NOVAFRICA PhD Candidates: Frederica Mendonça

Frederica Mendonça, a PhD student at Nova SBE, has journeyed from macroeconomics to a deep commitment to development economics. Her academic path, beginning with a BSc and continuing with an MSc in Economics at Nova SBE, was enriched by an unexpected turn towards the NOVAFRICA Students Group’s interesting and insightful initiatives. Her initial focus on macroeconomics shifted as she discovered her passion for addressing poverty and inequality through fieldwork. In our interview, she shared:
“I was studying macro… but then I came across the NOVAFRICA Students Group. I instantly gained interest… It started to be like my love affair.”
Alongside her courses, Frederica started to attend as many events from NSG as she could and ended up pursuing her first internship as a field coordinator in Angola in 2017.

Angola: Enhancing Education with Community Participation
Frederica’s project in Angola revolved around enhancing parental involvement in education. The study in which she took part, “Mobilizing Parents at Home and at School: An Experiment on Primary Education in Angola”, tested various methods to mobilize parents in Angolan primary schools and found that an information campaign increased parental involvement at home but had no impact on school engagement. Conversely, parents’ meetings at school increased participation in school institutions but had less effect on home involvement. A combined approach of both methods showed improvements in school management, teacher attitudes, and parental satisfaction, suggesting that different strategies uniquely influence parental engagement in education.
Frederica recounts the project’s tangible success, such as the construction of a school wall by parents, spurred by the initiative’s encouragement. This hands-on experience in Angola was a turning point, solidifying her interest in field experiments and the real-world application of economic theories. The project not only involved educating parents about the importance of their role in schooling but also demonstrated practical outcomes of community involvement.

Guinea-Bissau: Bridging Cultural Beliefs with Health Initiatives
In Guinea-Bissau, Frederica embarked on a more challenging task: setting up a project from scratch to integrate traditional beliefs into health strategies. This endeavor required a blend of abstract thinking and theoretical research, adapting to the cultural context to improve maternal and infant health outcomes.
Her work was conducted within the scope of the research presented in the paper “Belief Systems and Health Behaviors in Guinea-Bissau”, which revealed that traditional belief systems significantly influenced health decisions and outcomes. This study highlighted the importance of integrating these belief systems into health interventions, emphasizing their critical role in enhancing the effectiveness of public health strategies in the region. This experience broadened her understanding of development economics, emphasizing the need to tailor interventions to local customs and beliefs.

Current Research: Addressing Urbanism and Public Policy in Mozambique
Frederica’s current research in Mozambique explores rural migration and its impact on urban dynamics. She is currently involved as a researcher in the ongoing project “Integrating Rural Migrants in Cities: A Field Experiment in Mozambique”; a study taking place in the city of Quelimane and focusing on integrating rural migrants into urban society. This involves developing employment opportunities and facilitating access to education and information. The project, which began in 2021, aims to bridge the gap between migrants and urban residents, illustrating the complexities of urbanization and migration.

Future Outlook: Pioneering Public Policy and Health Information Dissemination
Looking forward, Frederica is excited about designing public policies using urbanism as a developmental tool. She plans to use local features, like bicycle taxi drivers in Quelimane, to spread health information. “My idea is to use these drivers to spread information on health risks and behaviors“, she states, demonstrating her innovative approach and commitment to address development challenges.

Conclusion
In the end of our interview, Frederica provided us with an overview of what a day in the life of a PhD student entails: her various readings, the seminars she attends, and her work in public policy designing, a field in which she wishes to continue her academic and professional journey.
Finally, she shared some valuable advice for aspiring researchers, emphasizing the importance of exploration and practical experience.
“Don’t cling from scratch to one topic. Be open… Work on a lot of research projects before engaging in your PhD. Do a lot of reading and fieldwork.”
This perspective reflects her journey, where broad exposure and diverse experiences have shaped her research interests and approach. Frederica’s journey and insights offer a roadmap for those embarking on a career in development economics, highlighting the value of curiosity, flexibility, and hands-on experience.

References:
Di Maro, V., Leeffers, S., Serra, D., & Vicente, P. C. (February 2020). Mobilizing Parents at Home and at School: An Experiment on Primary Education in Angola (Working Paper No. 2002). The World Bank; Nova School of Business and Economics and NOVAFRICA; Texas A&M University; Nova School of Business and Economics, BREAD and NOVAFRICA. ISSN 2183-0843.
Coutts, A., Molina-Millán, T., & Vicente, P. C. (November 2022). Belief Systems and Health Behaviors in Guinea-Bissau (Working Paper No. 2207). Schulich School of Business, York University and NOVAFRICA; University of Alicante and NOVAFRICA; Nova School of Business and Economics, BREAD, and NOVAFRICA. ISSN 2183-0843.
Armand, A., Mendonça, F., Sandholtz, W., & Vicente, P. C. (2024). Integrating Rural Migrants in Cities: A Field Experiment in Mozambique, Quelimane. (F. Mendonça, Project Coordinator). Nova School of Business and Economics.

Written by Christopher Würth, MSc. in Management at Nova SBE and NOVAFRICA Student Group, and Skander Jebali, BSc. in Economics at Nova SBE and NOVAFRICA Student Group.