João António Nhavene worked as a translator and research assistant for Dr. Andrew Brooks for three weeks in Mozambique. He translated over 100 surveys from Portuguese and Changana into English and helped design the survey research. João worked well independently and produced high quality work without supervision. Dr. Brooks recommends João highly for his excellent work ethic, translation skills, proficiency with Microsoft Office, and ability to work efficiently without oversight.

1. Reference: João António Nhavene 15/07/2014
To Whom It May Concern:
I write this letter of recommendation for João António Nhavene with great enthusiasm for the
exceptional quality of his work as a translator and a research assistant. João was employed by myself
for three weeks between 27 June 2014 and 15 July 2014 and provided valuable work. I employed João,
whilst I was undertaking research in Mozambique on foreign investment in Maputo. His principal
responsibility was undertaking surveys in Portuguese and Changana and translating the results in to
English, but he also took on additional roles, including providing administrative assistance and
supporting the undertaking of academic research.
The field research involved extensive investigation of businesses in Maputo and working with two
other assistants, João completed and translated over 100 surveys. In addition to the translation activities
he played a key role in the design of the survey research activities, which include formulating
questions, planning research schedules, and working with SPSS Statistics (Statistical Program for the
Social Sciences).
João’s work ethic was excellent and he was tireless in his translation work. He works very well in
unsupervised situations and clearly follows instructions to promptly produce excellent outputs. I
frequently required João to undertaken research activities independently whilst I was undertaking other
work and he produced high quality work without supervision, this included collecting statistical data.
His command of spoken English is good and is more than adequate for any business or technical
situation and he is adept at written translation using software. Furthermore, João demonstrated skills
and proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office software. I would recommend João as a research
assistant and he is a motivated and dedicated employee. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you
have any questions as I would give the high recommendation for João to be considered for
employment.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Andrew Brooks
Lecturer in Development Geography
King’s College London
School of Social
Science & Public
Policy
Department of
Geography
Strand Campus
London WC2R 2LS
Telephone 020 7848 2571
Fax 020 7848 2026
Email andrew.brooks@kcl.ac.uk
www.kcl.ac.uk/geography