Our faculty
Miguel Filipe Silva
Lecturer in History, Politics and International Relations
Born in Oporto, Portugal, Miguel completed his higher education in History at the University of Porto before completed an MBA at Catholic University, Porto Business School before embarking and in doctoral research into Political Parties and Antifascism in the interwar period (1919-1939) in NOVA University, Lisbon. A Foundation for Science and Technology fellowship (2018-22) enabled extensive archival work in Portugal and Spain. His thesis is now complete and he will soon be awarded the degree of PhD in Contemporary History. Miguel’s broader scholarship bridges political history, African studies and development cooperation, with a particular focus in history and political science.
Alongside his academic work, Miguel has spent more than two decades bridging scholarship and practice. He has directed Engineers without Borders Portugal, advised the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s Partnerships for Development programme, and today leads EU and UNDP consulting teams at CESO International Consultants, focusing on institution-building and development cooperation across Africa.
When not teaching, Miguel reviews history textbooks for Porto Editora, sits on the advisory board of CESO Academy, and mentors early-career researchers through the European Interdisciplinary Master in African Studies.
Current teaching
- IR1034 World History since 1945
Select Publications
Books
Silva M.F. et al. (coord.) (2025) Memórias e Legados de Amílcar Cabral – Pensar com a nossa Cabeça e Andar com os nossos Pés. Porto & Bissau: INEP & CEAUP https://www.africanos.eu/index.php/pt/noticias/item/724-cole%C3%A7%C3%A3o-estudos-africanos-mem%C3%B3rias-e-legados-de-am%C3%ADlcar-cabral-pensar-com-nossa-cabe%C3%A7a-e-andar-com-os-nossos-p%C3%A9s
Peer-reviewed articles
Silva M.F. (2023) “The Study of Political Conjunctures and Political Parties at the Intersection of History and Political Science.” Sociologia 45: 83-108. https://ojs.letras.up.pt/index.php/Sociologia/article/view/13320/12011
Silva M.F.; Santos M. (2016) “Mozambique between Railway Strikes and Modus Vivendi.” Africana Studia 27: 127-148. https://novaresearch.unl.pt/en/publications/mo%C3%A7ambique-entre-greves-ferrovi%C3%A1rias-e-modus-vivendi-1920-1926
Peer-reviewed Book Chapters
Silva, M.F. (2025) “El Partido Socialista Portugués y la Amenaza Fascista (1922-34).” In Valero, S. & Martí, A. (eds.) El Antifascismo Socialista en el Período de Entreguerras. València: Sílex (forthcoming.)
Silva, M.F.; Silva, R. (2025) “Amílcar Cabral: Memory and Legacy in Guinea-Bissau’s Language Policy.” In Barros, V. & Aurora, A. (eds.) Amílcar Cabral and the PAIGC’s Binational Struggle. London: Routledge (forthcoming)
Op-eds & short articles
“Walls in the Desert: Western Sahara.” Visão, 5 May 2021.
“The Cost of Agricultural Produce in Portugal’s Alentejo Region.” Solomon, 2 July 2021.
Conference presentations, participation & invited talks
“The Weakening of Democratic Institutions and the Behaviour of Political Parties – Guinea-Bissau (1998-2019).” International Conference Political Parties in Africa, Porto, 2022
¡A las Urnas por el Socialismo!” Seminar, University of Valencia, 2022.
“Social Media and the SDGs: Analysing Twitter Debates.” Conference Sub-Saharan Africa and the SDGs, Porto, 2021.
Book Reviews
2023 – Critical review of Jini Kim Watson, Cold War Reckonings – Authoritarianism and the Genres of Decolonization (Fordham University Press, 2021, 272 pp.), published in Africana Studia, 39: 91–92 https://ojs.letras.up.pt/index.php/AfricanaStudia/article/view/13873
