|
|
|
Due to resource constraints, IRIN is not updating the country profile below.
Updated humanitarian country information can be found instead at the Sao Tome and Principe country page on ReliefWeb [http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/dbc.nsf/doc104?OpenForm&rc=1&cc=stp].
|
|
|
 Democratic Republic of
SAO TOME and PRINCIPE
Humanitarian Country Profile |
|
Background
|
Last update: March 2007 |
Sao Tome and Principe, Africa’s smallest nation, is in the Gulf of Guinea, 300km off Africa’s west coast. It consists of two main islands and several islets. Sao Tome is the biggest and site of the country’s eponymous capital.
The islands were discovered by the Portuguese in the late 1400s and each island was taken over by the Portuguese crown on 1522 and 1573 respectively. Originally uninhabited, the Portuguese brought slaves to Sao Tome from the mainland and established sugar plantations. The island also became an important transit point for the slave trade.
Coffee and cocoa were introduced in the 1800s and cocoa remains one of the country’s top cash crops. In recent years, production has dropped due to drought and mismanagement.
The late 1950s saw the creation of a movement for independence. A coup overthrowing Portugal’s dictator in 1974 speeded up the process, with the country gaining independence in 1975. Revisions made to the constitution in 1990 introduced a democratic multi-party system.
Today, the country has a population of about 200,000 and is ranked 126 on the United Nations Development Programme’s human development index. The government is working towards developing the tourism industry and there are high hopes for an oil boom from the surrounding oil-rich waters.
Peace and security
The country benefits from relative stability. There was a coup against President Fradique de Menezes in 2003 led by 14 mercenaries. With support from the army, the mercenaries took over the country for a week while the president was visiting Nigeria. The mercenaries capitulated under pressure from Nigeria.
Oil exploration in the region has led to joint ventures with Nigeria and could potentially contribute to creating instability in the country. The island of Principe has voiced discontent over the distribution of revenues generated by the oil industry.
IDPs/Refugees
There is no data on whether there are refugees in Sao Tome and Principe and there were no known requests for refugee or asylum status in the last year.
There is also no legal framework for granting asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention regarding the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, and the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees. In the past, however, the government has provided protection against the return of persons to a country where they feared persecution, and has cooperated with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other organisations in helping refugees and asylum seekers.
Democracy and governance
After independence, the islands became a republic, led by the Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe (MLSTP), which established a socialist regime and remains an important force.
Revisions to the constitution in 1990 created a multi-party system and the first legislative elections were held in 1991. Since then, there have been four presidential elections.
The last elections took place in August 2006, and De Menezes, a wealthy cocoa exporter, was re-elected for a second five-year term. The elections were considered fair and transparent by local and international observers. De Menezes represents an alliance between the Force for Change Democratic Movement and the Party for Democratic Convergence. The two other former presidents were Miguel Trovoada (1990-2001) and Pinto de Costa (1975-1991).
Media
The country’s constitution guarantees freedom of expression and the government is regularly criticised in pamphlets, newspapers and other media. The law grants opposition parties access to state-run media and up to three minutes of airtime each month on state-run television.
The state runs one newspaper and there are also three private ones. Private broadcasting is permitted, although the country has only state-run television and radio.
Economy
The country’s main economic struggle is that it must import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods and food.
The economy is heavily dependent on cocoa exports; however, production has declined due to drought and mismanagement. The country has a US$300 million debt burden; it has received debt relief aid from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) programme and 50 percent of its gross domestic product comes from international aid.
The country is trying to expand tourism and the discovery of oil in its territorial waters has given hope that the economy will experience an upturn.
Oil explorations are under way in a 60-40 percent split with Nigeria. There are an estimated two billion barrels in reserve with the first output expected in 2007.
Population
The population growth rate is 2 percent a year. The islands were originally uninhabited but once the Portuguese arrived, they brought slaves from the mainland to work in the sugar plantations. There are six identifiable groups. The Mestico, meaning mixed blood, are descendants of African slaves from Benin, Gabon, Congo and Angola, and mainly of Bantu origin. The Angolares are said to be descendants of Angolan slaves who survived a 1540 shipwreck. They are mainly fishermen. The Forros are descendants of freed slaves. Servicais are contract workers from Cape Verde, Mozambique and Angola, and Tongas are their children born on the islands. There is also a small Portuguese and mixed African-Portuguese population.
Most of the population is Catholic, with small percentages of Evangelicals and Adventists.
Development indicators
The life expectancy is 62.9 years and the average birth rate is 4.1 children per woman. The infant mortality rate is 41 deaths for every 1,000 live births. According to the UNDP, 54 percent of the population live below the poverty line and 15 percent live in extreme poverty. The country is ranked 126 on the human indicator scale. The country rests a little higher on the scale than most of its sub-Saharan counterparts; despite strong advances between 1950 and 1980, a deterioration in the economy has led to a downturn in living conditions of many islanders.
Education
The language of instruction is Portuguese and nearly 78 percent of children are enrolled in school. The country has a 79 percent literacy rate, one of the highest on the continent. Gender-parity is also near equal. According to the UN Population Agency, UNFPA, the girls-to-boys ratio was 0.92 in 2000.One of the challenges faced by the country’s educational system is regional inequalities in standards. The UN Children’s Fund says 68 percent of children finish elementary school, but there is a high drop-out rate at the secondary level.
Children
According to UNICEF, Sao Tome and Principe has almost attained universal vaccination of children. There are 1,000 deaths per year of children under five and malnutrition affects the growth of 29 percent of children under five.
Nearly 40 percent of the population consists of youths under 18 and 78 percent of children are enrolled in school.
Health
Life expectancy is 62.9 years, which is up from 56 years in 1970. Almost all children receive vaccinations for tuberculosis, polio, measles, DPT and Hepatitis B. There are 0.49 doctors for every 1,000 people and 49 percent of the population has access to medical services and drugs. However, there is only one hospital. According to the World Health Organization, 78.6 percent of births are attended by skilled health professionals.
Malaria remains one of the biggest health problems, although initiatives begun in 2000 have helped reduce the number of cases by 50 percent (UNDP). There have also been recurrences of cholera. The country spends 8.6 percent of its gross domestic product on healthcare and safe water is available to 79 percent of the population.
HIV/AIDS
There is little data available on HIV/AIDS. There are reports that HIV positive mothers are passing on the disease to their children through breastfeeding. The HIV rate among pregnant women tripled from 0.5 percent to 1.5 percent between 2001 and 2005. AIDS tests are free and through an initiative called Brazil + 7, in conjunction with UNICEF and the Joint UN AIDS Programme, UNAIDS, the country can now provide universal anti-retroviral treatments.
Food security
Most food needs to be imported. The majority of the population is engaged in subsistence farming and fishing. A small proportion of the population suffers from malnutrition.
The World Food Programme is aiding the government in diversifying crops and redistributing land to smallholder farmers. The WFP also contributes to nutrition with a primary school feeding programme and mother and child healthcare activities.
Gender issues
Sao Tome is one of the few countries in Africa to virtually attain gender parity in primary school. The country had a female prime minister, but women are still rarely represented in politics with only four out of 55 deputies women. According to the UNFPA, the labour participation rate was 39.3 percent for women against 79.9 percent for men. Traditional beliefs and a high rate of teenage pregnancies often reduce women’s educational and economic opportunities.
The country ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women in 1995, and signed the Optional Protocol in 2000.
Human rights
Sao Tome and Principe was admitted to the United Nations in 1975 and has signed and ratified most of the major treaties regarding human rights, including that on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Civil and Political Rights, Racial Discrimination, Torture, Discrimination against Women and the Rights of the Child.
A 1999 country report on human practices in Sao Tome by the US State Department did not find any consistent violations against human rights in the country.
Humanitarian needs
Poverty remains the overarching problem. Both the healthcare and educational systems are in need of rehabilitation to curb any further deterioration. The agricultural sector needs support through food aid to encourage privatisation and the redistribution of land to new settlers. Mother and child healthcare activities require development. |
|
|
| Sao Tome and Principe in figures | · Population: 200,000
· Pop. growth rate: 2.1%
· GDP per capita: US$1.231
· Pop. below poverty line: 54%
· Life expectancy: 62.9 years
· Infant mortality: 75 deaths/1,000 live births
· Access to med. services: 0-49%
· HIV prevalence: N/A
· Access to clean water: 79%
· Access to electricity: N/A
· Literacy rate: N/A
· Doctors/people: 0.49/1000
· Displaced people: N/A
· Refugees: N/A
· Human Development Index: 0.607 (HDI 2006 Rank 127)
Sources: UNDP, World Bank, WHO |
| Basic facts | Capital: Sao Tome
Language: Portuguese (official), Crioulo and Forro (spoken)
Ethnic Groups: Mestico 79.5%, Fang 10%, Angolares 7.6%. Portuguese 1.9%, other 1%
Religions: Catholic 70.3%, Protestant 7.1%, other 3.1%, none 19.4%
Geography: The smallest country in Africa; the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes and both are fairly mountainous.
Border countries: Islands in the Gulf of Guinea, west of Gabon.
Natural resources: fish, hydropower, oil resources
Agriculture products: cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica |
|