Compare Equatorial Guinea (2004) - Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

Compare Equatorial Guinea (2004) z Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

	Equatorial Guinea (2004)	Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

Administrative divisions	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas	2 provinces; Principe, Sao Tome note: Principe has had self-government since 29 April 1995
Age structure	0-14 years: 42% (male 110,268; female 109,222) 15-64 years: 54.3% (male 136,370; female 147,431) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,745; female 11,015) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 47.7% (male 43,810; female 42,708) 15-64 years: 48.4% (male 42,469; female 45,456) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 3,275; female 3,847) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber	cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish
Airports	3 (2003 est.)	2 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 less than 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	-
Area	total: 28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 1,001 sq km land: 1,001 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	more than five times the size of Washington, DC
Background	Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO has ruled the country for over two decades since seizing power from his uncle, then President MACIAS, in a 1979 coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. The president controls most opposition parties through the judicious use of patronage. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the country's living standards.	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. Although independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. Though the first free elections were held in 1991, the political environment has been one of continued instability with frequent changes in leadership and coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea is likely to have a significant impact on the country's economy.
Birth rate	36.56 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	41.36 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $708.5 million expenditures: $317.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)	revenues: $38.59 million expenditures: $42.04 million, including capital expenditures of $54 million (2003 est.)
Capital	Malabo	Sao Tome
Climate	tropical; always hot, humid	tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)
Coastline	296 km	209 km
Constitution	approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995	approved March 1990; effective 10 September 1990
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea	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
Currency	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States	dobra (STD)
Death rate	12.27 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.89 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$248 million (2000 est.)	$318 million (2002)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo	the US does not have an embassy in Sao Tome and Principe; the Ambassador to Gabon is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe on a nonresident basis and makes periodic visits to the islands
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Teodoro Biyogo NSUE chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252	Sao Tome and Principe does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a Permanent Mission to the UN, headed by First Secretary Domingos Augusto FERREIRA, located at 400 Park Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10022, telephone [1] (212) 317-0580
Disputes - international	in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River, imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, and the unresolved Bakasi allocation contribute to the delay in implementation; creation of a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay with Gabon is hampered by dispute over Mbane Island, administered and occupied by Gabon since the 1970s	none
Economic aid - recipient	$33.8 million (1995)	$200 million in December 2000 under the HIPC program
Economy - overview	The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth will remain strong in 2004, led by oil.	This small poor island economy has become increasingly dependent on cocoa since independence 29 years ago. Cocoa production has substantially declined in recent years because of drought and mismanagement, but strengthening prices helped boost export earnings in 2003. Sao Tome has to import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods, and a substantial amount of food. Over the years, it has been unable to service its external debt and has had to depend on concessional aid and debt rescheduling. Sao Tome benefited from $200 million in debt relief in December 2000 under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. Sao Tome's success in implementing structural reforms has been rewarded by international donors, who pledged increased assistance in 2001. Considerable potential exists for development of a tourist industry, and the government has taken steps to expand facilities in recent years. The government also has attempted to reduce price controls and subsidies. Sao Tome is optimistic about the development of petroleum resources in its territorial waters in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea; production could begin as early as 2004.
Electricity - consumption	21.91 million kWh (2001)	15.81 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	23.56 million kWh (2001)	17 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m
Environment - current issues	tap water is not potable; deforestation	deforestation; soil erosion and exhaustion
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish	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)
Exchange rates	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)	dobras per US dollar - 9,347.58 (2003), 9,088.32 (2002), 8,842.11 (2001), 7,978.17 (2000), 7,118.96 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup) head of government: Prime Minister Miguel Abia BITEO BORICO (since 14 June 2004); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud	chief of state: President Fradique DE MENEZES (since 3 September 2001) head of government: Prime Minister Damiao Vaz DE ALMEIDA (since 17 September 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 29 July 2001 (next to be held NA July 2006); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president election results: Fradique DE MENEZES elected president in Sao Tome's third multiparty presidential election; percent of vote - NA%
Exports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa	cocoa 80%, copra, coffee, palm oil
Exports - partners	US 33.6%, Spain 25.8%, China 14.4%, Canada 11.8%, Italy 6.4% (2003)	Netherlands 41.7%, Canada 16.7%, Belgium 8.3%, Germany 8.3%, Philippines 8.3% (2003)
Fiscal year	1 January - 31 December	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)	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
GDP	purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $214 million (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 20% industry: 60% services: 2.4% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 19.6% industry: 17.8% services: 62.6% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $1,200 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	20% (2002 est.)	5% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	2 00 N, 10 00 E	1 00 N, 7 00 E
Geography - note	insular and continental regions rather widely separated	the smallest country in Africa; the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes and both are fairly mountainous
Highways	total: 2,880 km (1999 est.)	total: 320 km paved: 218 km unpaved: 102 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	petroleum sector equipment, other equipment	machinery and electrical equipment, food products, petroleum products
Imports - partners	US 30.6%, UK 16%, France 15.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 11.9%, Spain 8.1%, Norway 5.9%, Italy 5.3% (2003)	Portugal 51.6%, Germany 11.3%, Italy 6.5%, Belgium 4.8%, Netherlands 4.8% (2003)
Independence	12 October 1968 (from Spain)	12 July 1975 (from Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate	30% (2002 est.)	NA
Industries	petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas	light construction, textiles, soap, beer; fish processing; timber
Infant mortality rate	total: 87.08 deaths/1,000 live births male: 93.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 44.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 46.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 42.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2003 est.)	9% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (observer)	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Irrigated land	NA sq km	100 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Tribunal	Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the National Assembly)
Labor force	NA (October 2000)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	-	population mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing note: shortages of skilled workers
Land boundaries	total: 539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 4.63% permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2001)	arable land: 6.25% permanent crops: 48.96% other: 44.79% (2001)
Languages	Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo	Portuguese (official)
Legal system	partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom	based on Portuguese legal system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held 24 April 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president	unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 3 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - MLSTP 39.6%, Force for Change Democratic Movement 39.4%, Ue-Kedadji coalition 16.2%; seats by party - MLSTP 24, Force for Change Democratic Movement 23, Ue-Kedadji coalition 8
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 55.15 years male: 53 years female: 57.36 years (2004 est.)	total population: 66.63 years male: 65.11 years female: 68.21 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79.3% male: 85% female: 62% (1991 est.)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon	Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,556 GRT/9,704 DWT by type: cargo 2, passenger/cargo 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 79,490 GRT/97,077 DWT by type: bulk 2, cargo 14, chemical tanker 2, livestock carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: British Virgin Islands 1, Egypt 1, Greece 1, Lebanon 1, Portugal 1, Ukraine 2 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force	Army, Coast Guard, Presidential Guard, National Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$75.1 million (2003)	$500,000 (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.5% (2003)	0.8% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 120,463 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 38,347 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 61,084 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 20,188 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 12 October (1968)	Independence Day, 12 July (1975)
Nationality	noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean	noun: Sao Tomean(s) adjective: Sao Tomean
Natural hazards	violent windstorms, flash floods	NA
Natural resources	oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium, titanium, iron ore	fish, hydropower
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-2.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	condensate 37 km; gas 39 km; liquid natural gas 4 km; oil 24 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO]	Democratic Renovation Party [Armindo GRACA]; Force for Change Democratic Movement [leader NA]; Independent Democratic Action or ADI [Carlos NEVES]; Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Manuel Pinto Da COSTA]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Aldo BANDEIRA]; Ue-Kedadji coalition [leader NA]; other small parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	523,051 (July 2004 est.)	181,565 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	54% NA (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	2.43% (2004 est.)	3.18% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Bata, Luba, Malabo	Santo Antonio, Sao Tome
Radio broadcast stations	AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002)	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2002)
Religions	nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices	Christian 80% (Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, Seventh-Day Adventist)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal adult	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: poor system with adequate government services domestic: NA international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)	general assessment: adequate facilities domestic: minimal system international: country code - 239; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	9,600 (2003)	7,000 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	41,500 (2003)	4,800 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2002)	2 (2002)
Terrain	coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic	volcanic, mountainous
Total fertility rate	4.68 children born/woman (2004 est.)	5.8 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	30% (1998 est.)	NA

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