Despite its noble intentions, the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) 2001-2003 policy strategies have not adequately addressed the constraints that women and other poor groups face, a report has revealed. The report titled: ‘Engendering Uganda's poverty Eradication initiatives’, dated May 2003 says that the taxation system is of a greater burden to women and other disadvantaged groups contrary to providing an enabling environment to escape from poverty. Taxes listed include graduated personal tax, fees, licenses and market charges among others.

I am soooooooo pleased that someone is now talking of the images potraying Africa as a dead continent needing help. I have visited many developed countries and am so saddened by the images used to solicite for funds by bigger institutions. From a very small voice, I have made my feelings and disagreements known, which have not gone down very well with many.
 
I was very surprised by what I found out during my visit to some of the learning institutions in the "developed world". When I interacted with the pupils and students, they had a very, very negative picture of Africa. To them, Africa is so poor that they cannot imagine there are airports, cars, big buildings, planes, good clothes etc. One of my friends cannot come to Africa because she has a phobia of animals. From when she was a child, she was made to believe that Africans live in forests with animals, eat dirty foods with flies, don't shower, don't wear clothes, etc etc.
 
The power esteem by the western countries will never change if their children grow up knowing that they have to work to assist Africa. The price Africa is paying due to these images is too big for the benefit of a few. A policy should be developed on what kind of images should be used.
 
Did you know that in the UK, you cannot just take photographs of children and use them in your materials? Why can't this apply in Africa and Asia?
 
You have made my day. Thank you very much.

Burundi's remaining rebel group, the Forces nationales de liberation (FNL) will end the war only when government troops stopped attacking its forces, rebel leader Agathon Rwasa said on Wednesday. "We are committed to lasting peace in Burundi," he told a news conference in Tanzania's commercial city of Dar es Salaam. "But the government must also respect our position. If we are attacked we are going to hit back."

The latest debate in Washington on Sudan is about estimates of the number of dead in Darfur, with the Washington Post in an April 24 editorial criticizing Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick for citing a report of 60,000 to 160,000 dead in the last two years, in contrast to higher estimates ranging up to 400,000 from human rights groups and other analysts. But this debate, like the earlier and continuing international debate over whether to call the atrocities in western Sudan genocide, is largely a surrogate for a more fundamental debate over the international political will to act. This is according to the latest edition of the Africa Focus Bulletin, available by clicking on the link below. Also available is a statement from the Darfur Relief and Documentation Center welcoming a recent UN Commission on Human Rights Resolution.

The Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa (SAHRIT) has been running the Regional Interdisciplinary Course on Children's Rights since year 2002. To date over 60 people from the 14 SADC countries working for and with and/or involved with the promotion and protection of the rights of the child have passed through the course. The course is designed for personnel in NGOs, government departments, and civil society organizations working with and for the protection of the rights of the child dealing with issues pertaining to the protection and promotion of the rights of the child. Participants from outside southern Africa can participate provided they secure their own sponsorship.

The antics of the discredited Dr Rath, and our health minister's support for him, are dragging us back into the dark days of AIDS denialism, says this Health-E News article. After months of relative stability in government over HIV/AIDS treatment, we seem to be back on the rollercoaster of contradictions. The problem this time hinges around the curious fondness our Health Minister, Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, has for Dr Matthias Rath, a discredited vitamin seller. Rath has peddled his vitamin product, Vitacor, around the world. First he claimed it was a cure for heart disease, then cancer and now AIDS.

What an apt characterisation! I couldn't agree more. As comrade Mugabe has said, colonialism is a crime against humanity. Reparations are in order. African leaders have to realise that paying back the so-called debt to the multi-lateral institutions of the West, is a perpetuation of slavery and subjugation. Africa will not develop for as long as it is led by imperialist lackeys who are falling over each other to reach the HIPC completion point as was the case in my country Zambia.These governments are there to meet the conditionality set by their Western bosses. Not once have they met any expectation of the hapless masses.

I disagree with Patrick Bond and David Moore's conclusions on the Zimbabwe elections. It is condescending to merely allege that the urban poor and working class were cheated while the rural poor were intimidated. Where is the evidence to support these assertions? If Morgan the beloved weren't an ignoble chancer, why did he participate in the elections which he all along dubbed unfree and unfair? Comrade Mugabe is right to have reclaimed our peoples birth right. Their land. Savagely stolen by the ancestors of Morgan's current financiers. Aluta continua!

Some 1.7 million children are still out of school despite the free primary education programme, a workshop was told this week. Out of these are some 200,000, who dropped out after enrolling under the programme, which was introduced by the Narc Government.

South Africans are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the fraud and corruption trial of Shabir Shaik, the financial adviser to Deputy President Jacob Zuma, which has lasted more than six months. Allegations aired in court have been closely followed, since they involve not only Mr Shaik, but, by implication, the deputy president himself.

Emmanuel Akitani-Bob, an opposition candidate in the presidential election held Sunday in Togo, declared himself winner of the poll Wednesday. This came a day after the National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) announced that Faure Gnassingbe, son of deceased head of state Gnassingbe Eyadema, was the provisional winner. Tuesday's announcement was greeted with outrage by opposition supporters, who erected barricades and burned tires in the Togolese capital, Lome, to protest the outcome of the poll.

As the Government dithers and over housing the urban poor, residents of an informal settlement in Nairobi are showing the way things ought to be done. Up to the year 2003, the residents of Kambi Moto slum village in Huruma, Starehe Division, Nairobi, lived like any other slum dwellers do — in crowded, poorly built shacks, made of any material they could find. Today, all that has changed. Thirty-four residents live in permanent, well-ventilated houses, provided with flush toilets, kitchen, living area and bedroom. And it is expected that in another year or so, 270 more units will have been completed to accommodate residents of Kambi Moto.

I love this article! (Pambazuka News 203: Behind the image: poverty and 'development pornography') I think it is absolutely right on... I visited Cape Verde from 1996 to 1999 as a Peace Corps volunteer and brought with me all kinds of stereotypes and propaganda that was very hard to discard, but I did as the years went by...

I have the hardest time trying to explain what I saw to people here in the western US and to help them understand my commitment to disrupt the status quo and turn things around in Africa. Since returning, I have learned and appreciated the concept of "stealing from the poor." I think it makes sense to spotlight the corporate and government predators when talking about what is happening in Africa, however, people are much more uncomfortable with acknowledging their own complicity in the problem.

If I start to talk about the corporations, then they get uncomfortable because, in America, that's like criticizing God. It's never spoken about, but one isn't supposed to criticize capitalism here. And people feel powerless when they understand who is doing what in Africa. It is so much easier for them to pledge $1 a day to help a "starving child". They get to feel powerful and superior, and they feel like they are addressing the problem. The question is: how do we get people to feel that same sense of personal power if they are going after the source of the problem, not the result? The problem is so huge and complex, it would almost take a documentary to explain it; not a simple television advertisement. Do you have any suggestions or advice for me?

I am finishing a law degree, and before I return to Africa, I want to somehow communicate with people here about Africa; help change the preconceptions and picque their interest in the continent; dare I say help them develop an empathy with Africans not based on pity, but based on respect as valiant and dignified equals?

Thank you so much for the work you do!

The largest obstacle for this sector is the lack of an enabling environment to ensure expansion of community radio, due to insufficient legislation surrounding the industry,” Steve Buckley, president of the World Association of Community Broadcasters (AMARC), told IPS. “I think the reason is because in a number of countries, governments are afraid that they may lose power by allowing communities to have access to airwaves.”

Lwati is the monthly e-newsletter of the Southern African Non-Governmental Organisation Network (SANGONeT). The latest edition contains news about first SANGONeT "ICTs for Civil Society" Conference and Exhibition which was held from 1-3 March 2005 at the Indaba Hotel in Fourways, Johannesburg. Visit www.sangonet.org.za or write to [email protected] "Lwati" is an isiSwati word meaning information.

This discussion focuses on the question: How can ICT empower local communities and improve local governments, especially during a process of decentralization? Can ICT help improve the poor record of decentralization and make the goals of decentralization a reality? Can ICT empower citizens with the information and means they need to make their governments work effectively for them? What is needed to make ICT an effective tool for good local governance? These questions are crucial to the well-being of people throughout the developing world. This discussion will seek to answer these questions with concrete examples, specific cases, experience and recommendations that can guide local communities, local governments, ICT practitioners and decentralization experts. Join the discussion and share what you know.

A new comprehensive report on the world's environment warns that the Earth is on the 'tipping point' of irreversible and possibly catastrophic changes. The planet can still be saved, but big policy changes are needed. Martin Khor from Third World Network argues: "The environment used to be a high-priority issue, discussed seriously at global summits and national meetings. But lately it has been displaced by other seemingly more pressing problems, such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan arising from September 11, the instability in the Middle East, and economic competition among countries catalysed by trade liberalisation."

The successful applicant will be responsible for overseeing Crisis Group projects and leading research in the Great Lakes region. S/he will head a team of researchers and analysts, and will supervise the work of a small team of specialists responsible for producing high quality research, analysis and reporting.
Contact [email protected]

The International Emergency Management Society (TIEMS) is sponsoring a 2nd Annual Virtual Conference on Disasters and Africa. The theme of this year's conference is "Education and Disasters in Africa". The conference will run from 1 to 21 May 2005 and end with a presentation of the conference results at the TIEMS annual meeting, to be held in the Faroes Islands 24 to 27 May 2005 (see www.tiems.org for details)

The Globalisation Studies Network (GSN), an association of over 100 institutions from nearly 50 countries around the world united by a shared preoccupation to promote a better understanding of the processes and structures of globalization, is pleased to announce its second international conference which is scheduled to take place in Dakar, Senegal, from 29 to 31 August 2005, and to invite abstracts and panel proposals from those wishing to be part of the conference.

As of April 2005, the African continent now has its own regional internet registry, AfriNic, with responsibility for assignment of internet addresses within the continent. This long-awaited development has the potential to save some $500 million in fees paid outside the continent each year to registries in Europe and North America, reports the latest edition of the Africa Focus Bulletin. The agency, which received formal approval at an international meeting in Argentina on April 8, is headquartered in Mauritius, with an operations center in South Africa and back-up facilities in Egypt. The AfricaFocus Bulletin contains a news article on the AfriNic launch, excerpts from a 2004 report on Schoolnet Namibia, and several additional links to related information.

Tourists visiting Botswana invariably buy some of the colourful baskets on offer in crafts shops to take home as souvenirs. Little do they know that these baskets are the material proof of one of the most successful refugee integration stories in southern Africa. The baskets are made by women whose parents and grandparents came to the country as refugees from Angola. They brought with them traditional basket-weaving skills and combined them with the dyes and colourful patterns that are part of Botswana's culture.

It is estimated there are between 10,000 - 20,000 Nigerian prostitutes working in Italy today. Almost all come from Edo state in southern Nigeria. As yet, no research has been done into why so many come from this one state, but the route may have originally been established by Nigerian women who came over to southern Italy to harvest tomatoes during the 1980s. But it's often not until they arrive in Italy that they are told that they will have to prostitute themselves in order to pay off the debt.

Over half of the people living with HIV/AIDS in the world are found in sub-Sahara Africa, according to statistics released by a Tanzania-based health body. Dr Steven Shongwe, the executive secretary of the Commonwealth Regional Health Community for East, Central and Southern Africa (ECSA Health Community), said that a recent survey among the 14 member countries in the body indicated that the region has an estimated 30 million people suffering from HIV/ AIDS, accounting for about 50 per cent of the worldwide total.

The UN's top human rights forum wrapped up what could be its last annual six-week session of wrangling and rhetoric on Friday, with few likely to mourn its expected passing. If UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan gets his way, the 61st session of the Commission on Human Rights will be its swan song, with the much maligned body making way for a slimmer and more credible Human Rights Council next year.

In May 2003, a group of representatives of donor organisations agreed to undertake a collaborative evaluation process focusing on the theme of support to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). This synthesis report is based on 17 reports covering operations in ten countries: Angola, Somalia, Indonesia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Colombia, Liberia, Eritrea, and Sudan. Seven critical issues are identified: the rights of IDPs, the protection deficit, donor policy on IDPs, the categorisation of IDPs, needs assessments, coordination and the collaborative response, and when the need for assistance ends.

This Refugee Studies Centre Working Paper draws upon insights and experience from researchers, practitioners and war-affected young people themselves in an attempt to better understand the challenges they face during war, and the resulting implications for policy and practice. Unless we involve young people in constructive measures for building a safer society, their energies and initiative will instead be exploited by those who would do them harm.

Contact between the South African government and Zimbabwe's main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), has ceased. MDC secretary-general Welshman Ncube, who was the main contact between the two, said at the weekend: "I am not available to the South Africans any longer." Paul Themba Nyathi, MDC spokesperson, said: "From his point of view, he acted in good faith, in seriousness, and he discovered he had been used, so one should imagine he is intractably angry."

In this loosely-linked collection of short stories, published by Heinemann in 1991, Moyez Vassanji, now a resident of Toronto, gives readers of African fiction a picture of the lifestyle of the Indian community of Dar es Salaam over a period of about forty years, beginning in the 1950s. One of the sixteen tales describes a young man, an illegal temporary immigrant to Germany, masquerading as a refugee in order to make a life beyond Africa for himself and his family. But the final tale is of an Uhuru Street resident who has returned to Tanzania to stay.

"The recent intensification of the war against corruption by President Obasanjo has provoked different reactions from different Nigerians. What is not in doubt, however, is that Nigerians want the mess cleaned up. The point of divergence seems to be how different people perceive the war against graft. Some doubt the motive. Others point to a seeming selectiveness. A few are convinced that what we are witnessing is a stage-managed show not billed to last. Put all of these together, you arrive at the point that I have been making, that not every Nigerian has bought into the war on corruption. They still think that it is Obasanjo's personal headache." Read the rest of this commentary from Nigeria's The Vanguard newspaper by clicking on the URL provided.

It is important to question a few realities as all 53 of Africa's countries search for Universal Primary Education (UPE) by 2015 and ask why it will likely be closer to 2050 before this target is achieved. The goal is critical not only for people to achieve the dignity and equality that Nelson Mandela so eloquently advocates and for the path away from poverty that the Millennium Goals seek to achieve, but also for the radical transformation envisaged in the New Africa.  The latest February-May At Issue Ezine produced by Africa Files deals with education in Africa and is available for reading from their website.

The Togolese League for Human Rights (LTDH) has just learnt with indignation and horror the inhumane and degrading treatment the military regime of the pair Faure Gnassinge-Abass Bonfoh is inflicting on former Prime Minister Agbéyome Messan Kodjo who was arrested when he arrived in Togo on 8 April 2005 after three years in exile in France.

La Ligue Togolaise des Droits de l’Homme exige la cessation des traitements inhumains et dégradants infligés à l’ex-premier ministre Agbéyomé Messan Kodjo à la prison de Kara
La Ligue Togolaise des Droits de l’Homme vient d’apprendre avec indignation et horreur les traitements inhumains et dégradants que le régime militaire du tandem Faure Gnassingbe – Abass Bonfoh est en train d’infliger à l’ex-premier ministre Agbéyome Messan Kodjo arrêté à son arrivée au Togo, le 08 avril 2005, après trois années d’exil en France.

Can Africa’s history of undemocratic and authoritarian states be overcome? WAFULA OKUMA says hard work and commitment lie ahead, but that there is cause for optimism. “With a rich enabling environment, proper political leadership and institutions, a vibrant civil society, and well-meaning and appropriate international support, it would be just a matter of time before the people of Africa start reaping the fruits of democracy,” he writes.

The awarding of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize to Professor Wangari Mathai, has widely been considered as an acknowledgement, in part, of the role the civil society has played in the democratization of Africa. Presently there are at least 12 retired presidents in Africa who had completed their constitutional terms and handed over power peacefully after elections. Last year witnessed elections in Malawi, Mozambique and Namibia in which long-serving presidents were replaced in elections won by candidates from the ruling parties. Although some commentators have noted a trend towards incumbent presidents being replaced by their chosen heirs, this has not meant a step back in the democratization process in Africa. Interestingly, as the cases of Zambia and Malawi have proven, the preferred candidates of the departing presidents have turned against them after ascending to the high offices. In democratic terms, over the years Africa has witnessed the birth of political parties, active involvement in politics by civil and religious sectors and the opening-up of some democratic spaces.

However, factors such as lack of protection of political and civil rights, prevalence of authoritarian tendencies, tampering of electoral processes, and structural inhibitions strongly supported by the ruling elite indicate that democracy is far from being consolidated on the continent. Other factors that are undermining democratic consolidation are ethnicization of politics and the decay of the State, corrupt and egoistical leaders who have an addiction to power and patronage that only undemocratic governments can guarantee, lack of national ideologies and a national platform of democratization, disunity and disorganization of opposition parties and “pro-democracy” forces, popular lethargy to democratization, and other factors that comprise an enabling environment. Political realities from countries such as Kenya have proven that multipartism does not automatically ensure democratic consolidation, nor does the holding of multiparty elections bring about development and political stability.

Democracy, sometimes used as a euphemism for “good governance,” is now seen as a key ingredient for economic development, a guarantor for peace, and a value that is crucial for the integration of the continent. However, the building of democratic societies depends on the existence of a leadership that understands and embraces democratic ideals, political institutions that will be repository and guarantor of democratic values, and civil society and international actors playing specific and clearly defined roles. Furthermore, a certain enabling environment must prevail.

The Role of Leadership in Democratic Transitions

In order for genuine democracy to flourish in Africa, there must be leaders who are committed to democratic ideals and practices. A daunting challenge facing Africa is how it can get “good leaders” who are committed democrats.

Poor leadership is also exhibited by how badly opposition political parties in Africa are led - an indication of the lack of leadership qualities among those vying to assume the reigns of State power. In view of poor leadership among opposition parties and the unwillingness of the ruling elites to open up the political space for all the major contestants for State power the success of democratic transitions will have to be placed in the hands of a new generation of political leaders. These leaders must have a clear understanding of democracy, make commitments to its ideals, and acquire experience in practicing it through political processes such as party politics. This in essence is a call for leadership training. The future of Africa will depend on leadership with training, integrity, honesty and high moral character.

These leaders will be dissimilar to the present crop that desperately seeks to feel intellectually superior to the masses, believe that they alone have access to ideas that will make the world a perfect place for the masses if they sheepishly follow their ideas, yearn to be makers of history, and have a tendency to substitute their ambitions for leadership, their wishes for ideas and their ideas for truths which others must live by.

The Role of Civil Society:

Civil society is regarded in many countries as the foundation of liberty, agents for promoting political values, and advocates for social justice, democratic participation and good governance. Civil society can play an important role in both democratic transition and consolidation if they remain voluntary, self-regulating, autonomous of the State, and subscribe to sets of common rules that guide and regulate their activities.

In its advocacy role, civil society can act as channels through which citizens articulate their interests, particularly in situations where political parties are weak, disorganized and “represent factional politics rather than competing ideologies” (Dicklitch 1998). Besides being advocates for alternative policy agenda, civil society can also advocate for social change by exerting pressure on the State to make structural changes and to produce policy outputs that enhance societal interests.

However, the role of civil society, like that of political parties, in the democratization process can be impeded by dependence on external funding, hostile governments, and cleavages such as ethnicity, religion and gender bias that characterizes African politics.

The Role of International actors

Although international actors, particularly the donor community, have played a significant role by putting pressure on recalcitrant national elite to make “democratic” concessions, it is also noticeable that foreigners have had their own agendas. The heavy reliance of opposition parties and civil society on foreign support does not augur well for the introduction and consolidation of democracy. This is particularly so because this relationship is creating a dependency syndrome that is detrimental in the long-term, as the democratic values and practices that will eventually be introduced and consolidated will be reflective of those of the foreign interests that supported them. In terms of promoting their own agenda, western donors and patrons seem to be obsessed with elections and adoption of capitalism as conditions for continued financial hand outs. This concern is reflected in how democracy has been used as a “Trojan Horse” for international capitalism, by including “free enterprise” in the package of demands for “pluralism.”

The international donor community, mainly influenced by neo-liberalism, has linked democracy to capitalism on the assumption that only capitalism can limit State power and enhance democratic values (see World Bank, 1996). There are other specific concerns on capitalism’s relevance to, and prospects in, Africa.

First, history has shown that the perversion of the African State has not been confined only to government but also to the market, which is heavily regulated by the government and where formerly highly placed government officials have used their positions to gain footholds. Second, capitalism in Africa, and in other parts of the Third World, has a history of supporting and being tolerant of dictatorship. Third, on a continent like Africa where capitalism is a parody, it is inconceivable to leave key economic decisions to the market forces. Corruption has perverted the market to the extent that graft, intimidation, misuse of public offices for economic gains, and manipulation of market rules for political expediency ensures that a few powerful individuals dominate the market and owe no accountability to the public at large. Lastly, capitalism has a history of allowing a few powerful individuals to control and reap maximum benefits from the market.

The importance of an enabling environment:

The poor enabling environment that has hamstrung the introduction and consolidation of democracy in Africa has historical roots. Colonialism, and later neo colonialism, not only failed to cultivate a political culture which can sustain democracy but also installed inhibitions in the political structures that have been reinforced by power hungry ruling elite. Capitalizing on the poor understanding of their citizens’ political and civil rights, and eager to please western donors and patrons, African leaders have shown no genuine commitment to engaging in substantive democratic practices. Furthermore, no effort has been made to define a type of democracy that fits in the African context and reflects the people’s realities. This means that before we prescribe the societal conditions that need to exist for democracy to be introduced and consolidated, we must first clarify the type of democracy that is appropriate and can survive in the African context.

Creating an enabling environment for democracy to flourish will partly entail political education of the leaders and the masses on the meaning and the practice of democracy. A commonly and universally accepted definition of democracy must be arrived at so that the people know what to expect from the ruling and opposition parties, civil society, the international well-wishers/supporters and others involved in the promotion of democratic ideals. Likewise, leaders should also know what to expect from the ruled and the standards they are being held under. The people in Africa must first agree on the types of societies they desire and, more importantly, agree on their national political values; in the process deciding whether democracy is one of them. It should be noted further that establishing a lasting democracy requires a civic virtue - a civic education of a kind that brings people to understand both the rights and the obligations of citizenship.

State restructuring:

Kwesi Prah (1996) points out that despite the existence of “the will for democratic dispensation . . . in Africa,” there is also “the need for adequate and appropriate institutions, established and respected procedures, accepted conventions and forms of social conduct through which democratic practice can be consistently implemented in the running of the country.” The present African States are colonial creations that are by nature totalitarian, oppressive and undemocratic. Colonial States in Africa were inherited and strengthened by the African leaderships that took over power at the end of European colonialism. By the late 1980s, the States in Africa had not only become more repressive but also burdensome to the people. It is absolutely necessary that African societies that seek to transform themselves into democratic ones must abandon the existing colonial/neo-colonial State structures and practices that are still intact.

Prah argues that “the best institutions and operational rules of democratic organization will amount to little if politicians do not use them in good faith. While the field for the exercise of democracy needs to be kept level at all times, the ground also would need to be (accessible,) accepted and respected by all parties.” In particular, African bureaucracies, that have become mere appendages of the ruling parties that are used to frustrate and harass the opposition and promote the interests of the ruling parties and elite, must be immunized from politics and transformed to serve democracy.

However, it is not only the colonial institutions that need to be eliminated or transformed. Prah notes that throughout the history of colonialism, there was a steady erosion of traditional African institutions by colonial institutions. While some of these traditional institutions and practices were not “totally annihilated,” most were “severely weakened.” Some of these surviving traditional practices have proven to be obstacles to the democratization and modernization of the African State. According to Prah, democracy cannot flourish in Africa “where vested interests, possibly legitimized by corrupted notions of ‘tradition,’ still control key instruments of the state.”

Building the capacities of political parties:

In promoting democracy in Africa, there has been little emphasis on building the capacities of political parties, particularly those in the opposition. Instead, the focus has mostly been on multiparty elections and in particular the number of political parties, how regularly elections are held, and voter turnouts. This in turn has resulted in electoral politics becoming the central focus for the opposition parties, foreign interests and political analysts. By overstocking on the elections, little investment has been made to strengthen the institutional capacities of opposition parties to enable them to be viable contenders for power or to be effective agents for installation of democratic societies.

Prospects for Democracy in Africa

All things considered, what is the prospect for democracy? In assessing the prospects for the consolidation of democracy in Africa, Christopher Clapham and John Wiseman prescribed a “minimalist end of the (democratic) spectrum” which essentially entails “political contestation for public power (invariably between political parties).” I do not subscribe to this view as it calls for giving Africans half-baked bread because it is better than nothing. Despite the pitfalls for introducing and consolidating democracy highlighted in this essay and elsewhere by other scholars of African politics, I am optimistic, like Joel Barkan, that democratic transitions in Africa will continue moving forward rather than backward.

Barkan points out the following as factors that are assisting the transition in moving forward. Firstly, the legalization of opposition parties and the holding of multiparty elections have guaranteed a stake for the opposition and signaled the end of one-party states and monopolization of power. Secondly, the civil society, free press and the opposition have opened up considerable political spaces that are only bound to grow. And thirdly, there is a growth of “anti-regime hardliners” and “transition-seekers” among the national political elites who are still predominantly “patronage-seekers.” However, the prospects for democratic transitions are dimmer in some African countries because political spaces are limited by ruling parties that are dominant political organizations. Furthermore, the ‘transitions’ are being orchestrated “from above” and supported by civil society that is relatively weak and urban based.

While acknowledging the high prospects for democratic transition and consolidation in Africa, we must also point out that it is a daunting challenge not only to develop and to preserve full democracy but also to introduce it. It is an uphill effort that will require enormous political will, national discipline and sacrifice, and vast financial expenses. But with good planning and careful introduction, full and genuine democracy will definitely flourish in Africa in the near future. With a rich enabling environment, proper political leadership and institutions, a vibrant civil society, and a well-meaning and appropriate international support, it would be just a matter of time before the people of Africa start reaping the fruits of democracy.

* Wafula Okumu is the co-editor, with Paul Kaiser, of ‘Democratic Transitions in East Africa’ (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishers, 2004)

Bibliography:
Barkan. Joel. “Protracted Transitions Among Africa’s New Democracies,” in Democratization, vol. 7, no. 3, Autumn 2000.
Beetham, David. “Liberal Democracy and the Limits of Democratization” in Prospects for Democracy. Edited by David Held. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1993.
Bienefield, M. “Structural Adjustment and the Prospects for Democracy in Southern Africa” in Debating Development Discourse. Edited by D. B. Moore and G. J. Schmitz. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995.
Blagg, Deborah and Susan Young. “What Makes a Good Leader?" issue of the Harvard Business School Bulletin, February 2001. Online edition:
Chazan, Naomi, “Africa’s Democratic Challenge: Strengthening Civil Society.” World Policy Journal, vol. XI, no. 2, Spring 1992.
Clapham, Christopher and John Wiseman. “Conclusion: Assessing the Prospects for the Consolidation of Democray in Africa,” in Democracy and Political Change in Sub-Saharan Africa. Edited by John A. Wiseman. London: Routledge, 1995.
Dahl, Robert. Polyarchy: Participation and Opposition. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1971.
Daima, Amani. “Challenges For Emerging African Democracies.” Peace Review, March 1998.
Diamond, Larry. “Rethinking Civil Society: Toward Democratic Consolidation,” Journal of Democracy, vol. 5, no. 3, July 1994.
Diamond, Larry. “Is the Third Wave Over?,” Journal of Democracy, 1996.
Dicklitch, Susan. The Elusive Promise of NGOs in Africa—Lessons from Uganda. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998.
Fischer, Mary Ellen. “Introduction,” in Establishing Democracies. Edited by Mary Ellen Fischer. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1996.
Friedman, Milton. Capitalism and Freedom, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1963.
Gordon, David F. “On Promoting Democracy in Africa: the International Dimension,” in Democracy in Africa—the Hard Road Ahead. Edited by Marina Ottaway. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1997.
Graham, Carol. “Democracy, Adjustment, and Poverty Reduction in Africa: Conflicting Objectives?” in Democracy in Africa—the Hard Road Ahead. Edited by Marina Ottaway. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1997.
Hall, R. H. Organizations: Structures, Processes, and Outcomes, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1996.
Hansen, Holger Bernt, and Michael Twaddle. “Uganda: the Advent of No-Party Democracy” in Democracy and Political Change in Sub-Saharan Africa. Edited by John A. Wiseman. London: Routledge, 1995.
Hempstone, Smith. The Rogue Ambassador: An African Memoir. Sewanee: University of
the South Press, 1997.
Kaiser, Paul, and F. Wafula Okumu (eds). Democratic Transitions in East Africa. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishers, 2004.
Lewis, P.M. “Political Transition and the Dilemma of Civil Society in Africa.” Journal of International Affairs, vol. 46, no. 1, Summer 1992.
Monshipouri, M. Democratization, Liberalization and Human Rights in the Third World. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1995.
Nelson, P. J. The World Bank and Non-Governmental Organizations: The Limits of Apolitical Development. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995.
Parenti, Michael. Democracy for the Few. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995.
Prah, Kwesi. “The Crisis of Neo-Colonialism in Africa and the Contemporary Democratic Challenge,” in Peacemaking and Democratisation in Africa. Edited by Hizkias Assefa and George Wachira. Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers, 1996.
Phillipe Schmitter and Terry Karl, “What Democracy Is…. And is Not.” Journal of Democracy, vol. 2, no. 3, Summer 1991.
Van de Walle, Nicolas. “Economic Reform and the Consolidation of Democracy,” in Democracy in Africa—the Hard Road Ahead. Edited by Marina Ottaway. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1997.
World Bank. World Development Report 1996. Washington, DC: World Bank, 1996.

Through the life and work of Yvonne Vera, Shereen Essof and Daniel Moshenberg challenge Pambazuka News readers to see a different Zimbabwe, not the one of nationalist desire, but rather the one in which the national project of Zimbabwe is a project of its women, not alone but at the core.

It is April 18, 2005, Independence Day in Zimbabwe. Twenty-five years ago today, Rhodesia disappeared. Where did it go? What happened on that day? Twenty-five years ago, today, the policemen shouted, “Move back! Move back!” … at least according to Yvonne Vera, in her early story, “Independence Day”, a story which cites the women and children lining the streets to see “The Prince from England”, “the Prince, sent by his mother the Queen.”

In that story, Vera makes her readers see the day, that day twenty five years ago that we know will be monumentalized in perpetuity in that place called Zimbabwe. It is a day of flags and freedom. A day in which everyone who is no one who is on the streets is marked by the forced separation of themselves from anyone who is anyone, from the Prince to the Prime Minister. It is a day in which the national markers of `Zimbabwe’ become visible. It is a day in which a man “celebrates Independence properly: with cold beer and a woman.” It is a day in which men use women as men so often do and “when he was through he sent her home.” It was a day in which the State used women to line the streets, to dance at the stadium, and to wave flags. In the end, “in the morning she saw miniature flags caught along the hedge: the old flag and the new.” It was a day when promises were made, it was a day when people were told “everything would be changing soon. Jobs and more money. Land and education. Wealth and food.”

On Thursday, April 7, 2005, Zimbabwean feminist novelist, activist, artist and storyteller, Yvonne Vera died. Yvonne Vera wrote stories of Zimbabwean women. She brought to the surface their voices and narratives and how they are positioned within the postcolonial context. She articulated women’s struggles, historical and current, in the violence and intensity of survival in the everyday. In so doing, Yvonne Vera engaged in a powerful and courageous critique of the nation-building project in Zimbabwe. Her fiction, always historically embedded and materially astute, offers Zimbabweans a vision of an alternative nation, built on the foundations of often-repressed memories and stories.

Yvonne Vera insisted on looking into and accurately evoking the face and mask of betrayal. She described patriarchy: the ways in which colonialism violated women and the ways in which a patriarchal state betrayed ‘its’ people, those who had fought for so long for freedom. She described the ways in which so many men betrayed `the people’, the women and children, to whom they had pledged trust. She wrote of violation after violation, and of the extraordinary hope and forgiveness that seemed to always mark survival, most often of women. While much of her work focuses on the liberation struggle or the period just after Independence, it remains painfully relevant on this Independence Day, twenty-five years ‘later’.

On this Independence Day, in the current global context, Zimbabwe is often represented as invisible or mad. Vera’s five novels and numerous short stories challenge the readers of Pambazuka News to read a different Zimbabwe. Not the one of nationalist desire, but rather the one in which the national project of Zimbabwe is a project of its women, not alone but at the core. In this tale, women are not invisible nor meek nor timid nor a problem nor a pathology nor victim nor, finally, a means to a good celebration. In this story, Zimbabwe is Zimbabwean women.

In her writing Vera insists that no national independence comes from military forces or nation-states declaring, ‘it is over’, as occurs with depressing results at the end of her collection, ‘Why Don’t You Carve Other Animals?’ Rather, as she states at the end of her final novel, ‘The Stone Virgins’, the “task is to learn to re-create the manner in which the tenderest branches bend, meet, and dry, the way the grass folds smoothly over this frame and weaves a nest, the way it protects the cool, livable places within – deliverance.”

* Please send comments to

Civil Society Coalition for Quality Basic Education (CSCQBE), a Coalition of more than 54 NGOs active in advocating quality basic education in Malawi is pleased to inform the general public about the 2005 global campaign for education action week. As part of its contribution CSCQBE has organized a number of activities that include a national launch, follow up district launches, media advocacy and stakeholder workshops.

A coalition of Ethiopian groups announced plans on Wednesday to file a lawsuit against the country’s electoral commission, saying that new rules could prevent thousands of local observers from monitoring May’s legislative elections. "We believe this decision by the National Election Board [NEB] is in contravention of the national election law of Ethiopia, and violates our constitutional rights," said Netsanet Demissie, director of the Organisation for Social Justice (OSJ), which comprises 35 Ethiopian organisations.

African church leaders have welcomed the election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI. However, South Africa's Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu said he was sad that the new pope was unlikely to end the church's opposition to condoms.

The launch issue of Tectonic Magazine - Africa's first-ever free and open source software magazine - is out. The response to the magazine has been hugely encouraging, says editor Alastair Otter. "From the moment we made the magazine available we have been inundated with extremely positive feedback," says Otter. "Clearly the South African market is ready for a dedicated open source magazine.”

A 3-Day National Validation Seminar "on Building Community Radio in Nigeria" jointly organized by Panos Institute West Africa (PIWA), World Association of Radio Broadcasters-Africa Region (AMARC Africa), and Institute of Media and Society with the financial support of OSIWA, was held at the Chida International Hotel, Abuja from April 5 to 7 2005. Participants were drawn from the NGOs, CBOs, Development and Donor organizations, the mass media, academia, and Government Agencies. Presentations at the seminar focused on issues of Policy, Legislation and Regulation, Ownership and Editorial Independence, Sustainability and Training.

A string of unsolved arson attacks, a series of unchecked threats, and the passage of restrictive new laws have created deep mistrust between the Gambia's government and its small independent press. Suspicions have been compounded by the December 2004 murder of veteran journalist Deyda Hydara and the government's failure to bring the perpetrators to justice. These are the findings of a CPJ delegation that visited the Gambia from April 6 to 12.

Two British journalists detained in Zimbabwe during parliamentary elections left the country this week after being acquitted of the criminal charge of reporting without accreditation from the government-controlled Media and Information Commission. Toby Harnden, chief foreign correspondent for the London-based Sunday Telegraph, and photographer Julian Simmonds boarded a plane and safely reached neighboring South Africa, a newspaper spokeswoman said. The journalists had spent two weeks in prison while standing trial.

Governments including Japan, Korea, Mexico and the United States are planning to use new World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations to dismantle a wide range of national laws protecting the environment, social well being and health, Friends of the Earth International says. A list compiled by the environmental group before trade negotiators meet in Geneva shows that legislation covering food, fisheries, timber and petroleum production, energy efficiency, chemical testing, recycling and standards in the electronics and automobile industries have all been raised as potential "barriers to trade" in the past few months.

The number of AIDS-related deaths in Ethiopia could reach 1.8 million by 2008 unless the country takes steps to reduce the current prevalence rate and provide treatment for those living with the disease, according to a report released on Wednesday, AFP/Yahoo! News reports. The 38-page report, titled "Ethiopia HIV/AIDS Emergency Plan," was conducted under the direction of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief by health officials from the United Nations, the United States, and the Ethiopian AIDS secretariat and health ministry.

The latest ePoliticsSA briefing from IDASA interrogates the state of opposition politics in South Africa through the prism of electoral results, turnout and representation. It then assesses the state of the ruling, African National Congress (ANC) led, Tripartite Alliance and forwards reasons as to why a split in the alliance is unlikely in the medium term.

Lobby group Africa Action this week expressed outrage at the failure of the Group of 7 (G-7) Finance Ministers to make progress on the critical issue of debt cancellation in their meeting last weekend. Salih Booker, Executive Director of Africa Action, said: "Combined with the recent appointment of Wolfowitz to the World Bank, this delay on debt cancellation is outrageous. In 2004, more than 2 million Africans died of AIDS. Yet, African countries are forced to spend almost $15 billion each year repaying old, illegitimate debts to rich country creditors."

Fresh delays in producing the first peer reviews of governance in African states are disappointing but not surprising considering the complexity of the process, economists and officials say. Scorecards on Ghana and Rwanda, part of an African economic rescue plan to boost investment in the continent, were due to be submitted to a meeting of African leaders in Egypt on Tuesday but have been put off until May, after earlier delays from March.

Togo's main opposition coalition is refusing to meet the chairman of West Africa's regional body ahead of Sunday's presidential election. Niger President Tandja Mamadou asked all four presidential candidates to travel to Niger on Wednesday for talks. There is growing concern at violent clashes sparked by demonstrations in the streets of the Togolese capital, Lome, and other towns.

This graphic testimonial document highlights the horrific issue of rape as a form of warfare in Darfur, Sudan. It includes numerous first hand accounts of women who were abused and raped, and uses these to highlight not only the ongoing problem of rape itself, but the cultural mores and beliefs that condition how women are treated following rape. The paper outlines the frequency and dynamics of rape as a tool of conflict in the ongoing civil war.

Hundreds of thousands of activists, in 110 countries, are gearing up for the Global Action Week for Education. Across the world, children and campaigners are excitedly making model 'friends' in preparation for taking part in the 'Send my Friend to School' global action. Each one of these 'friends' represents a person missing an education. During the Global Action Week, from April 24-30, we will be confronting politicians throughout the world with millions of these 'friends'.