São Tomé and Príncipe - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of São Tomé and Príncipe. The second-smallest African country (after the Seychelles); the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes, and both are mountainous. Mother's mean age at first birth is 19.4 years (2008/09 est.) (Note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 146 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Geographical data of São Tomé and Príncipe
Location Central Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, just north of the Equator, west of Gabon
Geographic coordinates 1 00 N, 7 00 E
Map references Africa
Tarrain volcanic, mountainous
Natural Resources fish, hydropower
Natural Hazards flooding
Irrigated Land 100 sq km (2012)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers
Land Boundaries 0 km
Border Countries
Coastline 209 km
Climate tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)
Area
Total Area
Land Area 964 sq km
Water Area 0 sq km
comparative Area more than five times the size of Washington, DC
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone 200 nm
Elevations
Highest point Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m
Lowest point Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 50.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 9.1% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 40.6% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 1% (2018 est.)
Forest 28.1% (2018 est.)
Other 21.2% (2018 est.)
Population Distribution

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

People and Society

In São Tomé and Príncipe, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: 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)

Population
Pop growth rate 1.42% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 26.7 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 6 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure 4.9% of GDP (2020)
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density 2.9 beds/1,000 population (2011)
Total fertility rate 3.31 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 1.63 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate 49.7% (2019)
Est married women (ages 15-49) 51.9% (2023 est.)
Literacy age 15 and over can read and write
Education expenditures 5% of GDP (2020 est.)
Net Migration rate -6.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Sao Tomean | Sao Tomean(s)
Languages 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%; other Portuguese-based Creoles are also spoken (2012 est.)
Religions 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.)
Age Structure
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)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 77.9
Youth dependency ratio 71.2
Elderly dependency ratio 6.7
Potential support ratio 14.9 (2021 est.)
Median Age
Total 20.8 years (2024 est.)
Male 20.4 years
Female 21.2 years
Urbanization
Urban population 76.4% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 2.96% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 80,000 SAO TOME (capital) (2018).
Sex Ratio
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.)
Infant Motality
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
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 67.7 years (2024 est.)
Male 66 years
Female 69.4 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population
Improved: rural rural: 94% of population
Improved: total total: 98.5% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 6% of population
Unimproved: total total: 1.5% of population (2020 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: 57.1% of population
Improved: rural rural: 42.8% of population
Improved: total total: 53.4% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 42.9% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 57.2% of population
Unimproved: total total: 46.6% of population (2020 est.)
Major Infectious diseases
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
Alcohol consumption per capita
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.)
Tobacco use
Total 5.7% (2020 est.)
Male 10.1% (2020 est.)
Female 1.3% (2020 est.)
Child marriage
Women married by age 15 5.4%
Women married by age 18 28%
Men married by age 18 3.1% (2019 est.)
Demographic profile

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.

All Important Facts about São Tomé and Príncipe

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São Tomé and Príncipe is found in Middle Africa