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Sao Tome-Principe

World Country Guide

Sao Tome-Principe

The Research on this page was compiled by:

Joao Paulo Cavalcanti - A student ant UCLA Majoring in Global Studies and Intl. Development, hoping to help our world become sustainable in every way.

Sao Tome and Principe, once a leading cocoa producer, is poised to profit from the commercial exploitation of large offshore reserves of oil.

But arguments have arisen over how to spend the expected windfall, leading to increased political tension.

One of Africa's smallest countries, Sao Tome and Principe consists of two main islands of volcanic origin and a number of smaller islets.

From the late 1400s Portugal began settling convicts on Sao Tome and establishing sugar plantations with the help of slaves from the mainland. The island was also important in the transshipment of slaves.

The colony's aspirations for independence were recognised after the 1974 coup in Portugal and at first the Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe was the country's sole political party. However, the 1990 constitution created a multi-party democracy. The island of Principe assumed autonomy in 1995.

Sao Tome and Principe is trying to shake off its dependence on the cocoa crop. Falls in production and prices left the island state heavily reliant on foreign aid. The government has been encouraging economic diversification and is set to exploit the billions of barrels of oil which are thought to lie off the country's coast.

Drilling is under way and commercial production is expected to begin within a few years.

Promoters of tourism say the islands have plenty for visitors to see. But hurdles include ignorance about the country, the difficulties of getting there, and what some say is an exaggerated fear of malaria.

-BBC News

Sao Tome-Principe ( in: Africa ) Details and Statistics

Sao Tome-Principe

Local Time:

Weather:

weather

National News:

National News

Climate:

Tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)

Population:

169,000 (UN, 2005)

Capitol:

Sao Tome

Area:

1,001 sq km (386 sq miles)

Major Language:

Portuguese

Major religion:

Christianity

Life Expectancy:

62 years (men), 64 years (women) (UN)

Monetary Unit:

1 dobra = 100 centimos

Main Exports:

Cocoa

GNI per capita:

US $390 (World Bank, 2006)

Internet Domain:

.st

Int. dialing Zone:

+39

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Poverty

SÃO TOMÉ and PRÍNCIPE are classified as both a least developed and low income, food-deficit country. SÃO TOMÉ and PRÍNCIPE fall among the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) of the region (West and Central Africa). The islands are so poor that they are extremely dependent on the large amounts of foreign assistance they receive from various donors: the World Bank, European Union, UNDP, Portugal, Taiwan and the African Development Bank.

When the islands were under the Portuguese control, the islands were mainly used for slave trade and agriculture. After its independence in 1975, the islands did not develop and struggled to prosper. As a result, more than half of the population lives below the poverty line and has no access to clean water and proper sanitary facilities.

After a new 3-year International Monetary Fund (IMF) Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) program worth US$4.3 million was signed, the islands are very optimistic about its future. Together with foreign help and the development of petroleum resources in its territorial waters in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea, the government believes the islands’ economy will recover and improve significantly.

Human Rights

The islands, surprisingly different from most African countries, the government generally respects the rights of its citizens; however, some areas are problematic. On a scale from 1 (most free) to 7 (least free), São Tomé received a '2' for both political rights and civil liberties. On the other hand, principal Human Rights problems continue to be an inefficient judicial system, harsh prison conditions, violence and discrimination against women and homosexuals.

Aids/Disease

Africans account for 25 million out of 37 million persons infected so far worldwide. Unusually for an African country, more men are HIV positive in São Tomé than women. Recently it was shown that approximately 160 HIV cases are officially registered but local experts believe that the number of people infected can be as high as 6,000.

The possible increase of AIDS and other sexual transmitted diseases in the country is due to only 30 per cent of the population knowing about and using any form of contraceptive, and ignorance about sexual health.

With bad sanitation and the lack of water, makes food and waterborne diseases, such as bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and typhoid fever hard to eliminate.

Environment

Except where cocoa and coffee plantations are predominant, São Tomé and Príncipe are dominated by forestland and have fish and hydropower as their main natural resources. Even though abundant in water and land, the great amount of pollution in both areas is the most significant problems in the country as well as desertification. Other problems include soil erosion and soil exhaustion because of no regulatory policy to regulate preservation.

Literacy/Education

São Tomé and Príncipe do not have a strong education system. It only has two main institutions of higher learning one being private and the other one public. With scarce job opportunities most students participating in one of the two institutions work and attend classes at the same time.

To increase and facilitate the access to education, Brazil and UNESCO are helping the islands with the creation of a virtual-library of Portuguese-language books as well as periodicals in English and Spanish. With the vast majority of Professors being natives who received their higher education abroad will help make such project feasible.

Charitable Organizations

STeP UP - Mission: Community development and project oversight in Sao Tome and Principe. STeP UP has been active since 1998 and has developed projects in health, education, the environment, and community involvement into the uses of proposed oil revenues, which are expected by 2012. Our aim is to train local people about the process of community development and project organization and implementation in this small archipelago.

Volunteer Opportunities

STUDENT WORLD ASSEMBLY - The Student World Assembly is a non-governmental, non-partisan organization created to represent students globally. It provides a deliberative assembly where students around the world can exchange views, vote on global issues through online discussion forums and in annual international conventions, and translate these views into meaningful actions.