Pambazuka News 326: Robbing Peter to pay Paul: the Mo Ibrahim prize

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This week's AU Monitor brings news and critical analysis of the African Union. An editorial from the Africa Agenda criticizes the "Grand Debate on the African Union" as failing to look at the challenges facing the formation of a united continental government or follow through with commitments. The analysis therefore concluded that " It is up to civil society groups, activists and other proponents of the Union Government of Africa to work towards the realisation of Africa's redeeming dream by ...read more

On the heels of the High Level Panel’s invitation for e-submissions, the AU Monitor urged African civil society and citizens to contribute to the process of a “Peoples’ Audit of the AU”. This week, the AU Monitor brings you the perspective of Charles Mutasa, AFRODAD Executive Director and Deputy Presiding Officer of ECOSOCC, which provides critique and analysis of ECOSOCC, along with a policy brief from AfriMap that provides recommendations for open, democratic and transparent AU policies an...read more

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, in his 27th year of rule, is ignoring approaches from former South African president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela to step down, reports have said. The usually reliable weekly Zimbabwe Independent, quoting unnamed sources, also said that former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan had tried to meet with Mugabe to discuss his retirement, but he too had been ignored. No comment could be obtained from Mugabe's office.

Hunger and HIV/AIDS are reinforcing each other in Southern Africa, "leading to a potentially tragic new level of famine", says a book published by a regional agricultural think-tank. The World Bank's annual report, released last week, also raises concerns over the pandemic's impact, pointing out that most people affected by HIV and AIDS depend on agriculture.

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