[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”!! PLEASE DO NOT EDIT !!!” _builder_version=”4.19.5″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”1″ admin_label=”!!! PLEASE DO NOT EDIT !!!” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.19.5″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”TEXT – BLOCK 1″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1em||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
The Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS) off the western coast of central Africa, is making significant strides in universal health coverage. The health service coverage index stands at 59%<\/a>, reflecting improvement over recent years and mirroring other lower-middle-income countries in the region. Gaps in the comprehensiveness of health services remain a challenge.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”TEXT – BLOCK 2 ” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1em||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n The government of Sao Tome and Principe is committed to ensuring that every citizen can afford the health care they need without falling into financial hardship. Its population is approximately 218,000. Only 2.8%<\/span> of households faces catastrophic health care costs, with medicines being the primary driver. Policymakers are prioritizing this issue, focusing on reducing the financial burden of medications in future health policies.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][ba_gradient_heading title=”Health financing and procurement strategies for a healthier future” html_tag=”h3″ primary_color=”#455A64″ secondary_color=”#455A64″ admin_label=” HEADING (50-60 characters)” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” title_font=”||||||||” title_font_size=”26px” title_line_height=”1em” custom_padding=”15px||10px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/ba_gradient_heading][et_pb_text admin_label=”TEXT – BLOCK 3″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1em||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]Health financing in Sao Tome and Principe relies primarily on general taxation, largely from indirect taxes on consumption and imports, with direct taxes and non-tax revenue playing a smaller role. The tax-to-GDP ratio<\/a>is 12.9%, which falls short of the continent of Africa\u2019s average of 15.6%. The country is actively enhancing tax administration and compliance while broadening the tax base, tackling informal employment as a significant hurdle to increasing revenue collection.[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”TEXT – BLOCK 4 ” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1em||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n The island nature of Sao Tome and Principe, coupled with its small population, limits the scope of interventions in the health sector and complicates access to medicines and supplies. To address these challenges, Sao Tome and Principe has embraced the African SIDS initiative for the Joint Procurement of Medicines, signed at the World Health Assembly in 2024.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS) off the western coast of central Africa, is making significant strides in universal health coverage. The health service coverage index stands at 59%, reflecting improvement over recent years and mirroring other lower-middle-income countries in the region. Gaps in the comprehensiveness of health…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":987573395,"template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country\/987502038"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/country"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country\/987502038\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":987754682,"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country\/987502038\/revisions\/987754682"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/987573395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/p4h.world\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=987502038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}