Languages spoken in Equatorial Guinea
Malabo
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The main languages spoken in Equatorial Guinea are:
Spanish - the primary official language, spoken by ~67.6% of the population; Equatorial Guinea is the only independent African country where Spanish is an official language.
Portuguese and French - also official languages, added to support closer economic ties with Francophone and Lusophone neighbors.
Fang and Bubi - the most prominent ethnic languages, alongside Fa d''Ambo (spoken on Annobon).
Spanish, French, and Portuguese are all official languages of Equatorial Guinea.
| Geography |
Location: Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon; consists of a continental region and five inhabited islands
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 28,050 sq km
Land boundaries:
border countries: Cameroon, Gabon
Natural hazards: violent windstorms; flash floods; Santa Isabel volcano (3,007 m), last erupted 1923, is the country''s only historically active volcano
Geography - note: despite its name, no part of the equator passes through Equatorial Guinea; the mainland is located just north of the equator
| People |
Population: 1,679,172-1,795,834 (2022-2025 est.); one of the smallest and least populated countries in continental Africa
Age structure:
0-14 years: 35.6-38.73%
65 years and over: 3.92-5%
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 63.7 years
male: 61.44 years
female: 66.03 years
Infant mortality rate: 78.33 deaths/1,000 live births
Nationality:
noun/adjective: Equatorial Guinean(s), Equatoguinean(s)
Ethnic groups: Fang 78.1-85.7%, Bubi 9.4%, Ndowe 2.8%, Nanguedambo 2.7%, other 3.6%
Religions: Roman Catholic 88%, Protestant 5%, Muslim 2%, other 5% (2015 est.)
Languages: Spanish (official) 67.6%, other (Fang, Bubi, Portuguese official, French official, Fa d''Ambo on Annobon) 32.4% (1994 est.)
Population distribution: two large cities - Bata on the mainland and the capital, Malabo, on the island of Bioko; small communities scattered throughout the mainland and five inhabited islands
| Government |
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea
Data code: EK
Government type: presidential republic (nominally); described as an authoritarian regime in practice
National capital: Malabo
Independence: 12 October 1968 (from Spain)
Background: the mainland was likely first inhabited by Pygmy groups before Bantu-speaking peoples migrated in around the second millennium BC; Portuguese explorers landed on Bioko Island in the early 1470s; Portugal ceded the territory to Spain in the 1778 Treaty of El Pardo; nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, though elections since 1996 have generally been considered flawed, with the president exerting near-total control over the political system
| Economy |
Economy - overview: upper-middle-income economy heavily dependent on petroleum since major offshore oil discoveries in 1996; became Sub-Saharan Africa''s third-largest oil exporter at its peak, though production has since declined; systemic corruption and resource mismanagement have concentrated benefits among a small elite despite a massive increase in government revenue; about two-thirds of the population lives below the poverty line
GDP (purchasing power parity): $33-33.001 billion (2025 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.2% (2025)
GDP - per capita: $20,017-20,170 PPP (2025 est.)
Inflation rate: 2.5% (2023 est.)
Unemployment rate: 8.7% (2023)
Population below poverty line: approximately two-thirds (2020)
Currency: Central African CFA franc (XAF)
| Military |
Military branches: Equatorial Guinea Armed Forces (FAGE): Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie (2025)