Sao Tome and Principe History, Geography, Economy and Important Events

The islands, discovered by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century, were uninhabited until their discovery. But gradually colonized and settled by the Portuguese in the 16th century, they collectively served as an important commercial and trade center for the Atlantic slave trade. The rich volcanic soil and proximity to the equator proved São Tomé and Príncipe as an important resource for sugar cultivation, later spreading cash crops such as coffee and cocoa. The population here had an attractive plantation economy at that time heavily dependent on imported African slaves. The cycles of social unrest and economic instability in the 19th and 20th centuries ended with peaceful independence in 1975. São Tomé and Principe have since remained one of the most stable and democratic countries in Africa.

The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe are located in the equatorial Atlantic and the Gulf of Guinea, approximately 300 and 250 km (190 and 160 mi) off the northwest coast of Gabon, respectively, constituting Africa's second smallest country. Both are part of the Cameroon volcano mountain line, including the islands of Anabon to the southwest, Bioko (both parts of Equatorial Guinea) to the northeast, and Mount Cameroon (Mount Cameroon) off the coast of the Gulf of Guinea.

Since the 19th century, the economy of São Tomé and Príncipe has been based on plantation agriculture. At the time of independence, Portuguese-owned plantations occupied 90% of the cultivated area. After independence, control of these plantations was given to various state-owned agricultural enterprises. The main crop on São Tomé is cocoa, which represents approximately 95% of agricultural exports. Other export crops include copra, palm kernels and coffee.

Portuguese is the official and de facto national language of Sao Tome and Principe, with about 98.4% of the people speaking it, an important part as its native language, and it has been spoken in the islands since the late 15th century. Reconstructed versions of Portuguese or Portuguese Creoles are also spoken: Faro, a Creole language (36.2%), Cape Verdean Creole (8.5%), Engeller (6.6%), and Principal (1%). French (6.8%) and English (4.9%) are the other foreign languages ​​studied in schools.

Equatorial Guinea [M] , Gabon [M] , Nigeria [M] ,
Definition of international border: L = Land Border | M = Maritime Border