Bioko

Bioko (also known as Fernando Póo or Fernando Po), island in the Bight of Bonny, Gulf of Guinea, western Africa, about 160 km (99 mi) north-west of continental Equatorial Guinea, of which it is a part. The country’s capital, Malabo, is in the north of the island. Roughly rectangular in shape, Bioko is volcanic in origin, with Santa Isabel Peak (Pico Basile), in the north, reaching 3,008 m (9,869 ft), Gran Caldera in the south-west measuring 2,261 m (7,418 ft), and Biao in the south-east reaching 2,009 m (6,591 ft). About 65 species of mammals and 145 species of birds live on Bioko; about 30 per cent of them are endemic. Parts of the island are accessible only with great difficulty. Apart from the volcanic peaks and the capital, places of interest include the city of Luba as well as crater lakes Lago Biao and Lago Loreto and the waterfalls on the Iladyi River. Cocoa production was traditionally the main industry; however, it has drastically reduced in recent years. There is some timber, copra, and coffee production and livestock raising, as well as fish processing.

Bioko was originally settled by the Bubi people about 3,000 years ago and later became known as Fernando Póo, after the Portuguese explorer and navigator who first sighted the island in 1469. It was later owned by Spain and used by the British as a base in the 1820s and 1830s. Between 1973 and 1979 it was named Macías Nguema Biyogo, after Francisco Macías Nguema, the first president of Equatorial Guinea. During his rule, the island sustained a severe loss of population. Area 2,020 sq km (779 sq mi). Population 103,000 (2003 estimate).