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| Overview | People | Geography | Economy | Government | Communications | Transport | Military | Map |
| Country | Sao Tome and Principe |
| Flag |  |
| Capital | name: Sao Tome geographic coordinates: 0 12 N, 6 39 E time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Population | 212,679 (July 2009 est.) |
| GMT | GMT |
| Location | Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon see map |
| Area | total: 1,001 sq km land: 1,001 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Ethnic groups | mestico, angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), forros (descendants of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese) |
| Religions | Catholic 70.3%, Evangelical 3.4%, New Apostolic 2%, Adventist 1.8%, other 3.1%, none 19.4% (2001 census) |
| Languages | Portuguese (official) |
| Government type | republic |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1975) |
| Constitution | approved March 1990, effective 10 September 1990 |
| Legal system | based on Portuguese legal system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Background | Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and two failed coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea promises to attract increased attention to the small island nation. |
| Internet country code | .st |
