Magnificent and Beggar Land - Angola since the Civil War

'We live in “an oligarch’s ideal world”. Western countries barely even pretend to disapprove of kleptocrats any more.’

Meet author Ricardo Soares de Oliveira in conversation with Maren Sæbø.

Angola is a major oil exporter and has the third largest economy in Africa. It is by far Norway’s largest economic partner on the continent. Norwegian oil businesses, with Statoil up front, has invested close to NOK 100 billion kroner, and brings back revenues worth tens of billions a year. Nevertheless, the tremendous governance challenges in Angola receive little attention in Norway.

Angola’s post-war regime is built around José Eduardo dos Santos, now the longest serving president in Africa. Soares de Oliveira explains how this “magnificent” regime holds together, internally and internationally, and the resistance it faces by the “beggars” of the land.

Ricardo Soares de Oliveira is Associate Professor in Comparative Politics, University of Oxford, fellow of St Peter´s College, Oxford, and Associated Senior Researcher at CMI. He is the author of Oil and Politics in the Gulf of Guinea and co-editor of China Returns to Africa, both of which are published by Hurst.

Maren Sæbø is former editor of Verdensmagasinet X.