Chinese land grabs in Africa are a media myth and the country's involvement across the continent is nowhere near as dominant as reports suggest, according to regional expert Professor Deborah Brautigam. Speaking at Citywire Berlin 2012 Professor Brautigam, director of the international development programme at John Hopkins University/SAIS and author of 'The Dragon's Gift:The Real Story of China in Africa', said there is a belief that China's investment in Africa is purely to procure land and natural resources for its' own ends. 'I think these myths persist because people are not looking very closely at the evidence and, in fact, they are not interested in looking closely at the evidence,' she said.

The Civil Society on Monday launched a campaign against corruption which they said would go on until Government takes action on corrupt public officials. Representative s of various civil society organizations converged at Uganda Manufacturing Association Hall in Nakawa dressed in black T-shirts wielding placards with anti-corruption slogans. Leading the group, Irene Ovonji-Odida from Action Aid International Board of Trustees, said wearing black symbolized they had started mourning and mobilizing citizens to rise up against the evil of corruption.

Kenya was elected on Monday 12 November to one of the coveted seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council. There was no expressed opposition to Kenya in the 193-nation General Assembly, which decides the make-up of the 47-member council. Kenya was one of five countries nominated to fill five open seats on the Geneva-based council that are reserved for African states.

The Tanzanian Budget Explorer is an initiative to make information about the way the Treasury allocates taxpayers money more accessible: transparent, easy to understand and exciting to follow. Public access to information about how the government spends money in Tanzania is beginning to improve. When available in reports or budget books, however, this information often is too bulky and complex to grasp. It can be a time consuming job to understand, and many people simply don’t have time to invest in doing it.

The mining arm of Israeli billionaire Beny Steinmetz's business empire has accused the government of Guinea of seeking to 'illegally seize' its assets through a probe into how it won rights to mine part of a major iron ore deposit. Privately owned BSG Resources, which has been working in the West African country with Brazilian mining major Vale, confirmed it had received a letter from a government commission alleging improper behaviour and graft in its winning of rights to develop blocks in the Simandou region.

735 police complaints of sexual harassment were recorded over the four-day Eid al-Adha holiday that ended October 29, according to a statement released by the Egyptian government. Sexual harassment continues to hit Egypt with increasing reports of incidents taking place across the country. Yet, Egyptians today acknowledge this long-standing problem exists, and growing social mobilization has brought together men and women in the fight against harassment.

More than 3.5 million people in Sudan's conflict-plagued Darfur region will be vaccinated against yellow fever which is suspected of killing nearly 100 people in the past seven weeks, officials said. '(The) vaccination plan has been finalised and will cover vaccination of approximately 3.6 million,' said a joint report from the UN's World Health Organisation and Sudan's health ministry. A WHO official earlier told AFP the inoculations could possibly begin by early December, after reconfirmation of the diagnosis from a laboratory in Senegal.

Are the rights of women seriously under threat in post-revolution countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya? There are grounds for concern, but it is too early to tell, activists and experts say. 'There is very little that you can say in terms of rollbacks or undermining of women’s rights ... anything specific,' said Liesl Gernholtz, head of the women’s rights division at Human Rights Watch. Women organised and led some of the demonstrations that toppled decades-old governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen – and helped the rebels who overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in Libya.

South African opposition parties have submitted a motion of no confidence against President Jacob Zuma saying that corruption and unemployment have risen, the justice system has been politicised, and the economy has weakened. The motion, backed by eight parties, was triggered by the recent deadly mine strikes, the downgrading of the country's credit rating by two major agencies, and big spending of state funds on Zuma's rural residence, according to a joint statement by the parties.

The world's wealthy countries often criticise African nations for corruption - especially that perpetrated by those among the continent's government and business leaders who abuse their positions by looting tens of billions of dollars in national assets or the profits from state-owned enterprises that could otherwise be used to relieve the plight of some of the world's poorest peoples. Yet the West is culpable too in that it often looks the other way when that same dirty money is channelled into bank accounts in Europe and the US. In this excellent investigation shown on Al Jazeera, Zimbabwean journalist Stanley Kwenda takes a journey through the murky world offshore banking.

In 2001 Brazil invested $69 billion in Africa. By 2009, the latest figures available, that had swelled to $214 billion. At first Brazilian firms focused their efforts on Lusophone Africa, Angola and Mozambique in particular, capitalising on linguistic and cultural affinity to gain a foothold. Now they are spreading across the continent, reports this Economist article.

Lawmakers moved a step closer Tuesday 13 November to approving a bill that would harshly crack down on gay rights, including banning same-sex marriage and public displays of affection between homosexual couples. The bill which has already been approved by the Senate passed a second reading in the House of Representatives with an unanimous vote and will now see a clause-by-clause review in the chamber at an undetermined date.

Zimbabwe's newspapers are filled with public notices for auctions as many other individuals and companies lose their property to banks and money-lenders after falling behind on loan repayments. The country's financial sector has enjoyed three years of economic growth following the adoption of multiple currencies in early 2009 and an end to a tumultuous trading period characterized by record inflation, bank closures and failures. Buoyed by phenomenal growth in deposits and a steady currency, many banks have introduced personal bank loans to attract new clients.

West African nations have agreed to send a 3,300-strong invasion force to take back northern Mali from Islamists. The agreement occurred at an emergency summit of ECOWAS, a bloc of West African nations that has been discussing military actions in Mali for the last several months.

This article analyzes the impact of agro-industrial policies on women and the key role that peasant women in the Global North and South play in the production and distribution of food. It analyzes how the dominant agricultural model can incorporate a feminist perspective and how the social movements that work towards food sovereignty can incorporate a feminist perspective.

Zimbabweans providing cheap labour in the fast-growing Chinese mines bear the brunt of extremely harsh conditions and low wages, a Johannesburg-based advocacy group, Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW) reveals in its research, the first such report detailing China's labour practices in the country. Hard labour, exposure to risky conditions, violation of labour laws, long working hours, non payment of overtime, disregard of public holidays and use of Chinese language in corporate literature were among extreme conditions faced by workers at most Chinese interests in Zimbabwe, the report said.

An Ethiopia woman revealed that she was the victim of sex slavery after she attempted to find work as a domestic worker in Saudi Arabia. For H, who asked that her identity remain anonymous, her ordeal began after she took a boat to Yemen, where after two months she was able to cross into Saudi Arabia and was hired by what she told Bikyamasr.com was a 'nice couple' for a 'decent salary.' Tens of thousands of Ethiopian migrants and refugees have entered Yemen since the end of July, according to a new report published by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC).

The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Cameroonian officials to drop criminal charges against a journalist arrested last month in the southwestern town of Buea for covering a secessionist gathering. The journalist is free on bail but faces a fine and up to six months in jail. Baature Edua Mvochou, a Nigerian national and editor of African Drum magazine published [in] Jos, Nigeria, still faces a charge of unlawful assembly.

Iran is making calculated steps to bolster trade in the continent. Due to sanctions, Iran’s economy – heavily dependent on oil revenue - has suffered and inflation has risen. Iran has been trying to use its crude oil as leverage, but trade with the West has gone down.

In this blog entry, Julia Farrington, Head of Arts at Index on Censorship, reports on the launch of Arstfex, the first international civil society network dedicated to promoting free expression for artists. 'There are clearly parallels between investigative journalists and artists who reveal uncomfortable truths. But when controversy breaks, artists are much more exposed because they use their own personal language to tell the story, and bring their own experience and imagination into the narrative.'

A 21 October attack in Guinea-Bissau - when soldiers stormed barracks near Bissau's main airport, targeting military figures and leaving six people dead - has provoked more fear than the numerous coups and counter-coups of recent years. The transitional government branded the attack a coup attempt, and accused former colonial power Portugal of backing it in an attempt to propel former Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior, who is in exile there, back into power. Within days, alleged coup leader Captain Pansau N'Tchama was arrested on the island of Bolama, in the Bijagos archipelago. He is expected to face a military court later in the year.

Mercy Womeh attends the J Chauncey Goodridge school in Monrovia, Liberia's capital. She pays her school fees by crushing rocks, earning 35 Liberian dollars ($0.47) for each bucket. Three years ago, her family moved from the countryside to the Monrovia suburb of Gbawe Town to find work. But in a country with 85% unemployment, crushing rocks was the only option.

This paper analyses through empirical data women’s reality in Northern Mozambique related to land tenure. Two different kinship systems coexist in Mozambique, one patrilineal in force in Southern Mozambique and one matrilineal in parts of the centre and North of the country. The paper argues that in the current context, the right of women to access and administer land is being limited not so much by traditional and customary social rules and law, but rather by the adverse socioeconomic context which characterizes the whole peasant sector.

Reporters Without Borders says it is relieved to learn that radio reporter Hassan Ruvakuki was finally allowed to testify to the court in the central city of Gitega that is hearing his appeal against his terrorism conviction, for which he was given a life sentence last June. Prosecutor-general Emmanuel Nyandwi thinks that the mere fact the Ruvakuki entered Tanzania clandestinely, and without getting permission from his employer, shows that he was linked to the 'terrorist' group.

Researchers unveiling critical trial results of a potentially major anti-malaria vaccine are expressing disappointment that the drug’s efficacy levels have proved lower than they had anticipated. Following on decades of research, the third phase of testing on a vaccine known as RTS,S found that the drug reduced malaria rates among infants (age six to 12 weeks) by about a third, far lower than expected. The study, funded largely by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is part of the largest malaria trial ever conducted, taking place in seven African countries.

On Monday 12 November police in Bulawayo arrested 79 members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) for staging a peaceful demonstration against the water crisis in the city. All the activists were released after police realized the holding cells at police stations were without running water, a scenario that could have made the situation even worse.

With South Africa still reeling from mining sector strikes in Marikana, Cosatu has called for nationwide stay-way in the agriculture sector in support of farmworkers in De Doorns who today entered their second week of striking for higher wages. Passop’s organiser in De Doorns, Owen Maromo, said none of the striking farmworkers reported to work. He said about 5,000 strikers had gathered on an open field in the Stofland informal settlement waiting for Cosatu provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich to address them.

With just over one year left to achieve its target of having some 1.1 million men circumcised as part of HIV-prevention efforts, Kenyan male circumcision programmes are ramping up efforts to bring more men into clinics, compensating them for their time and encouraging them to bring friends in for the procedure.

When it comes to social media's heavy hitters, there are no bigger players than Facebook or Twitter, right? Not if you're in South Africa. Mobile network Mxit claims to have nearly 10 million users in the country, making it South Africa's most popular social media platform by far, eclipsing Facebook's six million users and Twitter's 1.1 million subscribers. Founded seven years ago by Namibian-born software developer Herman Heunis, Mxit has grown from an instant messaging application into a global mobile social network.

There is a new, but deceptive, foreign drive to end hunger in Africa through large-scale agribusiness. Yet helping poor households in rural Africa feed themselves in an affordable manner means introducing low-cost, sustainable enhancements to farming.

Islamic militancy has taken root in various parts of Africa over the past decade. This problem will not be solved by the US-driven war on terror. The roots of this virulent streak of Islam need to be understood and tackled.

The Sudanese government is involved in grave human rights violations against blacks in the Nuba Mountains and other areas. The state is also targeting human rights defenders and other activists for speaking out against the killings and destruction.

It has once again happened that intellectual freedom has been curtailed in Uganda following the raid by police of an anti-discrimination play by Talented Ugandan Kuchus (TUK), a group of young talented performers whose message is of non-discrimination.

The production titled ‘Lighting the Shadows’ was rudely interrupted by one gentleman who had several policemen to back him. The audience was dispersed and so was the cast. Everyone was ordered out of the theatre. The Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights and Constitutional Law (CSCHRCL) was one of the major sponsors of this advocacy event to which the public as well as the diplomatic corps were invited.

Jeff Ogwaro, CSCHRCL Co-coordinator, Kampala Uganda

Two South African organisations, the SA Artists Against Apartheid collective and BDS South Africa, have written an open letter to the organizers of the upcoming Cape Town World Music Festival calling on the Festival to #DropIsrael from its program.

Civil society organisations line up activities ahead of the national anti-corruption week in December.

In Zimbabwe, HIV positive mothers and soon-to-be mothers used to be sterilised. The procedure was seen as the only way of preventing the transmission of HIV to their unborn or newborn babies. Now the tide has turned. Medical advances mean HIV mothers have a much better chance of having healthy babies. And some women are now seeking compensation from the government.

'I don't want to die of hunger and cold,' says Patrick, one of many sub-Saharan migrants in Morocco desperate to reach Spanish shores and start a new life in Europe as winter approaches. More than 90 of them, including women and children, have died in the past two weeks as they braved the perilous crossing, according to a toll calculated from reports by Spanish and Moroccan authorities and members of the African migrant community.

Egypt's national body for women's issues, the National Council for Women, held a conference on Monday entitled 'Egyptian women reject the draft constitution'. According to the Council's head, Mervat El-Tellawy, the draft constitution has not taken into consideration various international charters and agreements which Egypt has signed. Furthermore, the Al-Azhar document of suggested principles for all parties to abide by while writing the constitution has not been incorporated into the draft.

Following widespread land wrangles in the oil-rich Albertine region, the Ministry of Lands has announced plans to resolve this through guidelines to aid in compensation of customary land owners. 'It is crucial at the moment since people’s rights are at stake and we have the responsibility of protecting the poor and their property. We therefore have to put in place guidelines to ensure that those big oil companies and investors have an arrangement to adhere to and operate within the laws,' Ministry spokesman, Dennis Obbo, told Oil in Uganda.

The plight of women in Swaziland is far from over as parliamentarians opposed the protection of women from stalking. Senators were discussing the longstanding Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Bill of 2000. The proposed law seeks to protect among others women from unlawful stalking. The senators argued that stalking was part of social cultural norms hence proscribing it will violate the culture of Swazis.

One of Swaziland’s most vocal pro-democracy groups has called for a new law to ban hate speech against homosexuals. The call by the Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN) follows a debate in the Swazi House of Assembly in which MP Aaron Sotsha Dladla called for gays and lesbians to be outlawed in the kingdom. Dladla said a new law should be put in place to deal with ‘this mushrooming anti-social’ behaviour of gays and lesbians. He went on to make a number of disparaging comments about homosexuals.

A woman is killed every eight hours in South Africa, the Medical Research Council (MRC) told MPs. The number of femicides identified had decreased from 3793 in 1999 to 2363 in 2009, MRC researchers told Parliament’s portfolio committees on health, and women, children and people with disabilities. It was presenting the findings of its latest study into female murders.

Rapid urbanisation is being portrayed – by the UN, the World Bank and many others – as a potential developmental 'silver bullet' for Africa. Cities, we are frequently told, will be the drivers of economic growth and poverty reduction on the continent in the years to come. At present, such claims are too simplistic, and counter-productively over-optimistic, states this article from Africa Review.

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo is no stranger to controversy, especially in Sierra Leone. This time round he has angered opposition supporters by openly endorsing and campaigning for the incumbent President Ernest Bai Koroma ahead of elections set for November 17. The former Nigerian leader arrived in Freetown Sunday unannounced, reportedly aboard a presidential jet, and was flown out of the capital in a government-provided helicopter to where President Koroma was canvassing for votes.

More than two million Nigerians have been forced from their homes by this year's floods, officials say. The National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) says the heavy rains killed 363 people since July. The worst floods in five decades have affected many areas of the country - especially near the River Niger.

The month of October has seen a significant escalation of aerial bombardment by the Sudanese government in Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) controlled areas of South Kordofan. Nuba Reports journalists confirmed 102 bombs, double the 51 bombs dropped in September. Of these 102 bombs, 81 targeted civilians areas not under ground attack by either the Sudan People's Liberation Army-North (SPLA-N) or Sudan government forces. Not a single bomb dropped into these civilian sites killed or wounded an SPLA-N solider, the intended target.

Malawi has suspended laws against same-sex relationships pending a decision on whether to repeal the legislation, the justice minister has said.

A severe outbreak of Trachoma has been reported in Karamoja with at least 50,000 people in dire need of urgent eye surgery to prevent blindness. The disclosure was made by the State Minister of Primary Health Care Sarah Opendi in Moroto town. The Minister attributed the outbreak on the lack of toilet facilities.

A group of Mauritanian bloggers launched a blogging campaign under the theme 'Against foreign mining companies' at the beginning of October. For the bloggers, this campaign was intended to share their opinions about the issue of foreign companies, accused of looting Mauritania's mineral wealth. This campaign was inaugurated by publishing a series of posts at the same time, and continued for a week.