Equatorial Guinea’s capital ended up on an island because of colonial history, not geographic logic. The city now called Malabo sits on Bioko Island, about 160 kilometers off the coast of mainland Equatorial Guinea, because the British founded it there in 1827 as a naval base and resettlement point for freed slaves. When Spain later took full control of the colony, it simply kept the island city as its administrative center. That decision stuck through independence in 1968 and for decades after, though the country officially moved its capital to a new mainland city in January 2026.
How the British Founded a City on Bioko
Spain claimed Bioko Island (then called Fernando Po) through an 18th-century treaty with Portugal, but for decades did little with it. After Britain outlawed the slave trade, the British leased portions of the island from Spain to use as a base for their antislavery naval patrols in the Gulf of Guinea. In 1827, the British founded a settlement they called Port Clarence, which also served as a resettlement site for freed slaves who could not be repatriated to their home regions on the African mainland.
The city grew around this population of formerly enslaved people and the British naval presence. When Spain eventually reclaimed active control of the island, it renamed the city Santa Isabel and turned it into the hub of a booming cocoa industry. Spanish colonists cleared surrounding forests for plantations and expanded the city’s infrastructure. By the time the colony became independent as Equatorial Guinea in 1968, Santa Isabel (later renamed Malabo) was far more developed than anything on the mainland territory of Río Muni, making it the natural choice as the new nation’s capital.
Why the Capital Stayed on the Island
After independence, there was no compelling reason to move. Malabo had the colonial-era government buildings, the port infrastructure, and the established administrative systems. The mainland region, Río Muni, was larger in area and population but lacked a city with comparable infrastructure. Moving a capital is enormously expensive and politically complicated, so inertia alone kept Malabo in place for decades.
Then oil changed the equation entirely. Equatorial Guinea’s natural gas reserves are concentrated offshore of Bioko Island, primarily in the Alba and Zafiro fields. A natural gas power plant began supplying electricity to the island in 1999, and a $1.4 billion liquefied natural gas facility was later constructed on Bioko. The country’s third-largest port, Luba, also sits on the island and was renovated and expanded with the goal of becoming a major hub for offshore oil and gas companies operating in the Gulf of Guinea. All of this energy infrastructure reinforced Bioko’s importance and gave the government even less incentive to relocate.
The Practical Problems of an Island Capital
Having the capital on an island separated from most of the country’s land and population creates real logistical headaches. To travel between Malabo and Bata, the largest city on the mainland, most people fly. Two airlines operate multiple daily flights on the route, but there is no ferry system or bridge connecting the island to the continent. For a country where roughly two-thirds of the population lives on the mainland, this means the seat of government is accessible only by air or long sea crossings.
The island location also created security concerns. In 2004, a group of mercenaries attempted a coup against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema. The fact that the capital could be reached by sea from neighboring countries made it feel vulnerable. That event became one of the catalysts for planning a new capital on the mainland.
The Move to Ciudad de la Paz
Equatorial Guinea officially transferred its capital from Malabo to Ciudad de la Paz on January 2, 2026, when a presidential decree formalized the move. Ciudad de la Paz is a planned city in the interior of Río Muni, chosen for its easier access, milder climate, and greater distance from potential maritime threats. The city is designed to house the presidency, government ministries, police, and military leadership.
Construction has been a long process. A golf course, university, luxury hotel, and six-lane highway were completed by 2013. Three bridges and connecting highways have been built or are under construction, along with a road linking the city to a new airport. A Chinese state construction company is part of the building consortium. As of recent years, two glass towers, several administrative buildings, and a grand hotel appeared functionally complete, though other structures remained partly built. President Obiang set a one-year deadline from the January 2026 decree for public services to fully transfer to the new city.
The relocation reflects a broader pattern seen in other countries where colonial-era capitals, chosen for reasons that made sense to European powers, become impractical for the independent nations that inherit them. In Equatorial Guinea’s case, it took nearly six decades after independence for the move to happen.