Sao Tome and Principe

About this destination

Sao Tomé and Principe (Portuguese: São Tomé e Príncipe; IPA: [sɐ̃w̃ tuˈmɛ i ˈpɾĩsɨpɨ]), officially the Democratic Republic of Sao Tomé and Principe, is a country off the west coast of Africa, in the Gulf of Guinea. Sao Tomé and Principe consists of several islands, of which Sao Tomé is by far the largest. Then comes the much smaller Principe and a few more islands that are barely or not at all inhabited. Of the 187,356 inhabitants (2012), more than a third live in the capital, also called Sao Tomé. The islands are mountainous and volcanic with lush tropical plant growth. The most important economic resource is agriculture, which provides the inhabitants with coconuts, coffee, cocoa and palm oil.