About P-DEIAM
Research work
Coordinated since the beginning by Nuno Vidal and Justino Pinto de Andrade, the project gathered several Universities and myriad civil society organizations over the years, through its sequential phases:
1st phase - 2004-2009 (Angolan Catholic University & University of Coimbra-Faculty of Economy);
2nd phase - 2010-2014 (Angolan Catholic University, Centre of Social Studies - University of Coimbra & Wageningen University);
3rd phase - 2015-2017 (CEI-ISCTE-IUL & Angolan Catholic University);
4th phase - (2018-2024): P-DEIAM - Pluralism: Democratization and Electoral Integrity in Angola and Mozambique (CEI-ISCTE-IUL, Angolan Catholic University & Eduardo Mondlane University);
5th phase - 2025-2026 (CEsA - ISEG Research & University of Botswana): “The importance of plural and inclusive institutions in the struggle for democratization and pluralism: lessons from Botswana”.
Research areas
The 1st phase started in 2004, focused on the transition to multiparty politics, discussing the myriad problems of conflict resolution and challenges faced by African countries, with a special focus on the southern Africa region (major output was the book “Transiton to multiparty politics in Angola”).
The 2nd phase analysed the role of civil society in the construction and consolidation of democracy, with a special focus on the relationships between civil society and political parties and governments (major outputs comprised 3 books: “Civil Society and Politics in Angola: regional and international framework.”; “Southern Africa: Civil Society, Politics and Donor Strategies; Angola, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa” and “What went not without saying…” (a tribute book to Ruy Duarte de Carvalho, one of our researchers deceased in 2010).
The 3rd phase was dedicated to development economy, analysing economic policies in its relationship with political systems: natural resources’ management, investment, economic growth, revenue distribution, human development, poverty reduction and poverty eradication, socio-economic equity and regionally balanced development (major outputs of this phase were the books “Political Economy and Development in Angola” and “Poverty Eradication in Southern Africa: Mozambique, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola”.
The 4th phase initiated in 2018, researching on electoral and constitutional processes, with special attention to electoral processes in Angola and Mozambique. Research assessed the impact of electoral integrity on pluralism, democratisation and security in Angola and Mozambique, comparing both cases through the analysis of the Mozambique 2019 general election and the Angolan 2022 general election. Field research included 2046 questionnaires applied in each and every of the 11 provinces of Mozambique (2nd December 2019 to 6th March 2020), and 2909 questionnaires applied in each and every of the 18 provinces of Angola (14th October to 12th December 2022), counting on the valuable support of two of our partners from civil society organisations – Angolan Civic movement MUDEI and the Center for Public Integrity of Mozambique (CIP). Major outputs of this phase included 3 books: “African ‘Modern’ Illiberal Democracies”; “The Struggle Continues and Reaction should not succeed !? – Illiberalism against democracy in in Angola and Mozambique in the XXI century” and “On Electoral Integrity in Angola and Mozambique – an analysis of questionnaires of general elections of Angola (2022) and Mozambique (2019); all available for free download in the ‘publications’ section of this site.
The 5th phase started in 2025 (2025-2026), dedicated to a new research line (funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology – FCT – Portuguese Ministry of Science and Technology). The new research intends to study in situ the case of Botswana, comprising 11 months of field research on the electoral and political-institutional system of Botswana in direct collaboration with Prof. Kebapetse Lotshwao, Head of the Department of Political and Administrative studies of the Univ. of Botswana. The project assesses the impact of institutional and electoral integrity on pluralism and democratization in Botswana, attempting to find the decisive differences with other cases in southern Africa, namely Angola and Mozambique, that are paradigmatic cases of neo-patrimonial extractive structures and institutions.
From 2004 until today, in each and every thematic stage of the project, several outputs have been produced (available for free download in the “publications” section of this site), including nine books, various articles in indexed reviews, more than a dozen international conferences (e.g. Luanda, Maputo, London, Lisbon, Wageningen, Brussels – UN & EU), sponsored pannels at the Luso African Studies Organization in myriad conferences of the African Studies Association), provincial conferences (Huambo, Benguela, Lubango - Angola), besides numerous workshops, public discussions, film and photography exhibitions on elections, etc. (www.pdeiam.com).
Since the 1st phase, the project adopted a participatory research methodology, gathering African and Western academics and researchers in the project's myriad publications and events, including national and international conferences, thematic workshops and seminars, seeking to cross-fertilise and learn from different experiences.