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São Tomé and Príncipe · Economy · · 5 minute readSatellite internet went live the day São Tomé and Príncipe presented its long term plan to investors in Brussels, where the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and BADEA signalled support for key infrastructure.
December 11, 2025 brought two pieces of good news for São Tomé and Príncipe. Starlink, the satellite internet service run by SpaceX, began selling service in the country. On the same day, the government held its São Tomé and Príncipe Investment Forum 2025 in Brussels, where development lenders said they were willing to finance the infrastructure the islands need most.
Neither event transforms the economy on its own. Together they address two of the oldest constraints on doing business on a small island nation in the Gulf of Guinea: connectivity and basic infrastructure.
Starlink announced that its service was immediately available to buy and install. According to Space in Africa, which tracks the industry, the standard kit costs 5,500 dobras, about US$257, and the residential plan costs 1,700 dobras a month, about US$80. A smaller kit and a cheaper residential plan are also available.
Starlink uses a large network of satellites in low orbit, much closer to Earth than traditional communications satellites, so delays are far shorter than with older satellite internet. For islands that have relied on submarine cable links and limited land networks, a second, independent route to the internet matters. It gives businesses, hotels, government offices and remote workers a backup when the main connection fails and a real option where fixed lines do not reach.
Cost is still a barrier for many households, and Space in Africa expects early demand to come mainly from businesses, institutions and higher income users. With São Tomé, Starlink is now available in more than 20 African countries.
The forum at the Tangla Hotel in Brussels was led by Prime Minister Américo d'Oliveira dos Ramos and several ministers. Its purpose was to present the National Strategy for Sustainable Development 2026 to 2040, the government's plan for the next fifteen years, and the projects that sit within it. The published agenda covered four themes:
The European Union, the European Investment Bank, the World Bank, the African Development Bank and BADEA, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, were all listed on the programme.
According to Forbes África Lusófona, which reported the outcome, more than 200 participants attended, and the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and BADEA, all already active in the country, expressed willingness to increase their financing for São Tomé and Príncipe. The prime minister said partners were available to finance the country's essential infrastructure, naming the port, the airport and the water and sanitation systems, and announced a technical team to follow up on the expressions of interest quickly. He also stressed that the country must create the internal conditions to turn that interest into results.
No amounts were announced, and expressions of willingness are not signed loans. But development banks are selective, and their interest in the port and airport, the two gateways that determine how easily goods and visitors reach the islands, is encouraging. The forum came a year after the country graduated from the UN list of least developed countries, and while it is working through a 40 month IMF program that supports its currency peg to the euro and the rebuilding of reserves.
São Tomé and Príncipe launched its citizenship by investment program in August 2025, with contributions from US$90,000 for a single applicant and US$95,000 for a family of two to four, paid into the National Transformation Fund. Applicants reasonably ask what kind of country stands behind the passport and whether it is moving in the right direction.
December 11 offered two answers. Reliable internet makes the islands more practical to visit, to work from and to do business with, and international lenders are showing interest in the infrastructure that underpins tourism and trade. Neither changes the passport's travel access, which is still building up, and both depend on delivery over the coming years. As steps in the right direction, they count. We help clients weigh São Tomé against other options, work with our local team, and quote fixed fees in writing.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or investment advice.
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