AfroNeth (www.afroneth.nl/) - set up in February 2003 to encourage Africans living in the Netherlands to contribute to the development of Africa - organised an African Diaspora Summit in December 2003 to map out, assess, and harness the diaspora’s resources for Africa. A conference background paper by Dr A A Mohamoud entitled African Diaspora and Development of Africa calls on the Nederlandse Bank, the Dutch government and commercial banks to work with diaspora groups to ease the process of remitting money home. The report also calls on African governments to provide a structure for rural investment of remittances.

This study of Nkrumah provides a compelling account of one of the most significant politicians in post-colonial Africa. Hadjor argues that although Nkrumah's experiment failed, it continues to have relevance for Africa today. He also illustrates how certain mistakes were unavoidable during Nkrumah's time. He writes of the clarity of Nkrumah's vision, which helps throw light on the problems many Africans face today. In this important way, Hadjor's reworking of the essential themes of Nkrumah's presidency contributes to the debate on the political future of Africa and promises to give focus to the recent revival of interest in Nkrumah.

Ahead of the second African Union (AU) summit in Mozambique next week, senior parliamentarians urged their governments to step up efforts to establish the Pan-African Parliament (PAP). At the end of a two-day meeting of African parliamentarians in South Africa to discuss the pending launch of the PAP, only 19 countries out of the 53 African states had ratified the agreement. At least 27 have to ratify the protocol before the parliament can be formed, news agencies reported. One of the functions of the PAP would be to oversee the AU, particularly its crucial peer review mechanism.
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* Donor Funding Still Needed to Get the African Union Up, Running
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