IFES recently began work in Angola to support the country’s first elections in more than a decade. The organization’s experts are working closely with the National Election Commission to prepare the country for parliamentary elections in 2008 and a presidential vote in 2009.

Angola’s last elections were in 1992, during a break in the country’s long civil war. The Movement for the Popular Liberation of Angola, or MPLA, declared victory in that vote while the main opposition party, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, or (UNITA, rejected those elections. The result was the extension of President Jose Eduardo dos Santos’ term in office. Dos Santos has led Angola for almost 30 years.

After the disputed election, renewed fighting continued until 2002. Since then, the Dos Santos’ government has delayed elections several times, primarily citing the country’s poor infrastructure as an impediment to proper voting.

Matthieu Valot, an IFES adviser in Angola, said IFES established a presence in Luanda after receiving an invitation from the National Election Commission. Valot said the organization is proud to be the sole international organization working with the commission to overcome the challenges it faces in preparing for the vote and making the upcoming elections a reality.

“It would be a victory for the Angolan people to hold an election that adheres to international standards and gives the presidential candidates a chance to compete in a second round, unlike the 1992 election,” said Valot.

However, the electoral process already is facing challenges. On May 22, the election commission recommended to the government that it extend the current voter registration period for another 90 days until June 15, saying heavy rains and poor roads have hindered the process of registering an estimated 7.5 million Angolans. Only about 4 million people have registered so far.

Election employees in Huambo attend an IFES training session in May.

A commission spokesman was quick to reassure voters that the extension would not delay the upcoming elections. While UNITA dismissed the extension as politically motivated, some smaller opposition parties welcomed the extra time to mobilize potential voters. IFES is advising the election commission as it supervises the inter-ministerial committee responsible for voter registration.

Valot said he does not believe the electoral calendar will be affected and he stressed that the election commission is making progress in pre-election preparations such as collecting logistics information and identifying polling stations.

Most of IFES’ work in Angola is focused at the provincial level. In May, IFES began the first phase of a training program for election employees in the provinces of Huambo, Kwando Hubango, Lunda Sul, Bié Kwanza Norte, Cabinda, Moxico and Zaire. The training aims to give election workers the skills they need to conduct efficient and transparent elections by focusing on basic electoral administration, electoral planning, budgeting, logistics and information technology skills.

IFES also is helping the election commission get its municipal electoral offices fully operational by the end of the summer. IFES’ project is funded by the United States Agency for International Development.

Valot said one of his most important goals is to build a strong working relationship with members of the election commission. So far, he said has been pleasantly surprised by the organization and structure of the commission.

Valot’s work in Angola reminds him of the project he conducted last year in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He said that the election commissions in both countries face the enormous challenge of administering elections in continental-sized countries with poor infrastructure and remote areas inaccessible by road. Angola is slightly less than twice the size of the U.S. state of Texas.

“Logistics and material deployment are for sure the biggest challenges that Angola’s election commission will have to face,” he said.