Born in Bissau, Embaló holds a degree in International Relations from the Higher Institute of Social and Political Sciences at the Technical University of Lisbon, as well as both a master's degree in Political Science and a Doctorate in International Relations from the Complutense University of Madrid. He is fluent in Portuguese and Spanish, and competent in English, French, Arabic and Swahili. He served in the military, undertaking National Defense Studies at the National Defense Center of Spain, and underwent further studies on National Security in Brussels, Tel Aviv, Johannesburg, Japan and Paris. He rose to the rank of Brigadier-General. He now specialises in African and Middle-Eastern affairs and in matters of defence, international co-operation and development. He is a former Minister of African Affairs.
Prime Ministership
He formed his cabinet on 13 December 2016 after having been appointed Prime Minister by President José Mário Vaz on 18 November 2016. However, Embaló took the post while under a boycott of his own party, the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, which through its Central Committee gave him a vote of distrust of one hundred and twelve votes in favor and eleven against on November 26, 2016. As head of government, he could only count on the support of only the Social Renovation Party, the second largest seat of the National People's Congress of Guinea-Bissau. On 13 January 2018, after disagreements with President José Mário Vaz, he was replaced according to the demands of João Fadiá and Botche Candé, Embaló requested his resignation from the position, effective on 16 January 2018.
Embaló ran for president in 2019, running as the candidate of Madem G15. He finished in second place with 27% of the vote in the first round of voting. According to the preliminary and final results published by the national commission of elections he won the runoff vote against another ex Prime-minister, Domingos Simões Pereira, 54% to 46%. However, the final results continue to be disputed by his opponent Domingos Simões Pereira. Although neither the supreme court of Guinea-Bissau nor the parliament had given its approval for the official swearing-in ceremony, Sissoco Embaló had organized an alternative swearing-in ceremony in a hotel in Bissau to announce himself as legal president of Guinea-Bissau. Several politicians in Guinea-Bissau, including prime minister Aristides Gomes, accused Sissoco Embaló of arranging a Coup d'état, although outgoing president Mário Vaz stepped down to allow Embaló to take power.
