Luanda — João Lourenço was sworn in this Thursday morning as President of the Republic of Angola, for a second term of five years.

The inauguration ceremony was conducted by the Presiding Judge of the Constitutional Court, Laurinda Cardoso.

João Loureçno was the presidential candidate of the MPLA party, which won last August 24 elections with 51.17 per cent of the votes.

Profile of the President of the Republic

João Lourenço, who was born in Lobito Municipality in the centre-west province of Benguela, on 5 March 1954, is the son of Sequeira João Lourenço, a nurse born in Malange Province, and Josefa Gonçalves Cipriano Lourenço, a seamstress born in Namibe (country's south-west), both now deceased.

In February 2017, after being elected vice president of the MPLA at Congress, he was confirmed by the party´s Central Committee as its candidate for that year´s general elections.

At the time, he held the position of minister of National Defence in the government.

A retired general, Lourenço, 68 years old, has played several important roles in the State as well as in the party structure, as the governor of Moxico and Benguela and he was also the first secretary of his party's provincial committee in the above-mentioned provinces.

In the former People's Assembly, he was an MP and in the Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) he was the head of the National Political Directorate.

In his party curriculum, João Lourrenço was secretary-general and president of the Constitutional Commission, secretary of the Political Bureau for Information, whip of the parties bench, member of the Permanent Commission and 1st Vice-President of the Parliament.

João Lourenço, married to Ana Afonso Dias Lourenço, is father of six children. His hobbies include reading, horse riding and chess. He keeps in good shape by practising football, cycling and karate.

Besides Portuguese, he speaks English, Russian and Spanish.