Policing the periphery: party-anchored hybrid policing in Luanda, Angola

Frank, A.

This PhD thesis investigates how hybrid policing networks function in the peri-urban
neighbourhoods of 11 de Novembro and Cariango, in Cazenga municipality, Luanda, Angola, by
analysing the interactions between the police and non-state forms of local authority. Using social
network analysis, it contributes to debates on nodal governance and hybrid security governance
in post-colonial African contexts.
The findings show that hybrid policing networks in the peri-urban areas of Luanda are MPLA
anchored. Although their composition varies across sites, the underlying pattern is similar: shared
party-state alignment and administrative embeddedness bind the police and party-state-affiliated
non-state forms of local authority into tightly connected clusters. In functional terms, these
policing networks operate less as systems of direct policing and more as mechanisms of
surveillance, monitoring, and oversight, rather than as structures primarily engaged in...Show moreThis PhD thesis investigates how hybrid policing networks function in the peri-urban
neighbourhoods of 11 de Novembro and Cariango, in Cazenga municipality, Luanda, Angola, by
analysing the interactions between the police and non-state forms of local authority. Using social
network analysis, it contributes to debates on nodal governance and hybrid security governance
in post-colonial African contexts.
The findings show that hybrid policing networks in the peri-urban areas of Luanda are MPLA
anchored. Although their composition varies across sites, the underlying pattern is similar: shared
party-state alignment and administrative embeddedness bind the police and party-state-affiliated
non-state forms of local authority into tightly connected clusters. In functional terms, these
policing networks operate less as systems of direct policing and more as mechanisms of
surveillance, monitoring, and oversight, rather than as structures primarily engaged in activities
such as patrolling or criminal investigation.
Overall, this thesis offers a nuanced understanding of how hybrid policing networks function in
Luanda’s peri-urban neighbourhoods. It highlights the importance of historical and socio
political factors in shaping local security governance. By conceptualising policing networks in
peri-urban Luanda as MPLA-anchored hybrid networks, this study provides a contextually
grounded account of how authority is organised and exercised at the neighbourhood level.
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Policing the periphery: party-anchored hybrid policing in Luanda, Angola

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