Lisbon, June 17, 2026 (Lusa) - The second edition of a study on the concerns of citizens in Portuguese-language countries is also intended to cover Equatorial Guinea and the Chinese region of Macau, the initiative’s executive director told Lusa on Wednesday.
The Institute for Social, Political and Economic Research, based in São Paulo, Brazil, launched the first Lusophone Barometer at the end of January in Lisbon, at the headquarters of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).
The biennial study, coordinated by the Brazilian political scientist Antonio Lavareda, gathered the views of citizens from eight of the nine CPLP member states on 25 indicators.
Equatorial Guinea was the exception, explained Marcelo Pimentel, executive director of the Lusophone Barometer, due to “democratic problems there” and “a logistical issue”.
“We were unable to find a research institute willing to take on the project,” lamented the Brazilian, who is also a professor at the University of Taubaté, in the state of São Paulo.
Pimentel recalled that political issues also forced the cancellation of the presentation of the results of the inquiry in Guinea-Bissau: “Shortly afterwards, there was a coup d’etat, and we cancelled at the request of the CPLP”.
Guinea-Bissau has been suspended from the CPLP since the military coup of 26 November 2025, which halted the elections, deposed President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, and led to the arrest of the opposition leader, Domingos Simões Pereira.
The collection of inquiries for the second edition of the Lusophone Barometer is due to begin in the second half of 2027, with the results to be presented the following year, and Marcelo Pimentel said he intends to include Equatorial Guinea and Macau.
The academic was speaking on the sidelines of the final day of the three-day 35th Meeting of the Association of Portuguese-language Universities (AULP), which took place in the Chinese region.
“I believe that the research may even provide some important details that could serve as a benchmark, for the Macau Government and for the CPLP to view Macau in a new light,” said Pimentel.
“Macau is a key element in China’s integration with Portuguese-speaking countries,” added the researcher.
China established the Macau Special Administrative Region as a platform for strengthening economic and trade cooperation with Portuguese-language countries in 2003 and, in the same year, created the Macau Forum.
In addition to China, the organisation comprises the members of the CPLP: Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Príncipe, Timor-Leste and, since 2022, Equatorial Guinea.
Health, education and unemployment were identified as the main problems by citizens of Portuguese-language countries in the first edition of the Lusophone Barometer.
“Health tops the list of concerns for citizens of Portuguese-language countries, with 53% of responses, followed by education, with 43%, and unemployment, with 34%,” according to the data.
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Lusa
