Pambazuka News 495: Oil-dependency and food: Livelihoods at risk
Pambazuka News 495: Oil-dependency and food: Livelihoods at risk
Community-based care delivered to adults living with HIV by people living with HIV using mobile technologies provided care as safe and effective as clinic-based care, researchers report in the advance online edition of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. This prospective community randomised clinical pilot study was conducted in villages surrounding a rural clinic in western Kenya from March 2006 to April 2008.
Social movements from around the world are mobilizing for the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP 16) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that will take place in Cancun from 29 November to 10 December 2010. The COP 15 in Copenhagen demonstrated governments' incapacity to tackle the root causes of the current climate chaos. At the very last moment, the US undemocratically pushed through the so called "Copenhagen accord", in an attempt to move the debate out of the UN and the Kyoto promises and to favor even more voluntarily free market solutions.
Over 30 laureates of the Right Livelihood Award, known as the ‘alternative Nobel Prize’, have signed an open letter to President Khama of Botswana urging him to allow the Bushmen access to water. The appeal comes as world experts arrive in Stockholm for World Water Week, and ahead of the Right Livelihood Award conference in Bonn, 14-19th September. It follows the UN’s adoption of water as a human right in July.
The recent mass rapes in a mineral-rich area of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo underscore the urgency of a new U.S. law to certify consumer goods free of "conflict minerals" tied to the violence. The law may be hard to enforce but supporters have high hopes
This report suggests that the racist attacks that occurred in South Africa in 2008 were rooted in the micro-politics of townships and informal settlements. The author argues that violence was used as a means to drive foreigners out of South Africa and thereby decrease competition for jobs and other scarce resources.
Kenya’s Gay community celebrated the promulgation of the New Constitution and applauded President Mwai Kibaki for signing it into law to take effect henceforth. After the promulgation of the new law, the gay community converged in a leafy suburb of Nairobi to launch independent condom and water based lubrication distribution system for the Men having Sex with other Men (MSM) Program, dubbed Safe Sex Express Theme.
The impact of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in the economic, social, cultural, political and individual spheres of life is widely accepted and recognised world over. ICTs give the young generation a whole range of opportunities; socializing and exposure, employment, getting information, doing research etc. It is widely accepted that the use of ICT can have a major influence on how learners approach learning, now and in the future.
South Africa has failed to increase its research and development spending to one per cent of GDP by 2008–09, according to data published by the Department of Science and Technology this morning (9 September). The news, which appears in the country's annual research and development (R&D) survey that tracks public and private R&D expenditure, has disappointed the country's scientists and could set a bad precedent for other African countries.
The potential of mobile telephony to transform Africa will only be achieved if the development of other infrastructure keeps pace, says a study. The number of mobile phone subscribers in Africa soared from 16 million in 2000 to 376 million in 2008, with 60 per cent of the population using them in 2008 compared with 10 per cent in 1999.
Conditions in Mugunga camp for displaced people on the outskirts of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma are tough, but tougher still are those endured by hundreds of people from the Bambuti Pygmy community living just outside the camp. “We can’t plant seeds here,” said Bambuti chief Mupepa Muhindo, scratching the ground, which is littered with lava from a 2002 volcanic eruption. “It's not possible to cultivate the land.” The Bambuti are believed to be among Central Africa’s oldest inhabitants. For generations they were nomadic forest-dwellers, living off the land, hunting and gathering.
In this week's roundup of emerging powers news, a new centre offers sounding board for Chinese firms pursuing African investments, China holds workshop on investment in Africa, SA and India to team up for business into Africa, Biofuels companies buy African land, cause deforestation, and food-output loss, and the $400m Africa-Brazil cable is on its way.
The United Nations declared 2010 the Year of Biodiversity. But 17 years after the Convention on Biological Diversity was adopted at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, the issue of biopiracy is still pitching North against South. Researchers and activists have coined the term biopiracy, "the theft of genetic resources", to describe corporations’ practice of securing "profitable private monopolies by staking out patent claims on Africa’s genes, plants, and related traditional knowledge", according to the African Centre for Biosafety (ACB), based in South Africa.
iCON Women and Young People’s Academy (IWYPLA) is pleased to announce its Call for Applications for the “2010 ICON WOMEN IN BUSINESS TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP FELLOWSHIP” programme.
In the wake of South Africa’s public sector strike, Leonard Gentle cuts through the negativity towards the strikers presented by much of the media and argues that the situation overall may well prove ‘a watershed in South African politics’. While officialdom has sought to demonise the strikers, their concerns around high interest rates, debt, high costs and inadequate pay may well come to chime with further disillusionment across key components of the ANC’s (African National Congress) base, Gentle writes.
With International Literacy Day having taken place on 8 September, Steve Sharra considers the significance of ‘literacy’ in the Malawian context. Literacy – understood in a broad sense to include more than merely the capacity to read and write – should be at the heart of efforts to improve livelihoods and rights, while the country’s domestic book industry and greater digital resources should be embraced, Sharra contends.
Thank you very much for publishing , opposing its stance on GMOs. It is hard to find articulate material to help oppose GMOs.
As you might know, Brazil is another big experimental plot for transgenics, as soybeans for cattle feed and sugar cane for fuel continue to occupy lands that should be used to grow food. I will be sending your letter to the Observatório Social and others who might be interested.
On Tuesday 14 September from 6:00pm to 7:30pm, the Royal African Society hosts the launch of at the Brunei Gallery (SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG).
SPEAKERS
- Ellen Aaku (winner of the 2007 Commonwealth Short Story Competition and
contributor to the anthology)
- Susan Akono (also known as Sylvie Aboa-Bradwell – director of African Peoples
Advocacy and contributor to the anthology)
- Yaba Badoe (novelist and documentary filmmaker)
- Anne Serafin (co-editor of the anthology)
CHAIRED BY
- Margaret Busby OBE
Please RSVP at [email][email protected]
South Africa’s post-World Cup return to reality, Rwanda’s displeasure at a UN report accusing its forces of the massacre of Hutu refugees in DRC, and the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS in Swaziland are among the stories covered in this week’s round-up of the African blogosphere, collated by Dibussi Tande.
There’s been a billion-dollar drop in international aid for developing country HIV/AIDS programmes over the past two years, but levels of HIV infection and mortality from AIDS remain unacceptably high. As rich countries pursue stronger protections for private intellectual property rights, further limiting poor countries’ ability to produce cheaper generic medicines including anti-retrovirals, Riaz K. Tayob considers the impact on social rights to health.
Gijsbert Oonk’s history of the Karimjee Jeevanjis, a prominent South Asian family in the East Coast of Africa, speaks ‘volumes on the era of migration and issues of identity’, writes Fatma Alloo. Part of a wave of new writing ‘from Asian-African perspectives’, ‘it could be that now is the beginning of coming of age of a community which so far has engaged in life in East Africa, but has not put down in a concerted way from its own perspective what that life is and how they feel about it’, says Alloo.
Across the globe, from the floodplains of the Amazon to the foothills of the Himalayas, from Burmese forests to Ethiopia’s Omo Valley, peasant and indigenous communities are fighting against destructive dams. Dams have deprived hundreds of millions of people of their homes, farmlands, fisheries and forests. Millions more are threatened by projects that are planned or under construction, writes Peter Bosshard.
Farmers and civil society organisations around the world are outraged by the recent discovery of further connections between the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and agribusiness titan Monsanto, writes AGRA Watch. Given Monsanto’s history of disregard for the interests and well-being of small farmers around the world, the foundation’s connections to the company 'cast serious doubt' on its funding of agricultural development in Africa, as well as representing 'an enormous conflict of interests'.
Tanya Kerssen explores how the ‘global pursuit of fossil fuels’ is impacting on communities across oil-rich regions in Africa, and the prospects for food and fuel sovereignty in a world without cheap oil. ‘Ironically, those with the smallest ecological footprint on earth have born the highest cost,’ writes Kerssen, but these ‘beleaguered people – the small farmers, herders, fishers and artisans of the world – could hold the key to a more energy-efficient future.’
The Conference of the Democratic Left (CoDL) condemns government and ANC (African National Congress) attempts to curb media freedom in South Africa, made manifest in the Protection of Information Bill and the proposal to establish a statutory Media Appeals Tribunal. We also note that these measures come in the wake of attempts to increase government control of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) and the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), through the Icasa Amendment Bill and the Public Services Broadcasting Bill. Taken together, if this battery of legal reform is passed, the sum effect will ensure greater ANC influence and control of the media in general. Freedom of expression as a basic human right will be narrowed to ANC propaganda.
The Lesbian and Gay Equality Project (LGEP) fully supports the South African public sector employees’ demands for a decent living wage and good working conditions. We recognise that the strike action being undertaken by public sector workers comes after months of negotiations. Public sector unions have moderated their demands to a 8.6 per cent wage increase and R1,000 housing allowance. We also recognise that striking, historically and currently, is one of the only means of mobilising by workers once reasonable demands are not met.
Following a visit to the Shanghai Expo 2010, Kenneth King shares his insights into how 'the continent with the largest number of developing countries' represented itself to 'the largest developing country'.
No state in the world has recognised the Moroccan annexation of Western Sahara. Still, the EU is paying millions of euros annually to the government of Morocco to allow EU vessels to fish in the waters of Western Sahara. The EU fisheries activities in Western Sahara must immediately come to an end. Morocco continues to refuse to cooperate with the decolonisation process in Western Sahara, thereby defying more than 100 UN resolutions that insist on the Saharawi people’s right to self-determination. Simultaneously, Moroccan authorities commit human rights violations against Saharawis who voice their political views. No EU states, nor the UN, recognise the Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) condemns the brutal murder of journalist Abdullahi Omar Gedi of Radio Daljir, who was stabbed to death in Galkayo District of Mudug region around 8pm of Tuesday 31 August 2010.
regional office for West Africa is seeking a regional pan-African campaign coordinator to work with rural women’s associations in a campaign to promote family farming and food sovereignty. Deadline for applications extended to 15 September 2010.
To apply please submit a CV, a letter indicating your interest in the position, and how your skills and experience fit the criteria required to carry out this role, together with three references to [email][email protected].
MISSION
Fahamu (www.fahamu.org), Regional Office for West Africa, is seeking a regional pan-African campaign Coordinator, to work with Rural Women’s Associations in a campaign to promote family farming and food sovereignty.
The campaign is led by rural women's associations engaged in the practice and promotion of ecological agriculture. It is part of a global pan-African campaign conducted by a coalition of farmers’ organizations, farmers networks and African producers.
The rural women's associations, in a parallel and convergent way with the pan-African campaign, will conduct their own activities according to their needs and priorities. Having an independent yet related campaign, will give them voice and ensure they play a leading role in the pan-African campaign.
The campaign will initially cover West African countries, but shall gradually involve the other regions of the continent.
LOCATION
The Coordinator is based in Dakar, at Fahamu West Africa Office.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Fahamu seeks
- A Coordinator Project who will be responsible for :
• identification, mobilization, orientation, coordination of activities
• monitoring and evaluation of the campaign
• management and reporting of grants for the campaign
• fundraising for ongoing campaign activities
The Project Coordinator will:
• Work with rural women’s association networks, farmers platforms, producer organizations and potential partners, to develop campaign strategies and ensure their implementation.
• Coordinate, at the regional level, the activities undertaken in the different countries by local associations
• Conduct research to gather relevant information (studies, literature) to establish coherent and strong arguments on the issues and stakes of the campaign
• Develop relevant communication tools for the campaign and advocacy initiatives
• Document, guide, develop training and communication approaches for organizations and networks of women's organizations in order to sensitize and mobilize them
• Recruit and supervise consultants who will develop training modules to be delivered as part of the campaign
• Contribute to the elaboration of a joint advocacy programme for a regional campaign
• Conduct research partners
• Coordinate with other campaigns in order to promote family farming in Africa
• Organize / Participate in coordination meetings, workshops, advocacy and mobilization activities or the campaign
• Write reports of meetings, workshops and other activities
• Produce and coordinate the production of materials to publish in the Fahamu electronic newsletter Pambazuka News and on the site that will be created for the campaign.
QUALIFICATIONS
Fahamu seeks an expert in social sciences (Sociology of development, communication, etc.), fulfilling the following criteria:
• Good knowledge of issues related to agricultural development in Africa
• At least 5 years experience in strategic analysis, development and implementation and project management
• Bilingual in French and English
• Good skills in writing and oral communication
• Excellent organisational and time management skills
• Experience in fundraising
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice movements, including civil society networks
• Experience of working with African civil society, particularly women's organizations at grassroots level
• Computer skills (Microsoft Word, e-mail).
• Autonomy in work and ability to work independently
• Flexibility to travel
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In recent years, African farmers' organizations have expressed their fears and have developed resistance to agricultural policies oriented towards the world market rather than for local or national needs. In a context marked by multifaceted crises, African governments are more and more involved in these policies inspired and financed by multinational corporations and international institutions. Among other examples is the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa - AGRA).
But according to organizations and African farmers' organizations platforms, agricultural crises Africa is confronting require other solutions. The alternatives they advocate are more focused on the preservation and promotion of family farming that feed, produce surpluses and give them capacities to be competitive in our markets. This approach relies on the development of a peasant endogenous proven expertise, whose relevance depends on understanding the environment and agricultural practices more respectful of the preservation of the ecosystem.
This approach, whose aim is to ensure food sovereignty, is not yet supported by an organized, coherent, popular and well informed mobilization.
Peasant organizations and platforms of farmer organizations in Africa are therefore engaged in a coalition to lead a pan-African campaign to promote family farming through endogenous farmers' experiences based on agro-ecological approaches, as a response to cyclical agriculture and food crises and as alternatives to industrial agriculture oriented towards international markets.
These organizations include, among others, the Network of Farmers Organizations and Producers of West Africa (Réseau des Organisations Paysannes et des Producteurs d’Afrique de l’Ouest - ROPPA), African Biodiversity Network, Daughters of Mumbi / Jubilee South Africa (Kenya), the Coalition for the Protection of African Genetic Heritage (Coalition pour la Protection du Patrimoine Génétique africain - COPAGEN), the Guinean Association for the Relief of Women's Burden (l’Association Guinéenne pour l’Allègement des Charges des Femmes) the Network to Support West African and Tchad Rural Women Citizenship (Réseau d'appui à la citoyenneté des Femmes Rurales d'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Tchad - RESACIFROAT).
As part of a pan-African campaign, associations of rural women will undertake, in parallel, a joint campaign. This will give space and capacities to raise their voices, to highlight issues specific to them, to develop the endogenous practices which they are holders and assert their leadership. Women play key roles in agricultural production, providing 70% of food production, managing nearly 100% of processing activities, being involved in the maintenance of family herd and investing also on markets sales activities. Thus agricultural and food crises have a greater impact on them and install them in situations of extreme insecurity.
Campaign Objectives:
- Document and promote best practices and associated knowledge, known and perpetuated for generations in Africa (agroecology, endogenous production of seeds, etc.), ensuring the continent's food sovereignty
- Change attitudes and perceptions in relation to imposed social development model ;
- To alert decision makers for awareness and better governance;
- Develop practices related to family farming
DURATION OF PROJECT:
3 years
SALARY: GBP 18,000.00 per year
Deadline for applications: September 15, 2010
To apply please submit the following to the address at the top of this document.
- A CV
- A letter indicating your interest in the position, and how your skills and experience fit the criteria required to carry out this role.
- Three references
Availability: Immediate
Send your application to [email][email protected].
Professor Mahmood Mamdani is back in Uganda after more than a decade abroad with his last assignment at Colombia University where he was the Herbert Lehman Professor of Government in the Department of Anthropology and Political Science. He recently took a position at Makerere University as the director of Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR). Moses Mulondo talked to him about the new challenge, a federal Uganda and South Sudan.
The Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) is pleased to announce an opening for the position of Executive Director.
The Open Society Institute works to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. To achieve its mission, OSI seeks to shape public policies that assure greater fairness in political, legal, and economic systems and safeguard fundamental rights. On a local level, OSI implements a range of initiatives to advance justice, education, public health, and independent media. At the same time, OSI builds alliances across borders and continents on issues such as corruption and freedom of information. OSI places a high priority on protecting and improving the lives of marginalized people and communities.
Investor and philanthropist George Soros in 1993 created OSI as a private operating and grantmaking foundation to support his foundations in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Those foundations were established, starting in 1984, to help countries make the transition from communism. OSI has expanded the activities of the Soros foundations network to encompass the United States and more than 60 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Each Soros foundation relies on the expertise of boards composed of eminent citizens who determine individual agendas based on local priorities.
OSIWA is a private Foundation which supports, makes grants and advocates for initiatives that promote Open Society values in eight focus countries of West Africa (Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone). OSIWA’s principal niche is to build capacity of West African government institutions and civil society organizations through support to catalytic and innovative initiatives.
OSIWA operates programs around four major strategic pillars, which are Governance; Law, Justice and Human Rights; Health and Development; and Information Technology, Communication & Media. OSIWA has identified the following 5 strategic objectives, which will drive its interventions in 2010-2011: strengthened democratic institutions, processes and structures; reduced levels of impunity; enhanced citizenship and public participation in decision-making; enhanced protection of groups exposed to discrimination; and improved equity and transparency in the management of resources.
The core of OSIWA’s interventions has been built around promoting, strengthening and working towards ensuring credibility in the governance process by promoting transparency and accountability. The Foundation, therefore, pursues efforts to identify avenues for building the capacity of both public institutions and civil society to ensure good governance. OSIWA’s intervention strategies are at three levels: sub-regional based initiatives built around the ECOWAS to cover the countries under its mandate, working mainly at the policy level; using multi-country interventions that cover initiatives across a number of countries, with emphasis on the need to share experiences and address issues of various levels of similarities; initiatives that are supported within a single country or local council, and generally meant to serve as pilot cases for duplication in other countries and local communities, within and outside the area. The sub-regional and multi-country foci have given OSIWA the leverage to widen its program reach to all the countries in the sub-region.
A. Key Duties and Performance Areas
OSIWA leadership and development
• Provide strategic direction and initiative in the development of the foundation, constantly identifying opportunities and threats to the foundation and articulating leadership objectives in relation to these opportunities and threats.
• Conceptualize open society issues and strategies in the Western African context, effectively relating these to African and global trends and dynamics, and interpreting the same in leadership to stakeholders.
• Continually position OSIWA as a leader in promoting open societies in Western Africa, exploiting and developing the foundation’s ability to combine programming approaches ranging from advocacy, convening, grantmaking, capacity building, and work through partnerships.
OSIWA management
• Manage all aspects of OSIWA, including its human and financial resources.
• Assume and responsibly exercise overall legal and executive authority for the offices, programs, positioning, relationships, risks, assets and liabilities of OSIWA in Dakar, Abuja, Monrovia, Freetown and any other site out of which the Board may in future direct the location of OSIWA’s operations or those of its affiliates.
• Manage and develop responsive relationships with the foundation’s stakeholders.
• Report to and closely work with the foundation’s Board of Directors, effectively carrying out the mandate and directions of the Board as developed from time to time.
OSIWA partnerships, networking and communications
• Define and maintain strategic relationships with West African regional and national civil society partners, governments, private sector entities, and other actors relevant for the construction and sustenance of open societies in the region.
• Provide intellectual and strategic leadership and support to the heads of OSIWA spin offs including West Africa Democracy Radio (WADR) and West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI).
OSIWA fundraising and resource development
• Effectively raise resources for the foundation from traditional as well as new donors.
• Maintain strong and mutually enriching relationships with donor organizations working on human rights-related issues in the region.
B. Key Outcomes
An effective and highly dynamic foundation, maintaining its ability to proactively model African leadership on the complex challenges of West African societies today, with respect to the existence and depth of the ideals, institutions, policies, laws, and practice of open society.
C. Person Specifications
• At least a Master’s degree in a relevant discipline, preferably from the social sciences/ humanities or management sciences.
• Senior management experience within a multilateral, and/or donor organization.
• Evidence of creative leadership over at least five years in the not-for-profit sector, including demonstrable exposure to complex questions of leadership in the West African regional context, and a track record of delivery.
• Close knowledge of, and evidence of contribution to, the major discourses in human rights development and public policy in West Africa, including the nexus between these and broader African and international issues.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills;
• Fluency in English and French;
• Role competence as a Representative, including the possession of superior communication skills; ability to effectively operate in relevant regional languages beyond English and French will be a distinct advantage.
• Independent functionality with office computer packages such as MS Word, Excel, Internet and E-mail required.
• Commitment to social justice, human rights, and development.
• Strong ability to inspire others and to work in a team.
• Demonstrated experience in managing inter and intra-organizational relationships in complex organizational environments;
• Capacity to work long hours towards multiple objectives in a pressured environment, and to organize own work as well as information.
Start Date: Immediately
Compensation: Commensurate with experience. Excellent benefits package.
To Apply
Please email resume and cover letter with salary requirements before October 15, 2010 to: [email][email protected] Include job code in subject line: ED-OSIWA
OR
Open Society Institute
Human Resources – Code ED-OSIWA
400 West 59th Street
New York, New York 10019
FAX: 212.548.4675
No phone calls, please. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for an interview.
The Open Society Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE POSITION OF PROGRAMME OFFICER FOR FAHAMU
Fahamu has a vision of the world where people organise to emancipate themselves from all forms of oppression, recognise their social responsibilities, respect each other’s differences, and realise their full potential. Fahamu is looking for a qualified and passionate Programme Officer.
JOB DESCRIPTION
The Programme Officer will be responsible for the coordination of the Reclaim Project which seeks to support the African LGBTI and sex worker movements, enabling LGBTI and sex worker activists to strategize, gain new knowledge and skills, enhance consciousness, renew inspiration and vision while enhancing their leadership and well-being.
Duties and responsibilities:
• Lead Fahamu’s research and knowledge generation on LGBTI and sex worker issues.
• Develop strategic relations with the media continentally, support communication and outreach strategies for LGBTI and sex worker issues.
• Coordinate the design, development, reviewing and editing of movement building curricula and implement innovative learning methodologies.
• Research and conceptualize ways to further the innovative use of technologies to strengthen LGBTI and sex worker advocacy and human rights protection.
• Strengthen networks of LGBTI and sex worker organizations and activists across Africa with multiple stakeholders including the media and policy-makers through the provision of advocacy platforms at national and continental levels.
• Coordinate training of trainers, workshops and related events.
• Develop online platforms to provide on going support for the movement.
• Ensure timely and accurate planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting of project activities
• Assist in fundraising efforts to sustain the LGBTI and sex worker movements’ actions.
• Represent Fahamu at appropriate forums.
Person specifications:
• Undergraduate degree in a related field
• At least 6 years of experience in human rights and social justice
• Experience working with LGBTI and sex worker communities in Africa
• Experience in research and advocacy
• Experience in course and curriculum development
• Ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines
• Willingness to travel extensively throughout Africa
The successful candidate must be:
- An excellent communicator
- Committed to the cause and values of human rights and social justice
- Demonstrate leadership and initiative
- A second AU language
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
A competitive salary and benefit package will be provided. The salary will be dependent on experience, educational background and salary history of the successful candidate.
If interested submit your application letter and curriculum vitae by email to [email][email protected] Please include “Reclaim Programme Officer Application” in the subject line.
Deadline for application is 24th September 2010. Applications received after this date will not be considered. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
Fahamu is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Fahamu seeks suitable candidates to fill the position of programme officer to coordinate the Reclaim Project. This project seeks to support the African LGBTI and sex worker movements, enabling LGBTI and sex worker activists to strategise, gain new knowledge and skills, enhance consciousness and renew inspiration and vision while enhancing their leadership and well-being.
A new directive from Ethiopia’s Ministry of Education effectively outlaws distance learning and creates a monopoly for state-controlled universities to administer the disciplines of law and teaching, writes Alemayehu G. Mariam. While the official reason given for the sudden change in policy is concern for educational quality, Mariam hypothesises that it will enable the regime ‘to control two of the most important professions that have the greatest impact on the lives of the people’.
Fahamu has a vision of the world where people organise to emancipate themselves from all forms of oppression, recognise their social responsibilities, respect each other’s differences, and realise their full potential. Fahamu is looking for a qualified and passionate ICT Officer.
Job Description
The ICT officer will report to the Programme manager and be responsible for:
1. Providing ICT technical support for Fahamu offices.
2. Provide design support for Fahamu’s programs.
3. Create, update and manage the Fahamu website and associated program sites, including but not limited to the AU Monitor and the Emerging Powers in Africa sites, including, where appropriate, the migration of these sites to appropriate content management systems.
4. Create, update and manage partner and associated websites where support is required.
5. Provide advice and support to Fahamu’s program staff and partners to implement new media strategies in human rights and social justice protection and advocacy including where appropriate, through trainings and workshops and development of curricula.
6. Assist in the setting up and maintenance of the Pambazuka platform
7. Assist in the implementation of ICTs for learning including support for Fahamu’s distance learning courses and other online training platforms.
8. Assist in the development and update of Fahamu and partners’ online presence on Facebook, Twitter and other social networking platforms
9. Provide advice on Fahamu’s database management system.
10. Maintain Fahamu and partners’ listserves and online newsletters.
PERSON SPECIFICATIONS
Essential
• Competence with the following software: Macromedia technologies: Authorware, Flash, ActionScript, LINGO, Adobe Photoshop/PaintShop Pro, and Illustrator, HTML/Scripting languages
• Familiarity with video/sound editing: Adobe Premier, QuickTime Pro, Sound Edit 16/Cool Edit Pro
• Experience of Web development and issues of bandwidth and compatibility
• At least two years experience of developing CDROM and/or web base learning materials
• Experience with Win 98/2000/NT and Mac OS, and general computer hardware
• Competence in developing in Drupal, PHP5, XML and web 2.0 technologies.
• Comfortable with both PC and Mac platforms
• A degree in ICT from a recognized University or equivalent work experience
• Good understanding of design and layout
• Self-motivated/self-starter
• Experience in database management
• A keen interest and experience in innovating new and exciting ways of using ICT for social justice
Desirable
• Qualification in multimedia technologies
• Ability to nurture young activists in using ICTs for social justice
• Ability to provide ICT support to staff and partners with limited ICT knowledge and experience
• Ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines
• Commitment to the mission and values of the Fahamu
• Background in publishing
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
A competitive salary and benefit package will be provided. The salary will be dependent on experience, educational background and salary history of the successful candidate.
If interested submit your application letter and curriculum vitae by email to [email][email protected] Please include “ICT Officer application” in the subject line.
Deadline for application is 24th September 2010. Applications received after this date will not be considered. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
Fahamu is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Fahamu seeks a suitable, passionate individual to fill the position of ICT officer, based in Nairobi, Kenya. A competitive salary and benefit package will be provided. The salary will be dependent on the experience, educational background and salary history of the successful candidate. Deadline for application is 24 September 2010. Applications received after this date will not be considered. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
The Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) is pleased to announce the third Guy Mhone International Conference, under the auspices of its Economic Research Programme. The theme of this year’s conference is The Renaissance and Revival of African Economies. The conference is being convened in the context of the global economic crisis which should prompt a critical analysis of all aspects of socioeconomic development in Africa. The Guy Mhone Conference on Development is organised annually in honour of one of the most distinguished African development thinkers and former member of CODESRIA’s Executive Committee, the late Professor Guy Mhone. This year’s edition of the conference will be held from 20 to 21 December, 2010 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
African scholars interested in the growing relations between their continent and China will have a chance to debate this important topic at a meeting scheduled for 28-30 March 2011 in Nairobi, Kenya.
The conference will focus on the theme: 'Towards a new Africa–China partnership'. It will include the formal launching of a Pan-African Forum for Research and Dialogue on Africa-China Relations, in collaboration with Chinese academic institutions. It will seek to build a strong knowledge base on Africa-China relations within Africa, in order to support African policymakers in their engagement with China and the FOCAC.
For further information about this event, please contact:
Ebrima Sall
Executive Secretary
Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA)
Avenue Cheikh Anta Diop,
B.P. 3304 Dakar, Senegal
Tel : +221-33 824 03 74
Fax : +221-33 824 12 89
Email : [email][email protected]
In line with its mandate to promote high-level scientific and academic debates on various aspects of socioeconomic development in Africa, the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) hereby announces the 2010 edition of its Gender Symposium which will be held from 24 to 26 November, 2010 in Cairo, Egypt. The Gender Symposium is a forum organised annually by CODESRIA to discuss gender issues and their impacts on the development of the continent. The theme of this year’s edition is Gender, Migration and Socioeconomic Development in Africa.
It was social movements that mobilised many poor Kenyans to vote in the referendum, and it is social movements that must mobilise to ensure the country’s new constitution fulfils the people’s hopes for a better future, writes Gacheke Gachihi.
On 12 September to 6 October, the V International Awareness Campaign for the Freedom of Antonio Guerrero, René González, Fernando González, Gerardo Hernández and Ramón Labañino, the well-known Cuban Five unjustly imprisoned in the United States. Twelve years have passed since they were incarcerated, psychologically tortured and separated from their families and beloved ones. That it is why we shall join together, once again, to demand their liberation.
Mandela Park Backyarders have continued to stop the construction of houses in our community. Because of our efforts, construction has been unable to proceed for over two weeks - since the 17th of August. We have demanded that the MEC for Housing, Bonginkosi Madikizela, come and listen to our grievances. He had promised to come to our mass meeting last Sunday, the 29th of August. He didn't pitch. He again promised to come to our mass meeting on the 5th of September. We now hear that he won't be able to make it. We are still waiting for him.
The Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana, announces a bi-annual Kwame Nkrumah Pan-Afican Intellectual Cultural Festival to be organized under the auspices of the newly established Kwame Nkrumah Chair in African Studies, in honour of Nkrumah's dedication to a tradition of vigorous and liberating Africa-centred intellectual and cultural activity, such as was outlined in the major address he gave on the occasion of the formal opening in 1963 of the Institute of African Studies. Inspiration for such a festival comes from the example of the Annual Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Intellectual Festival Week of the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, under the auspices of the Julius Nyerere Professorial Chair in Pan-African Studies.
‘Responding to neo-colonialism and problematic developmental paradigms does not need to be done through a retreat to a glorious African past that creates a false opposition between US and THEM,’ writes Awino Okech.
‘Thank you for , writes Godfrey Kahangi. ‘It is time to be African. Colonisation de-cultured Africans and Africa, but the solutions to our problems should not be sourced from the western world, but necessitate a 'looking back' to the pre-colonial era.’
Fresh from a trip to the Gulf of Mexico, Nnimmo Bassey discusses the intertwining of oil and fishing within local livelihoods and suspicions that BP’s post-spill response has been more cover-up than clean-up.
Following a debate with chief World Bank economist Shanta Devarajan, Patrick Bond decries the bank’s ability to ignore its own research and continue to insist that Africa is growing richer per person. The bank’s emphasis on GDP (gross domestic product) entirely ignores the loss to African societies and environments from raw material extraction, while the ‘talk left, walk right’ stance of so many of its officials smacks of schizophrenia, Bond writes.
With South African Sunday Times reporter Mzilikazi wa Afrika arrested on Wednesday 4 August following complaints from Mpumalanga province premier David Mabuza, Jane Duncan writes about the alarming questions developing around freedom of expression in the country. But wa Afrika’s experience, Duncan stresses, will be far from alien to many local activists, who will be all too familiar with small-town repression, even if such stories prove to be routinely ignored by the mainstream media.
Following a trip to Vietnam, Horace Campbell charts the country’s history of anti-colonial struggle and its war with the US. At a time of ever greater cooperation in the form of the Vietnam–Africa International Forum, Campbell underlines what the African and Vietnamese people can learn from each other about their respective histories of resistance.
Congolese-Brazilian artist Mbiya 'Papy' Kabengele – whose work can be found at – displays a selection of his illustrations and cartoons.
Cries are not gender-biased; all beings experience sorrow and grief. Nevertheless, this piece speaks to the muted sounds of grief faced by women in all corners of the world; the thundered cries, however mighty, are stifled by the vilest of all. As a black woman there is an absence that is felt, it has always been there, an absence that speaks to black mothers, the divine woman that gets shattered – fragmented and scattered – by darkness and the in-conscience. If only we see the light beyond what veils us and catch a glimpse of love in its essence.
Following the visit of President Omar al-Bashir to Nairobi, L. Muthoni Wanyeki finds Kenya’s welcoming of Sudan’s president ‘unbelievable’.
As part of a broader effort to consider who’s who in Tanzanian society, Chambi Chachage discusses the reproduction of the country’s elite class and stresses that if you want to understand the underprivileged, you must also study the privileged.
A majority of African countries continue to be run by governments of greatly limited democratic clout, writes Ronald Elly Wanda, with multiparty politics and local people’s access to influence severely restricted.
Fahamu’s Refugee Programme is pleased to announce the September issue of the [pdf], a monthly publication that aims to provide a forum for providers of refugee legal aid. With a focus on the global South, it aims to serve the needs of legal aid providers as well as raise awareness of refugee concerns among the wider readership of Pambazuka News.
The newsletter follows recent developments in the interpretation of refugee law; case law precedents from other constituencies; reports and helpful resources for refugee legal aid NGOs; and stories of struggle and success in refugee legal aid work. It welcomes contributions from legal aid providers, refugees and others interested or involved in refugee legal aid.
I have never seen my mother cry before. Her grief is unstoppable, cannot be hidden. It seeps through all the walls. My mother, crying for Phiphidi Falls.
Although supportive of the right of South Africa’s public workers to strike, Shailja Patel says there's no excuse not to protect and defend the country’s most vulnerable.
Surveying a range of development-related literature, Phil ya Nangoloh considers the power and politics behind donors’ relationships to southern non-governmental organisations (SNGOs) and the potentially more progressive role of the ‘reverse agenda’.
Pambazuka News 494: Hiroshima and Nagasaki: Time for sanity and healing
Pambazuka News 494: Hiroshima and Nagasaki: Time for sanity and healing
The Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program is an international exchange program that offers practitioners, scholars, and journalists from around the world the opportunity to spend five months at the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), in Washington DC, in order to undertake independent research on democracy in a particular country or region. While in residence, fellows reflect on their experiences; engage with counterparts; conduct research and writing; consider best practices and lessons learned; and develop professional relationships within a global network of democracy advocates.
2010 marks an important period in the annals of Africa: it’s the year when a 10-year follow-up on the declaration of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) will be made, 5 year post the Gleneagles G8 Summit commitments, 26th anniversary of the Ethiopian famine that claimed the lives of millions, and a year when 17 African countries are marking their 50th anniversary since independence.
And in spite of making tremendous progress in economic, social and political spheres, Africa is still regarded by the international world as a failing, if not a failed continent.
As part of the Annual Meeting of the Africa Progress Panel (APP) held in Geneva, the APP organized a debate in front of an informed audience where answers were sought for the following questions:
Is Africa it’s own worst enemy?
Does Africa deserve special treatment?
Does the world need Africa more than Africa needs the world?
To view the trailer, please click
Delivery will be by FTP!
Please contact Farah Chaudhry on [email][email protected]
should you require the debate for broadcast purposes
In April 2008, the African Ministers of Health – in preparation for the Bamako Ministerial Forum on Research for Health – adopted the Algiers Declaration that expressed their commitment to reinforce national research systems for health. During the Bamako conference, health research leaders of western African countries, representatives of the West African Health Organization (WAHO) and international organisations discussed the status of research for health in West Africa.
A day after Kenyans voted to accept a new constitution, women across the country speak about their hopes and expectations.??The case of Elizabeth Chazima could stand for the story of millions of women in Kenya who have been robbed of their financial contributions to matrimonial assets. Speaking from her modest grocery store in Jericho Estate, Nairobi, Chazima recounts how in the early 1990s, her husband sold the house they had bought together without her knowledge.
Subsidies for agriculture in the industrialised countries of the world grew again in 2009, benefiting the largest companies and land owners, such as Prince Albert of Monaco and Queen Elizabeth of Britain. The latest increase came despite repeated and consistent evidence that such subsidies contribute to the destruction of the livelihoods of poor farmers in developing countries, especially in Africa, and that they distort international trade.
Have you ever walked past a car window and checked your reflection to make sure your hair looks just right? Perhaps spent an hour perfecting your make-up before you head out? Have you looked at Halle Berry's body and thought, "Ah, I wish I had that body?" I'm sure most women can relate to this constant quest to look good, but what is beauty -- just what does looking good mean today? Considering this is Women's Month in South Africa, I decided now was a good time to find out exactly what kind of woman I want to be.
Angola's ruling party will meet this week to examine a private report accusing members of the president's inner circle of corruption, a spokesman has said. The report, "The Angolan Presidency -- The Epicentre of Corruption", describes how people close to President Jose Eduardo dos Santos have taken control of the economy by securing stakes in firms in sectors ranging from oil to banking.
ASSOCHAM, India’s apex industry body, has sent a proposal to the external affairs ministry to consider tapping the emerging agricultural opportunities in Africa and offering to act as a facilitator to help Indian farmers reap the benefits of the huge potential that lie in Africa. “Hoping to address the huge issue of food shortage, these countries have begun inviting overseas farmers to come and cultivate their lands. These governments are willing to lease land free of cost for 99 years”, ASSOCHAM secretary general DS Rawat said.
Apeda has received an intimation from the Embassy of India in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), about investment opportunities for Indian entrepreneurs. DRC has 80 million hectares of rich arable soil with water resources and 1000 mm of annual rainfall. Maniac, maize, rice, groundnut, sugarcane, corn, sweet potatoes, bananas, yams, pineapples are the principal crops produced.
This video records a day in the life of Bibi Aminajati Kalema at Hiari Orphanage located in Chang'ombe, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
On a typically busy morning in North Kivu’s capital city Goma, nobody at the bank paid much attention to Bosco Ntaganda and his bodyguards. It had been a hectic few days for the rebel commander-turned-army general, who had also attended meetings with the provincial governor and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila.
The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) has started a new Journal called The Africa Women’s journal. The Journal is bi-annual publication with current issues and statistics on women’s development issues in Africa. We invite contributors to send well researched and analytical articles on the theme: The African Women’s Decade (2010-2020): A Decade of Triumph for African Women. The article must have current statistics with clear referencing.
Aid agencies are still barred from Kalma, the largest settlement for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sudan’s Southern Darfur State, 10 days after the government blocked the UN and NGOs from distributing food and medical aid to an estimated 82,000 IDPs. Tensions in Kalma rose on 25 July, at the conclusion of the latest round of peace talks in Doha, Qatar, with some IDPs claiming they were not fully represented. Protests inside the camp pitted the detractors, mainly the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) of Abdul Wahid Mohamed el-Nur, against supporters of the negotiations.
In this week's roundup of emerging powers news, US goes high-end to boost export trade with Afric, China unveils proposals for agricultural cooperation with Africa, Bank of China marks 10 years in South Africa, India signs $42 mln loan with Congo following debt relief, and Brazil's electronics sector eyes Africa.
Press Freedom is a right enjoyed by a privileged minority of South Africans. Our print media is controlled by a cartel of four corporations. Broadcast Media is dominated by the SABC. The profiteering of private media and commercialization of the SABC have seen the mass media catering to the expression and information needs of lucrative markets (LSM 8- 10) representing under 15% of South Africans.
Zimbabwe's government netted around $71 million from a major sell-off of rough diamonds from its controversial Chiadzwa diamond fields, the country's mining minister has said. On Wednesday, Zimbabwe resumed full-scale diamond exports by auctioning close to 1 million carats to international buyers at Harare airport.
A new report by the UN International Labour Organisation (ILO) on Thursday said global youth unemployment in 2009 soared to a record high and is expected to climb even higher as the year progresses. The report, entitled: 'ILO Global Employment Trends for Youth 2010', said that, 'of the world's 620 million economically-active youth, between the ages of 15 and 24, 81 million were out of work at the end of 2009, the highest number ever'.
By the end of a five-year 'Growth and Transformation Plan' (GTP)', Ethiopia will end its dependence on foreign food, Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi said. The Horn of African impoverished country has registered more that 10 percent annual growth over the past five years and expects to maintain accelerated rate of the trend in years to come.
Niger's National Advisory Council, a legislative organ overseeing the country's transition, is reviewing a draft Constitution aimed at returning the landlocked west African nation to democracy. The document, laid out in 14 titles and 190 articles, is based on the texts of a previous Constitution, in force until the military coup of 18 February that toppled the regime of President Mamadou Tandja.
Angolan lawyer Suzana Antonio da Conceiçao Nicolau Ingles, was unanimously elected by the National Assembly as the chairperson of the National Electoral Commission (CNE). She was elected during the third extraordinary session of the National Assembly, led by speaker Antonio Paulo Kassoma.
The Board of Directors of the World Bank (WB) ap proved a loan of US$ 25.5 million for Mauritania for the additional financing of the programme of urban development (PDU), a source close to the bank announced. These funds will serve to support the efforts of the Mauritanian government to improve the access to basic infrastructures in urban areas, particularly for the disadvantaged zones.
Despite some resistance, the fight against female genital mutilations (FGM) has recorded significant progress in Mali, with over 400 villages putting a stop to the practice. According to the directorate of the National Programme of the Fight against Excision (PNLE), the good result arose from intense advocacy and sensitization programme across the country.
Pressure on African nations for elections - Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo has lashed out at major world powers for putting pressure on African countries to organise elections. "On the issue of elections, I say to many of our friends that nobody can be more concerned than the Ivorians themselves." he said.
An estimated 5,000 refugees troop into the country every month, according to the United Nations. Most of them find their way through the porous Kenya-Somalia border (4,000) to cap the number of foreigners seeking asylum in Kenya at 400,000. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said that a contingency plan had already been put in place in case the situation in Somalia worsened.
Sierra Leone's human rights body has urged the government and the special court in The Hague to "retrieve the blood diamonds" that Naomi Campbell was given by war crimes accused Charles Taylor. "We have urged both parties to contact the South African government for the diamonds to be handed over to Sierra Leone," human rights commissioner Yasmin Jusu-Sheriff told journalists.
Thirty Egyptians, aged 18 to 28, joined hands to produce 10 social advertisements, aimed at social reform.
The project, aptly named Closing The Gap, consisted of three phases held in partnership between The Egyptian Life Center for Creativity and Culture jointly with Freedom House.
Four bodies have been found in an unused shaft of a mine run by relatives of South Africa's President Jacob Zuma and ex-leader Nelson Mandela. Police said investigations were continuing into reports that up to 20 alleged illegal miners were shot dead by security at the mine.
French officials have condemned a senior soldier who was filmed threatening a Togolese journalist. In a video released on YouTube, Lt Col Romuald Letondot is shown ordering the journalist to delete images from his camera during a protest in Lome.
Investigators in Uganda have arrested four men who they say masterminded twin bomb attacks that killed more than 70 people last month. The men, all of them Ugandan, admitted their involvement in the Kampala attacks during a news conference. They all spoke of their role in the attacks that struck a restaurant and a rugby club - the venues hosting fans watching the World Cup football final.
Uganda's rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has been accused of going on a massive forced recruitment campaign in remote areas of central Africa. Human Rights Watch said the group had brutally abducted at least 697 adults and children over the past 18 months.
Following last year’s Copenhagen Climate Summit, the five days of negotiations in Bonn last week in preparation for the big climate change meeting in Cancun, Mexico, at the end of the year, has been met by a profound display of disinterest.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has just released a document on the media for its National General Council (NGC) meeting, scheduled for September. The document, entitled 'Media transformation, ownership and diversity', claims to build on a resolution adopted at the ANC's 2007 Polokwane conference, as well as a me
Umuorie Isimiri Community is located in Ukwa West Local Government Area of Abia State. Umuorie Isimiri is an hour and 20 minutes drive from Umuahia, capital of Abia State. It is a community of about 5,000 people, made up of mostly farmers. Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Isimiri Flow Station in Umuorie Isimiri Community is by the Imo River at the boundary between Abia and Rivers State. ERA monitors visited the community on 3 August 2010 to ascertain SPDC level of compliance with a court judgement delivered by Court of Appeal Owerri, Imo State ordering it to pay special damages of N1.49 billion to the community for oil spill and environmental degradation.
When Timothy was forced into the southern Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) at age 11, the first thing they did was beat him. Then they took him to a military base where his tasks were to carry other soldiers’ bags, wash their clothes, collect firewood for them, and cook their food. Getting fed himself was tough for Timothy.
It is 11 am and Mary Jusa seems unconcerned by the sun beating hard on her back. Humming a traditional tune, she carries on uprooting weeds in her maize field between two water canals. One of 24 members of this irrigation scheme in the rural district of Thyolo, Jusa’s plot measures just 50 by 20 metres. But she says it gives her enough income to meet the basic needs of her family of three children. She attributes her success to agricultural extension services.
By the time Thandi Khumalo* brought her seven-month-old daughter to the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town, help came too late. The infant had developed acute diarrhoea and kwashiorkor, a condition caused by severe protein and calorie deficiency, and died a few days after being admitted.
While an estimated 880 000 people – most of them young children – die each year of malaria in the developing world, we may underestimate the potential effects of continued DDT use on future generations. In South Africa, as in several other developing countries, the use of the powerful insecticide DDT is allowed for malaria control in high-risk areas such as KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo.
Tuberculosis remains a major public health problem. Approximately 1.7 billion people worldwide are infected with TB, with 8 million new cases and 3 million deaths per year. It is estimated that 35 million people will have died of TB by the year 2020. In 2004, it was estimated that more than 4% of the world’s infected people living with active TB were in South Africa. During this period, South Africa accounted for about 2% of the world’s new TB cases and approximately 3% of the total TB deaths.
Following reports of poor harvest expectations in central and southern provinces due to a prolonged dry spell, an FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM) visited the country from 6 to 29 May 2010. The Mission evaluated food crop production in the 2009/10 agricultural season, assessed the overall food supply situation, forecast cereal import requirements and possible exports in marketing year 2010/11 (April/March) and determined the eventual food aid needs.
Giant hydroelectric dams being built or planned in remote areas of Brazil, Ethiopia, Malaysia, Peru and Guyana will devastate tribal communities by forcing people off their land or destroying hunting and fishing grounds, according to a report by Survival International. The first global assessment of the impact of the dams on tribes suggests more than 300,000 indigenous people could be pushed towards economic ruin and, in the case of some isolated Brazilian groups, to extinction.
August 12th marks the 25th International Youth Day, which is also the launch at the United Nations of the International Year of Youth. The year-long commemoration, whose theme is dialogue and mutual understanding, aims to encourage the full and effective participation of youth in all aspects of society. UNFPA is sponsoring activities throughout the year to ensure that young people's voices are heard at the highest levels, including at the September Millennium Development Goals Summit.