São Tomé and Principe's access to electricity, rural (% of rural population) was 75.1% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 22.7 percentage points from 52.4% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 75.1% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 68.2% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 52.4% | 2014 |
| Highest | 76.4% | 2022 |
| Lowest | 34.1% | 2009 |
| Average since 2015 | 67.83% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 40.1% | 2000 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, São Tomé and Principe's access to electricity, rural (% of rural population) rose 5.5 percentage points on 2023 (from 69.6% to 75.1%).
Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2023), the average change was +1.28 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.65 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 17.6 percentage points in 2017 and the biggest yearly fall was 20.5 percentage points in 2018. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 1.98 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 48% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2024, São Tomé and Principe had the 163rd highest value of the 208 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| São Tomé and Principe | 75.1% | 2024 |
| World | 84.89% | 2024 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 35.7% | 2024 |
| Lower middle income | 88.04% | 2024 |
Closest to São Tomé and Principe in the 2024 ranking
What this measures
Access to electricity, rural is the percentage of rural population with access to electricity.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 25 values
| Year | Access to electricity, rural (% of rural population) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 75.1 |
| 2023 | 69.6 |
| 2022 | 76.4 |
| 2021 | 73.7 |
| 2020 | 71 |
| 2019 | 68.2 |
| 2018 | 55.7 |
| 2017 | 76.2 |
| 2016 | 58.6 |
| 2015 | 53.8 |
| 2014 |
Access to electricity, rural (% of rural population) in nearby economies
- Angola — 1.3% (2024)
- Benin — 45% (2024)
- Botswana — 45.9% (2024)
- Burkina Faso — 12.7% (2024)
- Burundi — 3.6% (2024)
- Cabo Verde — 97.7% (2024)
- Cameroon — 42.7% (2024)
- Central African Republic — 2% (2024)
- Chad — 100% (2024)
- Comoros
More environment data for São Tomé and Principe
- Rural population — 74,065 (2025)
- Rural population (% of total population) — 30.83% (2025)
- Urban population — 166,189 (2025)
- Urban population (% of total population) — 69.17% (2025)
- Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 0 (2024)
- Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 5,730 (2024)
- Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 5,730 (2024)
- Rural population growth (annual %) — 1.01% (2025)
- Urban population growth (annual %) — 2.42% (2025)
- Agricultural land (sq. km)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is São Tomé and Principe's access to electricity, rural (% of rural population)?
- 75.1% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2000?
- It is up 35 percentage points from 40.1% in 2000. The highest value was 76.4% in 2022 and the lowest 34.1% in 2009.
- How does São Tomé and Principe rank?
- 163rd highest of 208 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in access to electricity, rural (% of rural population) unusual for São Tomé and Principe?
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator EG.ELC.ACCS.RU.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank (WB), uri: https://trackingsdg7.esmap.org/downloads, note: Data is downloaded from ESMAP website. Data is released when a new Tracking SDG7 report is released., publisher: World Bank (WB), date accessed: 2024-05-16, date published: 2023 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.
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