malaria and diarrhoea being the leading cause. Noncommunicable diseases have been slowly overtaking the communicable diseases and are mainly related to cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The average life expectancy is 71.03 years which is the 130th highest in the world. Women have an average life expectancy of 73.5 years, while men have an average life expectancy of 68.5 years.

The government of São Tomé and Principe provides freedom of religion towards all religions. The state itself is a secular state and its main goal is to encourage harmony between the religions.

68.5 percent of the population adheres to Christianity with Roman Catholicism being the largest denomination due to its Portuguese colonial past. This makes São Tomé and principe the 93rd most Christian state in the world.

On the right, the global share of Christians per state is displayed

Approximately two percent of the population adheres to Islam and mainly consists of migrants from Nigeria which adhere to the Sunni branch of Islam.

There are no official Buddhist organizations in São Tomé and Principe.

There are no official Hindu organizations in São Tomé and Principe.

There are currently no Jews residing in São Tomé and Principe. Historically, Jews have been active in setting up its sugar cane plantations, but left the island for Europe.

Other religions are represented by 3.5 percent of the population and mainly consists of traditional African religions.

Irreligion is represented by 8.4 percent of the population.

São Tomé and Principe

Named after Saint Thomas as well as the province of Portugal during its discovery, São Tomé and Principe was the last African colony of Portugal. Before the arrival of Europeans, the island was uninhabited. It was discovered by Portuguese explorers at the end of the 15th century. Since then, several settlements were planted which brought slaves from mainland Africa. These slaves mainly worked in cocoa plantations. Despite being briefly conquered by the Dutch and the French, São Tomé and Principe mainly remained under Portuguese control until it's decolonization period during the second half of the 20th century. Since its independence in 1975, São Tomé and Principe joined the nonaligned movement, but kept close ties with socialist states. At the end of the 20th century and at the start of the 21st century, more than three coups have taken place.

Most of its drinking water is derived from rainwater as well as rivers and is considered unsafe to drink.