Highways:
total:
104 km
paved:
NA
unpaved:
NA
Telecommunications:
automatic telephone system completely integrated into Italian system;
11,700 telephones; broadcast services from Italy; microwave and cable
links into Italian networks; no communication satellite facilities
@San Marino, Defense Forces
Branches:
public security or police force
Defense expenditures:
$3.7 million (1992 est.), 1% of GDP
@Sao Tome and Principe, Geography
Location: Western Africa, in the Atlantic Ocean, 340 km off the coast of Gabon straddling the equator Map references: Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World Area: total area: 960 sq km land area: 960 sq km comparative area: slightly less than 5.5 times the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 209 km Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May) Terrain: volcanic, mountainous Natural resources: fish Land use: arable land: 1% permanent crops: 20% meadows and pastures: 1% forest and woodland: 75% other: 3% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: deforestation; soil erosion and exhaustion natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change
@Sao Tome and Principe, People
Population:
136,780 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.63% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
35.2 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
8.88 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
63.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
63.33 years
male:
61.48 years
female:
65.24 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.52 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Sao Tomean(s)
adjective:
Sao Tomean
Ethnic divisions:
mestico, angolares (descendents of Angolan slaves), forros
(descendents of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from
Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais
born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese)
Religions:
Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, Seventh-Day Adventist
Languages:
Portuguese (official)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1981)
total population:
57%
male:
73%
female:
42%
Labor force:
21,096 (1981); most of population engaged in subsistence agriculture
and fishing; labor shortages on plantations and of skilled workers;
56% of population of working age (1983)
@Sao Tome and Principe, Government
Names:
conventional long form:
Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe
conventional short form:
Sao Tome and Principe
local long form:
Republica Democratica de Sao Tome e Principe
local short form:
Sao Tome e Principe
Digraph:
TP
Type:
republic
Capital:
Sao Tome
Administrative divisions:
2 districts (concelhos, singular - concelho); Principe, Sao Tome
Independence:
12 July 1975 (from Portugal)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 12 July (1975)
Constitution:
new constitution approved March 1990; effective 10 September 1990
Legal system:
based on Portuguese law system and customary law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Miguel TROVOADA (since 4 April 1991); election last held 3
March 1991 (next to be held NA March 1996); results - Miguel TROVOADA
was elected without opposition in Sao Tome's first multiparty
presidential election
head of government:
Prime Minister Noberto Jose D'Alva COSTA ALEGRE (since 16 May 1992)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on the proposal of
the prime minister
Legislative branch:
unicameral
National People's Assembly:
(Assembleia Popular Nacional) elections last held 20 January 1991
(next to be held NA January 1996); results - PCD-GR 54.4%, MLSTP
30.5%, CODO 5.2%, FDC 1.5%, other 8.4%; seats - (55 total) PCD-GR 33,
MLSTP 21, CODO 1; note - this was the first multiparty election in Sao
Tome and Principe
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Party for Democratic Convergence-Reflection Group (PCD-GR), Daniel
Lima Dos Santos DAIO, secretary general; Movement for the Liberation
of Sao Tome and Principe (MLSTP), Carlos da GRACA; Christian
Democratic Front (FDC), Alphonse Dos SANTOS; Democratic Opposition
Coalition (CODO), leader NA; other small parties
Member of:
ACP, AfDB, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, ILO, IMF,
IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOM (observer), ITU,
LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
Sao Tome and Principe has no embassy in the US, but does have a
Permanent Mission to the UN, headed by First Secretary Domingos
AUGUSTO Ferreira, located at 122 East 42nd Street, Suite 1604, New
York, NY 10168, telephone (212) 697-4211
US diplomatic representation:
ambassador to Gabon is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe on a
nonresident basis and makes periodic visits to the islands
Flag:
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; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
@Sao Tome and Principe, Economy