By Magnus Taylor The arch miserableist returns, and he’s “happy again, back in Africa, the kingdom of light”.  A lot of people will hate this book, and I can see why. But strangely, I didn’t. Theroux is abrasive, opinionated, politically-incorrect

Read the rest of REVIEW: Last Train to Zona Verde: overland from Cape Town to Angola – By Paul Theroux »

Angola has come a long way since gaining independence from Portugal in 1975. The country has transformed from an agriculture-based economy to one of sub-Saharan Africa’s major oil and mineral producers, thanks to the onset of stability in 2002 after

Read the rest of Angola economic briefing: high oil prices compensate for tough business environment – By Gaimin Nonyane »

Talk to officials from the Angolan foreign investment promotion agency, ANIP, and they will express bafflement that (non-oil-sector) US and UK companies are reluctant to enter the market. After all, Brazilians, Chinese, Portuguese, South Africans, and, most recently, Russians are

Read the rest of Angola: ample reward for investors who do their homework – By Stewart Kelly »

The tent and the table that made up the polling station looked very small in the middle of the expanse of tarmac on Luanda’s Largo da Família. In one corner, journalists addressed their cameras against a backdrop with barely a

Read the rest of Angolan elections 2012: politics finally gets real – By Justin Pearce »

It is election month in Luanda and the city is awash with billboards, posters, and illuminated displays of President José Eduardo dos Santos, leaving little to the imagination as to who is in charge of the show. However, the mixture

Read the rest of Angolan Elections 2012: beer and circuses no longer enough – By Claudia Gastrow »

Ahead of the 31 August legislative elections — the third the country has ever known — the situation in Angola is increasingly tense. Opposition parties denounce the work of the National Electoral Commission (CNE) as biased and warn of electoral

Read the rest of Angola Elections 2012: Dos Santos victory likely to bring more protests and violent repression – By Jon Schubert »

Angola is a country in serious transition. Leading indicators (from the admittedly scarce data available) suggest change has been afoot since the end of the civil war in 2002 – shortly after the death of rebel leader Jonas Savimbi and

Read the rest of Diary: Angola Forum – A ‘Soldier’s Peace’?, Chatham House – By Eric Cooper »

The latest coup in Guinea-Bissau was likely led by Army Chief of Staff Antonio Indjai and motivated by discontent over Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior’s attempt to use the Angolan military presence in the country to bolster his own position

Read the rest of Guinea-Bissau Coup Means Angolan Investments at High Risk – By Exclusive Analysis »

Angolan Foreign Minister Georges Chicoti’s visit to London in late February allowed the minister to present a vivid picture of how his government, ten years after the civil war, likes to see its place in the world. In this respect,

Read the rest of Diary: Angola’s Georges Chicoti asserts foreign policy strength and business potential– By Justin Pearce »

It is now nine years since Jonas Savimbi was killed by Angolan government troops, but the UNITA movement he founded and led is still struggling to find its feet and to develop a clear identity and political role.  Although it

Read the rest of Angola: Is UNITA sinking after Chivukuvuku jumps ship? – By Keith Somerville »