São Tomé and Príncipe: São Toméans Enjoy Broad Electricity Coverage, but Connection and Reliability Gaps Persist

20 July 2026
Afrobarometer (Accra)
By Eric Otu Beecham

Seven in 10 citizens support government investment in wind and solar technologies even if it leads to higher energy costs.

Key findings

  • Almost all São Toméans (99%) live in zones served by the national electric grid.
  • More than eight in 10 citizens (84%) live in households that are connected to the national electric grid, while 16% are not connected.
  • Among households connected to the grid, almost nine in 10 respondents (89%) say their electricity works "most" or "all" of the time.
  • Combining connection and reliability rates, three-fourths (75%) of all São Toméans enjoy a reliable supply of electricity from the national grid, a sharp rebound from 30% in 2022.
  • Reliable electricity is less common among rural residents (70%) and respondents experiencing high or moderate levels of lived poverty (69%) than among urban residents (77%) and well-off citizens (89%).
  • Only 7% of citizens say their households use electric power from a source other than the national grid; among these users, generators are the most common source (46%).
  • A majority (65%) say the government is doing "fairly well" or "very well" on providing a reliable electricity supply, up from 37% in 2022.
  • Seven in 10 respondents (69%) support government investment in wind and solar technologies even if it leads to higher electricity prices.

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São Tomé and Príncipe has made electricity access a central part of its development agenda, in line with Sustainable Development Goal 7's call for universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy by 2030 (United Nations, 2015). Official estimates show that access to electricity reached 81.3% of the population in 2023, up from 78% in 2022 (World Bank, 2024).

The country's geography as a small island developing state makes electricity provision both essential and difficult. São Tomé and Príncipe's two inhabited islands require resilient power systems that can serve dispersed communities while supporting public services, small businesses, tourism, agriculture, and the blue-economy ambitions reflected in national development planning. Government energy policy has set the goal of achieving universal electrification by 2030 (Government of São Tomé and Príncipe, 2022). At the same time, the power sector remains heavily dependent on imported diesel for electricity generation, leaving the country exposed to fuel-price volatility and high production costs (Government of São Tomé and Príncipe, 2022). Recent national planning documents and donor-supported projects seek to diversify generation through solar, hydropower, biomass, and other renewable sources, including a target of substantially increasing renewable-energy capacity by 2030 (Government of São Tomé and Príncipe, 2022; World Bank, 2025a).

These reforms build on earlier efforts to improve generation, utility performance, and service reliability. The World Bank's Power Sector Recovery Project, for example, was designed to increase renewable-energy generation and improve the reliability of electricity supply, while more recent planning points to solar parks, hydro initiatives, grid strengthening, off-grid systems, and private-sector participation as part of the country's energy transition (World Bank, 2016, 2025b; African Development Bank, 2018).

Findings from the most recent Afrobarometer survey show that the national grid is present in almost all surveyed communities, and a large majority of citizens report that their households are connected. But the data also point to remaining inequalities: Rural residents and poorer citizens are less likely to be connected and less likely to enjoy electricity that works most or all of the time.

São Toméans give the government stronger marks on reliable electricity supply than they did in 2022, and a majority support investment in wind and solar technologies even if this increases electricity prices.

Eric Otu Beecham Eric Otu Beecham is a monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) officer at Afrobarometer.

Read the original article on Afrobarometer.

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