Population and Demographics

Of São Tomé and Príncipe's total population, about 137,500 live on São Tomé and 6,000 on Príncipe. All are descended from various ethnic groups that have migrated to the islands since 1485. Six groups are identifiable:

• Mestiços, or mixed-blood, descendants of Portuguese colonists and African slaves brought to the islands during the early years of settlement from Benin, Gabon, and Congo (these people also are known as filhos da terra or 'sons of the land');
• Angolares, reputedly descendants of Angolan slaves who survived a 1540 shipwreck and now earn their livelihood fishing;
• Forros, descendants of freed slaves when slavery was abolished;
• Serviçais, contract labourers from Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde, living temporarily on the islands;
• Tongas, children of serviçais born on the islands; and
• Europeans, primarily Portuguese.

In the 1970s, there were two significant population movements: the exodus of most of the 4,000 Portuguese residents and the influx of several hundred São Toméan refugees from Angola. The islanders have been absorbed largely into a common Luso-African culture. Almost all belong to the Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant or Seventh-day Adventist Churches, with a small but growing Muslim population.

Facts and Figures

• Population: 193,413
• Age Structure:
  • 0-14 years: 47.5% (male 46,478/female 45,302)
  • 15-64 years: 48.8% (male 45,631/female 48,661)
  • 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 3,368/female 3,973)
• Median Age:
  • Total: 16.2 years
  • Male: 15.6 years
  • Female: 16.8 years
• Population Growth Rate: 3.15%
• Birth Rate: 40.25 births/1,000 population
• Death Rate: 6.47 deaths/1,000 population
• Net Migration Rate: -2.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population
• Sex Ratio:
  • At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
  • Under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
  • 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
  • Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female
• Infant Mortality Rate:
  • Total: 41.83 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Male: 43.74 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Female: 39.86 deaths/1,000 live births
• Life Expectancy at Birth:
  • Total population: 67.31 years
  • Male: 65.73 years
  • Female: 68.95 years
• Total Fertility Rate: 5.62 children born/woman
• Religions:
  • Catholic 70.3%
  • Evangelical 3.4%
  • New Apostolic 2%
  • Adventist 1.8%
  • Other 3.1%
  • None 19.4%
• Literacy:
  • Total population: 79.3%
  • Male: 85%
  • Female: 62%