Lusaka: Angolan Members of Parliament have integrated the Joint Election Observation Mission of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and the ICGLR Parliamentary Forum (FP-ICGLR) in Lusaka, since Sunday (09), for Zambia's general elections, scheduled for Thursday (13).
According to a press release from the Embassy of Angola in Zambia sent to ANGOP, the Angolan parliamentary delegation is led by MP Joaquim Francisco D'Almeida and also includes MP Helena Bonguela Abel and parliamentary assistant Eug©nio Cardoso. The delegation joins the group of observers from the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and the ICGLR Parliamentary Forum (FP-ICGLR).
As part of the mission, the delegation participated on Monday (10) in the training and orientation of Short-Term Election Observers (STOs), designed to prepare participants to carry out their duties during the electoral process. The two-day training aims to ensure a common understanding of the Zambian electoral context, the mission's mandate, international principles of election observation, and the procedures to be adopted on polling day.
During the activity, an analysis of Zambia's 2026 electoral context was presented, as well as the main conclusions of the pre-election situation assessment conducted by the regional director of the Levy Mwanawasa Regional Centre for Democracy and Good Governance (LMRC), Zambian national Jean-Paul Kimonyo. The presentation allowed observers to deepen their knowledge of Zambia's political, institutional, and electoral context prior to the voting process.
The August 13 general elections feature the participation of the current President, Hakainde Hichilema, leader of the United Party for National Development (UPND), who is seeking re-election for a 2nd term. The electoral process also features the participation of Brian Mundubile, the main opposition candidate supported by the Patriotic Front (PF), after former President Edgar Lungu was deemed ineligible by the Constitutional Court for having already served the constitutional term limit.
Since the reintroduction of multi-party democracy in 1991, Zambia has established itself as one of the most stable democracies in Southern Africa, with successive transfers of power through the electoral process. In 2021, Hakainde Hichilema defeated Edgar Lungu in the presidential election, in a process considered free and credible by the international community.
Angolan participation in the election observation mission is part of monitoring democratic processes in the region and the commitment to strengthening peace, stability, and good governance on the African continent.
