São Tomé and Principe's communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) was 78.18% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 52.4 percentage points from 25.78% in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 78.18% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 26.4% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 25.78% | 2015 |
| Highest | 78.18% | 2025 |
| Lowest | 4.92% | 2012 |
| Average since 2016 | 42.21% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 23.72% | 1974 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, São Tomé and Principe's communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) rose 29.29 percentage points on 2024 (from 48.89% to 78.18%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was −0.24 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 13.3 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 48.47 percentage points in 2022 and the biggest yearly fall was 20.2 percentage points in 2024. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 5.95 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 61% 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 2025, São Tomé and Principe had the 2nd highest value of the 134 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 | 78.18% | 2025 |
| World | 49.27% | 2025 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 35.13% | 2025 |
| Lower middle income | 45.72% | 2025 |
Closest to São Tomé and Principe in the 2025 ranking
- Ireland — 1st of 134: 84.64%
- Sweden — 3rd of 134: 73.68%
- Switzerland — 4th of 134: 72.18%
- Eswatini — 5th of 134: 69.42%
What this measures
Communications, computer, information, and other services cover international telecommunications; computer data; news-related service transactions between residents and nonresidents; construction services; royalties and license fees; miscellaneous business, professional, and technical services; personal, cultural, and recreational services; manufacturing services on physical inputs owned by others; and maintenance and repair services and government services not included elsewhere. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are services provided by non-residents to residents.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 46 values
| Year | Communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 78.18 |
| 2024 | 48.89 |
| 2023 | 69.09 |
| 2022 | 73.87 |
| 2021 | 25.4 |
| 2020 | 26.4 |
| 2019 | 21.22 |
| 2018 | 23.25 |
| 2017 | 26.42 |
| 2016 | 29.4 |
| 2015 |
Communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) in nearby economies
- Angola — 9.14% (2025)
- Benin — 47.01% (2023)
- Botswana — 60.55% (2025)
- Burkina Faso — 17.28% (2024)
- Burundi — 17.25% (2025)
- Cabo Verde — 36.85% (2025)
- Cameroon — 40.73% (2024)
- Comoros — 13.4% (2023)
- Congo, Dem. Rep. — 21.84% (2025)
- Congo, Rep.
More economic policy & debt data for São Tomé and Principe
- GDP (current US$) — US$981.29 million (2025)
- GDP (current LCU) — 21.28 billion (2025)
- GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$326.78 million (2025)
- GDP (constant LCU) — 4.28 billion (2025)
- GDP per capita (current US$) — US$4,084 (2025)
- GDP per capita (current LCU) — 88,591 (2025)
- GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$1,360 (2025)
- GDP per capita (constant LCU) — 17,810 (2025)
- GNI (current US$) — US$1.06 billion (2025)
- GNI (current LCU) — 23.04 billion (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is São Tomé and Principe's communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP)?
- 78.18% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1974?
- It is up 54.46 percentage points from 23.72% in 1974. The highest value was 78.18% in 2025 and the lowest 4.92% in 2012.
- How does São Tomé and Principe rank?
- 2nd highest of 134 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) unusual for São Tomé and Principe?
- In 2025, São Tomé and Principe's communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) rose 29.29 percentage points on 2024 (from 48.89% to 78.18%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was −0.24 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 13.3 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator BM.GSR.CMCP.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) 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.
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