This is part 4 of a 6-part series
Since João Lourenço took office as president of Angola, the Dos Santos family’s power has been severely curtailed. This break with the past has produced winners and losers, shaking up the power structure within the president’s party, the Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola (MPLA). With Angola’s political and economic landscape in full flux, we take stock of a revolution that is far from over.
The winners
- Vera Daves
jad20210504-serie-angola-3-vera-daves © Vera Daves, in Lisbon on 15 December 2015 © Orlando Almeida / Global Imagens
An unfamiliar face to the general public until she was appointed finance minister in October 2019, Vera Daves was the first woman to ever hold this position. Now in her 30s, Daves is the leading force within Lourenço’s administration.
In addition to negotiating a debt moratorium, representing Angola at the IMF and controlling Angola’s (official) coffers, she has become part of the MPLA’s politburo. Is she the face of the party’s new
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