The Mozambican embassy in South Africa confirmed on Wednesday that it was trying to renegotiate a recently passed immigration law with authorities in Pretoria, claiming that the legislation discriminated against migrant mine workers.

Ugandan environmental and rural development organisations are asking for international support in their efforts to stop the construction of the Bujagali dam and redirect the Bank's attention toward developing renewable energy options that would make electricity more affordable and accessible to the majority of Uganda's citizens. You can support this cause by sending a letter to the president of the World Bank.

Amnesty International (AI) on the 13th of November 2003 called for a moratorium on forced evictions in Angola, claiming that over 5,000 people had been forcibly removed from their homes in three mass evictions between 2001 and 2003.

So much children on the street
Have no food to eat
And some of them some of the time
asleep on cold concrete
It hurts me heart to see it
That really makes me weak
No clothes on their back and
no shoes on their feet.
Visit http://www.zvakwana.org to read the latest newsletter from Zvakwana, a Zimbabwean activist organisation, and to read tips for activists on dealing with the situation in Zimbabwe.

Swedish Christian groups and the opposition Green Party have called for an inquiry into allegations of bribery in South Africa's multibillion rand arms deal. They have urged Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson to launch an official probe into claims that the partly-Swedish consortium BAE/Saab bribed government and ANC officials to secure the contract to sell JAS Gripen fighter jets to SA.

Chileshe Banda is an 18-year-old Zambian living in the capital Lusaka. According to research, her chances of becoming infected with the HIV virus are about five times greater than those of one of her male friends.

The health ministry of the Republic of Congo (ROC), together with the World Health Organisation (WHO), on 14 November confirmed that a new outbreak of acute haemorrhagic fever syndrome in the northwestern department of Cuvette Ouest was, in fact, the Ebola virus.

Burundi's government signed a comprehensive power-sharing plan with the country's largest rebel group on Sunday, a major step toward ending a 10-year war that has killed at least 200,000 people. The peace agreement gives majority Hutus more weight in the security forces as well as bigger role in both the executive and legislative branches of government, long dominated by minority Tutsis. It incorporates cease-fires that have been largely ignored.

The government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will neither authorise joint patrols with nor grant a military corridor to the Ugandan army for pursuit of Ugandan rebels based in northeastern Congo, Mulegwa Zihindula, spokesman of DRC President Joseph Kabila, said on Thursday. "If the Ugandan army returns to our territory, we will consider this an act of aggression and will take the necessary action," Mulegwa said at a news conference in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa.

President Henrique Rosa has formally opened the first public university in Guinea-Bissau, nearly 30 years after the small West African country achieved independence from Portugal.

One of the world’s rarest animals is facing a renewed battle against extinction after being hit by a rabies outbreak, a leading wildlife expert has warned.

An excellent editorial (Pambazuka News 132: International Institutions and Development in Africa).

This study focuses on internal persecution among Muslims. Three case studies (the Ahmadiyya in Pakistan, the Shi’is in Saudi Arabia and the Republican Brothers in the Sudan) are analysed, and based on these cases, a contextual framework for understanding and combating intra-religious persecution is outlined.

James & James (Science Publishers) Limited, publisher of internationally renowned titles on renewable and sustainable energy, waste management and conservation, has announced the acquisition of Earthscan Publications Limited from Kogan Page Limited. This creates the most significant publisher focused on sustainability and environmental technology across a range of media, including books, magazines and journals for professionals and academics worldwide.

A new initiative has been launched to promote and coordinate research in Africa on the science of lasers, in a bid to help tackle a range of medical, environmental and agricultural problems facing the continent.

Until at least the early 1990s, most forms of violence directed specifically against women were met with silence not only by the state but also by much of the human rights community. In this edition of Human Rights Dialogue, downloadable for free, activists and practitioners from around the world discuss how women’s rights activists are using human rights instruments to combat violence against women and, in turn, how the human rights movement is being enlarged and enriched by their approach.

The aim of this paper is to assess the evidence of an interventional effect of male circumcision for preventing acquisition of HIV-1 and HIV-2 by men through heterosexual intercourse. It takes the form of a review of published and unpublished studies and conference proceedings.

A UN General Assembly committee has adopted a draft resolution to strengthen the UN refugee agency's capacity to carry out its work more effectively by removing the time limit on its mandate and encouraging other UN partners to include refugees in their plans. On Thursday, member States of the UN General Assembly's Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) approved and adopted by consensus the draft resolution on the outcome of the "UNHCR 2004" process, an initiative to help the agency better position itself to carry out its commitment to refugees, returnees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and other persons of concern.

The Civil Society Content and Themes group for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) recently released a list of essential "benchmarks", stating that "principles and priorities should be embedded throughout the WSIS Declaration of Principles and Action Plan." These include human rights, poverty reduction, sustainable development, gender equality, disability issues, labour rights, indigenous peoples, education, and other important issues areas.

YouthActionNet is now seeking applications for awards to youth leaders and their emerging projects that promote social change and connect youth with local communities. Award recipients will receive US$500, which includes funds for a disposable camera to photo-document their project for an online photo gallery.

Women now comprise 30 percent of Swaziland's legislature, following King Mswati's appointments of new MPs and Senators. For a traditional nation where women are still legal minors, this accomplishment is impressive. The only question asked by political observers is: Should credit not go to Swaziland's neighbours that comprise the 14 member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC)? “It is SADC protocol that all nations aligned in the organisation must have a 30-percent quota of women legislators,” Doo Aphane, national director for the Swaziland branch of Women in Law for Southern Africa, told IPS.

More than 100 teachers absorbed by the UNHCR Education Assistance Program for refugees have benefited from an "All Teachers" training program intended to enhance their classroom performance. The exercise was simultaneously held at the VOA and Banjor Refugee Camps, from November 13-15. The training was organized by the International Rescue Committee (IRC), an implementing partner of the UNHCR.

Concern continued to mount this week over increased displacement and a deteriorating humanitarian situation in Darfur, western Sudan. The UN warned that the situation in Darfur may emerge as the worst humanitarian crisis in Sudan since 1998, owing to rising displacement and declining access to the area because of insecurity. In a statement, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that insecurity had continued to cause displacement of hundreds of thousands of people and had hampered relief operations.

Have we neglected the gender dimensions of conflict over natural resources (NR)? Are women's capacities to analyse and resolve NR disputes sufficiently recognised? Can women's rights to participate in NR management be affirmed in a way that is not confrontational? How could women be integrated into peace-making and reconciliation initiatives?

Why do over a billion people still lack access to safe water and another 2.4 billion people adequate sanitation? Water resources are becoming increasingly stressed. What are the links between water resources management and economic development and security, and the links between water and sanitation services and health and livelihoods outcomes?

The threat of a damaging split within the Commonwealth loomed on Monday after Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe insisted he was determined to secure an invitation to a Commonwealth summit of leaders next month.

Emmanuel Karisa Maitha, the besieged local government minister, leads the pack of at least four cabinet ministers key donors want dismissed before lending to Kenya can resume. The government denies that there are any such conditions from donors, but other sources indicate that Maitha's fate is sealed, and his sacking could come as early as this week - in time for the IMF board meeting scheduled for 22 November.

There has been an increase in the primary gross enrollment rate of girls from 19.7% in 1991/92 to 63.0% in 2 001/02, leading Guinea to rank first among African countries for sustained growth in girls’ educational participation, according to the National Equity Committee of Guinea, a consultative body to the Ministry of Pre-University and Civic Education (MEPU-EC) that aims to promote equity between girls and boys and between rural and urban children in terms of access, retention, and achievement in school.

The journalist Linda Melvern, through unprecedented access to both the UN files and the files of the Rwandan Government from prior and during the genocide, has produced an excellent expose of the Security Council's role and how it knew that genocide was happening at the time.

On the evening of October 17 2003, the National Theatre (of Ghana) honoured four writers in its Living Legends series. They were Ama Ata Aidoo, Kofi Nyidevu Awoonor and Kwesi Brew. Ayi Kwei Armah, the 4th honoree, was unable to attend. On the 18th, a full-length production of Ama Ata Aidoo’s ANOWA opened at the main auditorium of the National Theatre. It is directed by Dr. Mohammed Ben Abdullah of the School of Performing Arts, University of Ghana, Legon.

In one of the most brutal operations in recent days riot police in Harare swooped on the demonstrating ZCTU leaders and activists and arrested 50 people.

The "16 Days of Activism against Violence against Women" Campaign has been an organizing strategy by individuals and groups from around the world to call for the elimination for all forms of violence against women. 16 Days of Activism is a specific time to focus on the issues of violence against women and children, but every day provides a new opportunity for communities to stop violence in the society. Visit the website for the full programme in Ghana.

Of the 39 countries which recently signed a declaration outlawing illegal logging 31 came from Africa, an indication of how seriously the problem of illegal logging is viewed around the continent. The declaration came at the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (AFLEG) conference held in Yaounde, Cameroon, last month, which was co-hosted by the Cameroonian government and World Bank, the UN Wire service reported.

Kenyan cabinet minister Karisa Maitha is at the centre of a fresh storm involving a questionable payment of Ksh117 million to an insurance company by the Nairobi City Council, and a failed attempt to have the financially-strapped civic authority pay another Ksh28 million to a broker.

The UNEP/Division of Global Environment Facility (GEF) Coordination is primarily responsible for coordination of the participation by UNEP in GEF. It provides the secretariat to the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP). Under the overall authority of the UNEP/GEF Programme Coordination Committee, it organises the review by UNEP of GEF project proposals, as well as relevant project identification, appraisal, monitoring and evaluation activities.

This international Christian organisation is seeking a fully qualified Financial Director. Must be fluent in English and Portuguese. Must be a Christian. As a member of the Senior Management Team, you will provide leadership in all financial and administration matters, and provide strategic input on these matters to decisions to be made covering all areas of ministry.

Public goods or services (supply and access to water, electricity, land, education, health care etc.) and their availability, financing, ownership and management are a generally contested issue in almost all countries in the world. In recognising the impacts of different policies, politics and ideologies on public services, the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation together with its partners, is with this Conference staging a forum for discussion, debating, exchanging views and experiences.

The Second Republic Governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, has blamed President Olusegun Obasanjo for the alarming level of corruption in the country. Musa, who spoke with reporters in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, said the president's refusal to listen to advice from party leaders and interest groups was responsible for the increased spate of corruption in the country.

The Global Human Rights Education listserv is a forum on which activists and educators exchange information on upcoming trainings and conferences; studies and "lessons learned"; human rights education resources; and new projects from around the world. Almost 3,000 organisations and individuals from approximately 150 countries are members of this forum.

"Through our observation of the process we have identified two main problem areas that impede progress in the WSIS: 1. How to correct imbalances in riches, imbalances of rights, imbalances of power, or imbalances of access. In particular, governments do not agree on even the principle of a financial effort to overcome the so-called Digital Divide; this is all the more difficult to accept given that the summit process was started two years ago with precisely that objective. 2. The struggle over human rights. Not even the basis of human life in dignity and equality, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights finds support as the basis for the Information Society. Governments are not able to agree on a commitment to basic human right standards as the basis for the Information Society, most prominent in this case being the freedom of expression.”

Côte d’Ivoire’s rebels rolled out a massive display of heavy weapons in Bouake, 379 km north of the commercial capital, Abidjan on Tuesday, hours after declaring a state of emergency in areas under their control. They said their actions were in response to government preparations to launch attacks on their positions.

Benin’s environment and urbanisation ministry has begun a one-week sensitisation campaign across the country to raise awareness about rising pollution in this small West African country.

Ethiopia’s teachers' association condemned on Tuesday the government’s newly introduced “cost-sharing” scheme where students must foot part of their fees. Dr Taye Wolde Semayat, president of the Ethiopian Teachers' Association (ETA) told IRIN that the policy put Ethiopia on a “slippery slope” towards privatising education.

Only 40.5 percent of the Republic of Congo's 3.1 million people have access to clean water, the country's energy, mines and water resources minister, Philippe Mvouo, said on Saturday upon his return home from a conference for African water ministers that had been held in Burkina Faso.

The World Bank and IMF's debt relief framework, the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative is increasingly criticised for not providing sufficient debt relief to enable low-income countries to achieve debt sustainability. This paper from Cafod, posted on the web page of the Southern African Regional Poverty Network, argues that the key weaknesses of the HIPC Initiative stem from its use of an inappropriate analytical criterion when making debt sustainability analyses. The paper, therefore, proposes an alternative approach more suited to countries that are highly vulnerable to economic shocks and beset by widespread and deeply entrenched levels of poverty.

In the 42 years from 1960 to 2001, the countries of sub-Saharan Africa received $445 billion in official development assistance from all sources, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s online database. Can anyone honestly say that the aid-receiving countries of sub-Saharan Africa are a trillion dollars better off than they were in 1960? Most are all but entirely dependent on aid and are hopelessly in debt, though most of the debt was incurred on highly concessional terms. The reasons are endlessly debated, but surely there can be unanimity on one point: there has been a gross, and chronic, misallocation of resources and a gigantic opportunity cost.

The big question facing the G-8/OECD is this: do they share Nepad's value system of a genuine new partnership based on mutual accountability and trust? Is the industrialised north willing to experience structural adjustment in agriculture, textiles, footwear, clothing, coal, steel or whatever, for the sake of Africa's development? There needs to be agreement on criteria against which to evaluate partners' performance. And there needs to be a set of benchmarks to see whether Nepad is making a real difference, says this editorial from South Africa's Business Day newspaper.

You are invited to attend an evening briefing hosted by the Zimbabwe Advocacy Campaign which will be addressed by the regional spokesperson of the 'Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition' with a response from a representative of South African civil society on their position on transition and democracy in Zimbabwe.

One of nine children from a Kenyan village where education was not a priority and girls traditionally did not receive any, Zeinab Musa watched each day as her three brothers departed for school and wished that she, too, could go. So determined was she to get an education, Zeinab would sneak out of the house, sit outside the school building, and learn through the windows. After weeks of this, her older brother brought her inside, where, at mid-year, without any books or a school uniform, she began her formal education.