28 Facts About São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe is an African island nation near the equator that is part of a volcano chain with spectacular rock and coral formations, rainforests, and beaches.

The Lagoa Azul lagoon is located on the larger island of São Tomé.

Ôbo Natural Park, a biodiverse jungle preserve that spans much of São Tomé, is notable for Pico Cão Grande, a skyscraper-like volcanic rock.

In terms of area and population, So Tomé and Prncipe is the second-smallest country in Africa, after Seychelles.

São Tomé and Príncipe consists of two main islands, São Tomé and Príncipe, as well as several rocky islets.

When Portuguese explorers discovered São Tomé and Príncipe around 1470, they were uninhabited.

The two main islands, São Tomé and Príncipe, are mountainous and form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes.

São Tomé and Príncipe is one of the world's least visited countries, with only about 29,000 tourists in 2017.

During the 16th century, the Portuguese colonised São Tomé. They brought slaves from Africa to work on the sugar plantations, and the island became a major staging point for the slave trade.

São Tomé and Príncipe became an independent country in 1975, after years of political struggle for independence and a 1974 military coup in Portugal.

São Tomé and Príncipe's flag consists of green and yellow horizontal stripes, a red triangle, and two black stars. The red triangle symbolises equality and the independence movement, the two stars represent the two main islands, green represents vegetation, and yellow represents the sun.

São Tomé and Príncipe is one of 27 countries that lacks a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Furthermore, it does not have a single property on the Tentative List of sites to be nominated.

However, the entire island of Principe and its surrounding islets is a UNESCO biosphere reserve due to its diverse terrestrial and marine biodiversity, which includes a number of endemic plant, mollusk, insect, bird, reptile, and bat species. It also serves as a haven for marine life, including sea turtles, seabirds, cetaceans, and coral reefs.

São Tomé and Príncipe has been dubbed "the African Galápagos" due to its high density of endemic species.

Lonely Planet named São Tomé and Príncipe as one of the top ten countries to visit in 2019 due to its "world-class" beaches, biodiversity, and ecotourism credentials.

São Tomé and Príncipe is frequently abbreviated as STP.

The Portuguese explorers who discovered the island on 21 December 1470, the saint's feast day, named it São Tomé after St. Thomas the Apostle. Príncipe is a shortened version of the Portuguese name "Ilha do Principe" (Isle of the Prince), which refers to Portugal's Prince.

The Cão Grande, or Great Canine, is one of the most famous sights in São Tomé and Príncipe (dog). The 663m high rock pinnacle is a hardened magma column, the remains of an ancient volcano.

In the late 15th century, Portugal sent convicts and Jewish children separated from their parents and deported from Portugal to São Tomé, as well as importing enslaved Africans to the islands to grow sugar.

São Tomé was briefly the world's largest sugar producer in the 16th century. However, the rise of competition in Brazil, combined with the poor quality of São Tomé's poorly dried product, effectively destroyed this industry.

Cocoa was introduced to São Tomé in the 1800s, and by 1908, the island had grown to become the world's largest producer of cocoa, with 800 plantations. The industry declined after the Portuguese left, and there are now only 150 left.

In STP, there is only one "grower, maker, and exporter of fine chocolate" left. Claudio Corallo has been dubbed the "best chocolate maker on the planet" because he sells his chocolate to high-end department stores and chefs all over the world.

Although São Tomé and Príncipe has historically relied on crop exports such as sugar and cocoa beans, it has recently transitioned to exporting gas turbines, aircraft parts, and iron springs and fasteners. Cocoa beans are still the country's second-largest export and crop.

The palm tree is São Tomé and Príncipe's national symbol.

São Tomé and Príncipe have yet to win an Olympic medal or compete in the Winter Olympics.

The Obô Natural Park conservation area spans the two main islands of São Tomé and Príncipe and protects over 300km2 of land, or roughly 30% of the country.

Calulu, a stew made with okra (lady's fingers), palm oil, chilli, and lots of fresh herbs, is São Tomé and Príncipe's signature dish.

The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe are actually part of the Cameroon Volcanic Line, a 1,600km (990mi) chain of volcanoes that stretches from Lake Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria, and the West Region of the Gulf of Guinea to the Gulf of Guinea.