Mozambique: The elections - Context, meaning and relevance

The November 19 elections in Mozambique will take place in a context where current economic growth has brought little benefit to the majority of a population stricken by unemployment, poverty and the beginning of the transition from an asymptomatic HIV pandemic to one of full-blown AIDS, says a briefing from the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies. "In addition, the impact of recent political crises, largely connected to widespread corruption and reprehensible behaviour by the main political parties, cannot be ignored as factors influencing the election outcome."