There Guinea Equatorialmore correctly Republic of Equatorial Guineais one of the smallest African states overlooking theAtlanticin the central-western regions of the continent. After almost sixty years since independence, its capital has been moved, from 2 January 2026, from the city of Malaboon theBioko islandto the city of foundation of City of Paz.
It is certainly not the first time that a country decides to move its capital following environmental, economic or logistical needs: just think of the Jakarta casethe largest of the megacities of the planet and currently the capital of Indonesia, which is literally sinking due to the phenomenon of subsidence. But why did Equatorial Guinea decide to move its own?
The reasons are different, but they all can be traced back to the search for a better balance of the country’s territorial structureespecially with a view to development and modernization. As we were saying, in fact, the former capital Malabo is located on the island of Bioko, more than 150 kilometers from the mainland in Gulf of Guinea (a fact which made, for several years, Equatorial Guinea the only continental country in all of Africa to have its capital located on an island).
Precisely for this reason, in 2008, the Equatoguinean government decided to start construction of a brand new city (and still under construction): City of Pazwhich, with a presidential decree dated January 2, 2026, officially became the new capital of Equatorial Guinea. The new city, located just inland from the continental coast, is for obvious reasons much more accessible: this not only guarantees better safety and better management of the country’s logistical functions, but also allows the main cities of Malabo and Bata to be relieved, which in recent years have been the protagonists of a significant growth urban And demographic.
According to the current president Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogowhich has maintained rigid control over the country’s politics and institutions since the 1970s, the new site will have to be seen as a symbol of modernitybuilt with infrastructure capable of supporting the country’s growth and with the possibility of hosting government bodies and new services in carefully planned spaces.
