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IFES - Angola

Angola

Angola has begun to rebuild since its 27-year civil war ended in 2002. The war, which pitted Jonas Savimbi’s UNITA party against the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), led by José Eduardo Dos Santos, largely ended with the death of Savimbi in 2002. President Dos Santos has pledged to hold general elections in 2006.

In April 2005, a new electoral law was passed establishing an electoral commission whose first task will be to oversee voter registration. Civil society organizations have begun to organize and participate in the political process, calling for transparency and participation in elections and governance.

Current Projects

Election Assistance

In early 2004, IFES conducted a mission to Angola to evaluate the technical needs of the country's electoral management authorities and to assess Angola's overall preparation for elections. The government had not yet set a date for elections and maintained that the draft constitution should first be adopted by Parliament. Since the constitutional commission had begun its deliberations on the draft constitution, IFES' technical team prepared an analysis of the provisions in the draft that pertain to elections. IFES has made its analysis available to members of the National Assembly Constitutional Commission. This mission was made possible by USAID.

Support to the Electoral Process

As Angola prepared for its first elections in 16 years, IFES provided technical assistance to the country’s fledgling National Electoral Commission (CNE). Once the date for the elections was set for September 2008, IFES opened a permanent field office in Luanda and deployed a number of local and international technical experts to assist the CNE. This assistance focused on electoral operations, design and establishment of an election observation unit, assistance with election logistics and expansion of the scope and reach of a civic and voter education campaign. Under a sub-award from Search for Common Ground, IFES also strengthened the capacity of journalists to engage in the electoral process and facilitate the media’s role in supporting the flow of election-related information from the provinces to the capital and vice-versa. Since Election Day, IFES supported the CNE in assessing election operations and applying lessons learned to preparations for future elections.