SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE · WHO THEY ARE
Key Facts
- —What is happening São Tomé and Príncipe, a two-island nation off Africa’s west coast, re-elected President Carlos Vila Nova in July 2026 and now waits for him to name a prime minister after a split September vote.
- —Why it matters About 210,000 to 240,000 people live in a US$981 million economy (2025) that sits in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea and relies on cocoa, donors and a lending programme of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- —The numbers The islands cover 1,001 square kilometres; the provisional 2024 census counted 209,607 people; output per person was US$4,084 in 2025; inflation averaged 11.0% in 2025; parliament has 55 seats.
- —Who is who President Carlos Vila Nova leads the state; the Independent Democratic Action party (ADI) headed the outgoing government; the MLSTP, the independence-era party, won the most votes.
- —What to watch The president’s choice of prime minister after talks with the parties, the next IMF review of the loan programme, and whether fuel and electricity supplies hold steady through the end of 2026.
- —What it means for you The US government rates travel to the islands Level 1, exercise normal precautions, in its review of 25 September 2024; the island economy is tiny, so US investors mainly follow aid, cocoa and IMF news.
Two small islands, a split vote and a cocoa economy under IMF watch. Here is who and what São Tomé and Príncipe is in October 2026.
Sao Tome and Principe explained in one read: a two-island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off Central Africa. About 210,000 to 240,000 people live there, depending on the source.
Its president won a second term in July 2026, and no party won a majority of votes in September. The economy produced about US$981 million in 2025 and leans on cocoa, donors and an IMF programme.
More regional coverage sits on the Central Africa page. Conversions use the central bank rate of 27 October 2026, about 22 new dobras per US$1.
Sao Tome and Principe Explained on the Map
The country is an island state of 1,001 square kilometres, the national statistics institute (INE) says. That is more than five times the area of Washington, D.C.
It has two main islands, São Tomé and Príncipe, plus several islets in the Gulf of Guinea. The capital is the city of São Tomé, on the larger island, the constitution says.
Príncipe and its nearby islets form an autonomous region with a regional assembly and a regional government, the constitution says. European Union election observers list nine members in that regional assembly.
The main island has six districts, each with an elected district assembly. On 27 September 2026 voters chose 70 district assembly members in total, on the same day as the national vote.
Portugal ruled the islands until independence on 12 July 1975, the preamble of the constitution says. The preamble credits the Liberation Movement with leading the people to independence.
The People and Daily Life
The statistics institute counted 209,607 residents in its provisional 2024 census, with 99,820 men and 109,787 women. The World Bank estimates 240,254 people for 2025, so the total depends on the source.
About 37.5% of the population was under 15 in 2025, the World Bank says. Women had 3.6 births each on average in 2024, and the population grows about 2% a year.
About 69% of people live in towns, a World Bank estimate for 2025. Life expectancy at birth was 69.9 years in 2024.
The statistics institute shows a literacy rate of 90.1%, which matches the World Bank figure for 2012. The World Bank’s later survey figure is 87.4% for 2019.
About 55.5% of people lived below the national poverty line in 2017, the World Bank’s latest figure. The statistics institute put unemployment at 8.9% in 2017.
In 2024, 77.7% of people had electricity and 59.1% used the internet, World Bank data show. Infant mortality was 9.2 deaths per 1,000 live births in the same year.
The central bank governor says emigration costs add pressure on the general price level. Money sent home by emigrants was 3.7% of GDP in 2025, the World Bank estimates.
How the Government Works
The 2003 constitution sets up a mixed system, with a directly elected president and a prime minister who runs the government. The president serves five years and cannot hold a third consecutive term.
The president names the prime minister after consulting the parties in parliament and taking election results into account. The National Assembly has 55 seats and the government needs its support to govern.
The president may dissolve parliament only in a grave institutional crisis, and not in the first twelve months after an election. That limit applies now, because the assembly was elected on 27 September 2026.
- MLSTP: the Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe, the party of the independence era, now in opposition.
- ADI: Independent Democratic Action, which led the outgoing government and was hit by an internal leadership dispute, observers say.
- MCI-PS/PUN: an opposition coalition, named in full the Movement of Independent Citizens-Socialist Party/Party of National Unity.
- Basta!: a smaller political movement that won 8% of the votes in 2026.
- CEN and the Constitutional Court: the National Electoral Commission runs the count, and the court announces final results.
The tile panels in the cathedral of São Tomé, shown above, are one visible trace of the Portuguese era. The cathedral stands in the city of São Tomé, the capital.
The 2026 Elections in Numbers
Carlos Vila Nova won a second term in the presidential vote of Sunday, 19 July 2026. The National Electoral Commission’s preliminary count gave him 55.94% against 41.42% for Nito d’Abreu, an ADI politician.
Turnout was about 41%, a historic low, among 142,674 registered voters, European Union observers say. Ghana’s foreign ministry lists the swearing-in for Thursday, 3 September 2026.
Voters chose the 55-seat National Assembly on Sunday, 27 September 2026. The Constitutional Court’s final count of 6 October shows 54,741 votes cast, or 37% of 146,918 registered voters.
The MLSTP won 18,639 votes (31%) and the ADI won 18,168 votes (30%). The gap between the two was 471 votes.
The MCI-PS/PUN coalition won 4,224 votes (7%) and the Basta! movement won 4,626 votes (8%). A majority in the 55-seat assembly needs 28 members, and neither big party won even a third of the votes.
The court’s notice of the count gives vote totals only, so the split of the 55 seats is not shown here. The notice is dated Tuesday, 6 October 2026.
A 49-member European Union observation mission found both 2026 votes peaceful and orderly. It also reported widespread vote-buying, concerns over court timing, and a first-time automatic voter register drawn from the national ID database.
The exclusion of 63 coalition candidates over alleged forged signatures led to rejected lists in five constituencies, the observers say. The coalition appealed, and the observers raised concerns about equal treatment and effective legal remedies.
The Economy of Cocoa, Imports and a Pegged Currency
The World Bank puts economic output at US$981 million in 2025, or US$4,084 per person. Growth was 1.0% in 2025, after 1.5% in 2024.
Imports equal 33.3% of output and exports only 13.3%, World Bank figures for 2025. Net development aid was US$86.8 million in 2023, the World Bank’s latest figure.
The central bank governor says cocoa exports reached their highest level in decades. The US State Department lists cocoa, furniture and bedding among US imports from the islands.
Tourism is the other hope, and the central bank governor links it to the country’s recent biosphere reserve designation. The World Bank’s latest arrivals count is 33,400 visitors in 2018.
The new dobra is pegged to the euro at 24.5 per euro, so its US$ rate moves with the euro-dollar rate. On 27 October 2026 the central bank listed 21.90 (buy) and 22.23 (sell) dobras per US$.
Consumer prices rose 11.0% on average in 2025 and 14.4% in 2024, World Bank data show. The statistics institute shows accumulated inflation of 5.5% for September 2026 without defining the period.
More than 80% of micro and small firms operate informally, the central bank governor says. Bank liquidity ratios stood above 70% in the third quarter of 2025, and the governor calls deposits safe.
Debt, the IMF and the Energy Problem
The IMF, the global lender that backs governments in balance-of-payments trouble, approved a 40-month credit programme on 19 December 2024. It was worth about US$24 million, or 125% of the country’s IMF quota.
On 19 December 2025 the IMF board added about US$6.1 million and extended the programme by 12 months. Total disbursements had reached about US$13.7 million by then.
IMF staff finished a mission for the third review on 8 April 2026 and said most targets were met. Board approval is the next step, and talks were to continue after the IMF spring meetings.
The IMF estimated public debt at 54.0% of GDP in 2025, down from 65.2% in 2024. In July 2025 it still classed the country as in debt distress, because of long-unpaid external arrears.
Gross reserves were estimated at US$60.0 million at the end of 2025, about 3.7 months of imports. The central bank’s net reserves stood at US$22.6 million on 16 October 2026.
The IMF describes a prolonged energy crisis and says energy sector reform, including restructuring the public utility company, is essential. The central bank governor says the main fuel supplier suspended fuel credit, which raised costs and prices.
The IMF said growth stayed subdued at 1% in 2025 and that inflation had fallen to single digits. It warned in April 2026 of risks from the war in the Middle East and an oil shock.
Friends and Partners Abroad
The United States and São Tomé and Príncipe established diplomatic relations in 1976, and the State Department calls ties excellent. A relay station of Voice of America, the US government broadcaster, in São Tomé reaches much of Africa.
US aid aims to professionalise the small military and coast guard and to strengthen maritime security. The islands join US Navy Africa Partnership Station visits and regional drills of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).
The State Department says the two countries have no bilateral investment treaty or tax treaty. AGOA, a US trade preference law, was extended on 3 February 2026 through 31 December 2026, the US Trade Representative says.
US consular help for citizens in the islands is handled from the embassy in Luanda, Angola, the travel advisory says. Ghana likewise covers the islands through its ambassador to Angola and sent its deputy foreign minister to the 3 September swearing-in.
A European Union observer mission with members from 17 EU states and Canada watched the 2026 elections. ECCAS, the Central African regional bloc, counts the islands as a member, the State Department says.
Earlier coverage on this site covers the election result and the president’s 30-day deadline for choosing a government. The fuel crisis is covered in the report on the fuel shortage ending, and an infrastructure delay in the Lembá bridge delay.
What It Means for US Readers
Travel: the State Department advisory is Level 1, exercise normal precautions, as last reissued on 25 September 2024 on the page checked. Check the current text before booking, because the advisory may have changed since.
Entry and health rules are not covered here, so confirm them with the government and the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The advisory points US citizens to the embassy in Luanda, so keep its contact details with your papers.
For investors, the islands are too small to move markets, with output of US$981 million in 2025 on World Bank estimates. The signals to watch are IMF reviews, reserves, fuel supply and who forms the next government.
For US policy, the islands matter for maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea and for the Voice of America relay. A government deadlock would slow the reforms that the IMF programme requires.
What Is Not Known
The president’s choice of prime minister was not announced in the official sources checked on 27 October 2026. It is also open which party or alliance can win a working majority of 28 seats.
The population is uncertain, because the 2024 census total is provisional and the World Bank estimate is about 30,000 higher. Final census results were not found.
The IMF board decision on the third review and the exact state of the programme after April 2026 were not found. Current reserve and arrears figures are therefore estimates.
The current US tariff rate on goods from the islands and their place on the AGOA eligibility list were not confirmed. Visa and entry rules for US citizens were not checked.
Inflation differs by source and period, and the statistics institute does not say what its 5.5% figure for September 2026 measures. The court’s notice gives no seat counts, so the allocation of the 55 seats is not confirmed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Sao Tome and Principe?
It is an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the coast of Central Africa. It has two main islands, São Tomé and Príncipe, and covers 1,001 square kilometres.
Who is the president of Sao Tome and Principe in 2026?
Carlos Vila Nova won a second term in the vote of 19 July 2026. He was sworn in on Thursday, 3 September 2026, Ghana’s foreign ministry says.
What currency does Sao Tome and Principe use?
The currency is the new dobra, valued at about 22 dobras per US$ on 27 October 2026. It is pegged to the euro, so the US$ rate floats with the euro-dollar rate.
How many people live in Sao Tome and Principe?
The provisional 2024 census counted 209,607 residents. The World Bank estimates 240,254 for 2025, so the total depends on the source.
Is Sao Tome and Principe safe for US travellers?
The US State Department rated it Level 1, exercise normal precautions, in its review of 25 September 2024. Check the current advisory and entry rules before you travel.
What does Sao Tome and Principe export?
The central bank governor says cocoa exports reached their highest level in decades. US government data list cocoa among US imports from the islands.
Is the government stable after the 2026 election?
No party won a majority of the votes on 27 September 2026, when the two largest parties took 31% and 30%. The president must choose a prime minister after consulting the parties.
Sources: National Statistics Institute of São Tomé and Príncipe (INE), home page: area, 2024 provisional census, inflation; Central Bank of São Tomé and Príncipe (BCSTP): exchange rates and net reserves, 27 October 2026; BCSTP governor’s annual address on 2025 results; Constitutional Court, general count edital, legislative elections of 27 September 2026 (6 October 2026); EU Election Observation Mission, preliminary statement on the presidential election (21 July 2026); EU Election Observation Mission, second preliminary statement on the legislative elections (29 September 2026); IMF press release 24/490 (19 December 2024); IMF press release 25/273 (31 July 2025); IMF press release 25/438 (19 December 2025); IMF press release 26/109 (9 April 2026); World Bank, São Tomé and Príncipe indicators (accessed 27 October 2026); US Trade Representative, statement on AGOA reauthorization (3 February 2026); US State Department, U.S. Relations with São Tomé and Príncipe (undated); US State Department travel advisory (reissued 25 September 2024); Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ghana, representation at the 3 September 2026 inauguration; Text of the 2003 Constitution of São Tomé and Príncipe (all accessed 27 October 2026).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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