Pambazuka News is produced by a pan-African community of some 2,600 citizens and organisations - academics, policy makers, social activists, women's organisations, civil society organisations, writers, artists, poets, bloggers, and commentators who together produce insightful, sharp and thoughtful analyses and make it one of the largest and most innovative and influential web forums for social justice in Africa. 
hunger
Ethiopia: Feed them and bleed them
Alemayehu G. Mariam
2010-10-28, Issue 502
cc W E CWestern donors continue to hand out billions of dollars in ‘humanitarian’ and ‘economic’ aid to Ethiopia’s Zenawi regime each year, turning a blind eye to the fact that their handouts are propping up a repressive dictatorship, writes Al Mariam.
Africa and the end of hunger
Eric Holt-Giménez and Raj Patel
2009-07-16, Issue 442
'Africa and the end of hunger' is an extract from Pambazuka Press's groundbreaking new book Food Rebellions! Crisis and the Hunger for Justice by Eric Holt-Giménez and Raj Patel. Recommended by figures like Walden Bello and Wangari Maathai, the book is available to Pambazuka News readers at 20% off the recommended retail price of £16.95 and comes with a free ebook copy. Simply enter 56784813 as the discount code when ordering online. The Food Rebellions! ebook is also available on its own for only £5.
Isaias Afewerki and Eritrea: A nation’s tragedy
Selam Kidane
2009-07-02, Issue 440
cc gordontourSince winning its de facto independence in May 1991, Eritrea has come to represent a tragedy, laments Selam Kidane. Having fought and suffered alongside one another during the country's liberation struggle, Eritreans have seen their country embroiled in conflicts with every one of its neighbours under the leadership of Isaias Afewerki. With President Isaias increasingly viewing power as 'a weapon of self-aggrandisement' and surrounding himself with a sycophantic clique of military associates, the hope of the post-independence years has tragically faded, Kidane concludes.
Kenyan maize scandal causes ODM rift
Joachim Omolo Ouko
2009-05-07, Issue 431
cc E PenceFollowing the Kenyan Orange Democratic Movement's (ODM) allegations of Agricultural Minister William Ruto's role in a maize scandal, Joachim Omolo Ouko discusses the internal mudslinging and internecine feuding within Prime Minister Raila Odinga's party. Ruto's problems with the party stem from his criticisms of Raila last year, Ouko notes, compelling the prime minister to seek a means of fixing the rift developing with the ODM, particularly as his own son is instead now alleged to be involved in the scandal.
The destruction of African agriculture
Walden Bello
2008-08-05, Issue 392
Biofuel production is certainly one of the culprits in the current global food crisis. But while the diversion of corn from food to biofuel feedstock has been a factor in food prices shooting up, the more primordial problem has been the conversion of economies that are largely food-self-sufficient into chronic food importers. Here the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the World Trade Organization (WTO) figure as much more important villains....
Food shortages: stories of strife across the globe
Azad Essa
2008-08-05, Issue 392
The current food crisis has been heralded as the worst since the 1970s. Ordinary people, from South Africa to Egypt, India to Turkey, have been forced to make severe adjustments to their lives to deal with food hikes that continue to rise exponential...
Africa’s Unnatural Disaster
Sameer Dossani
2008-07-23, Issue 390
While the mainstream media doesn’t always ignore the pressing issue of hunger in Africa, it rarely explores the root causes of this problem. Behind most news on the issue, there’s an assumption that casts hunger as a natural result of unfortunate weather conditions, coupled with bureaucratic inefficiency and bad economic planning.
G8 Hokkaido: An exercise in Escapism
John Samuel
2008-07-10, Issue 387
The meeting of G8 leaders in Hokkaido, Japan, proved to be an exercise in escapism, writes John Samuel. The final communiqué of the G8 leaders is more of a recycled rhetoric of broken promises. This meeting, held in the midst of financial, fuel, food and climate crisis, failed to recognize the gravity of the crisis.
Zimbabwe: hunger, terror, displacement and death
Mary Ndlovu
2008-06-26, Issue 384
Since March, Zimbabwe has had no Parliament, no local government councils, no legitimate executive, and ZANU PF has ruled by decree in response to the orders of the JOC – acronym for the military junta which now controls the nation, along with Mr. Mugabe and Reserve Bank Governor Mr. Gono, who is needed to print money, writes Mary Ndlovu. SADC governments allowed the charade to continue, talked to and dealt with the illegitimate government as if nothing was wrong. If SADC fails in its self-assigned disaster management, if the AU is unable or unwilling to step into the breach - hunger, terror, displacement, and death stare Zimbabweans in the face.
The principles of food sovereignty
Yash Tandon
2008-06-18, Issue 383
A proper analysis of the food crisis is a matter that cannot be left with trade negotiators, investment experts, or agricultural engineers, writes Yash Tandon. It is essentially a matter of political economy. A crisis for some is an opportunity for others. Any analysis of the present food crisis carries with it its own prescription, and these prescriptions have the potential to bring benefits for some and losses for others.
Alternatives to the food crisis
Ian Angus
2008-05-15, Issue 372
In last week's Pambazuka News, Ian Angus looked at the causes of the food crisis. This week, he argues that alternatives to the food crisis must by their very nature be informed by alternatives to global capitalism.
The food crisis and the failure of capitalism
Ian Angus
2008-05-15, Issue 371
Ian Angus looks at the various forces behind the food crisis in Haiti. During previous waves of food price inflation the poor often had at least some access to food they grew themselves, or to food that was grown locally and available at locally set prices. Today, in many countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, that is just not possible. Global markets now determine local prices, and often the only food available must be imported from far away. Food is not just another commodity, he argues. It is absolutely essential for human survival. The very least that humanity should expect from any government or social system is that it tries to prevent starvation, and above all that it does not promote policies that deny food to hungry people.
African food sovereignty or AGRA
Mukoma wa Ngugi
2007-12-12, Issue 332
Mukoma Wa Ngugi speaks to the dangers surrounding the Bill Gates initiative - Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)