The Government of São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe - Government

Based on the etymolgy of São Tomé and Príncipe, it was 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. The Government system in this country is the semi-presidential republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 6 districts (distritos, singular - distrito), 1 autonomous region* (regiao autonoma); Agua Grande, Cantagalo, Caue, Lemba, Lobata, Me-Zochi, Principe*

National symbols

Palm tree; national colors: green, yellow, red, black.

The flag

The National flag of São Tomé and Príncipe has 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

The National Anthem

Title	"Independencia total" (Total Independence)
Lyric/music	Alda Neves DA GRACA do Espirito Santo/Manuel dos Santos Barreto de Sousa e ALMEIDA

note: adopted 1975

More about the government of São Tomé and Príncipe

Constitution
Date of Independence	12 July 1975 (from Portugal)
National holiday	Independence Day, 12 July (1975)
Legal system	mixed legal system of civil law based on the Portuguese model and customary law
International law organization participation	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
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
Citizenship
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
Executive Branch
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
Legislative branch
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%
Judicial branch
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
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador (vacant)
Chancery	122 East 42nd Street, Suite 1604 New York, NY 101168
Telephone	[1] (212) 317-0533
FAX	[1] (212) 317-0580
Email address and website	[email protected] Sao Tome and Principe Permanent Mission to the United Nations
Diplomatic representation from the US
Embassy	The US does not have an embassy in Sao Tome and Principe; the US Ambassador to Angola is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe
Mailing address	2290 Sao Tome Place, Washington DC 20521-2290