Deposed Madagascan President Marc Ravalomanana will return to the island state under the protection of the 13-member regional body, the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Ravalomanana told a media briefing on 15 April in the capital of Swaziland, Mbabane, that his return would kick-start a national dialogue with his successor, President Andry Rajoelina, in the hope of holding presidential elections by the end of 2009. He did not divulge the date of his return.

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's seizure of a ministry controlled by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is casting more doubt on his commitment to the fledgling power-sharing deal. The birth of the unity government on 11 February 2009 was designed to dilute the powers accumulated during Mugabe's nearly 29-year rule, which has reduced the once prosperous nation to penury.

The Senegalese Minister of Agriculture, Amath Sall, has announced that "by 2012, Senegal will not import a single grain of rice." Record harvests in the River Senegal valley indicate the country is on the right course. The Dakar government has intensified its programmes to raise food production in the Sahelian country, with a special focus on rice as a staple food. Especially along the large valley of River Senegal, marking its border with Mauritania, results are now beginning to become visible.

Poor African farmers and especially victims of conflicts will benefit from a UN managed fund aimed at boosting recovery for households and formerly displaced communities. The project follows Belgium's agreement to a $6.6 million programme for FAO to provide emergency assistance to poor farmers in Africa as part of an ongoing partnership that has totalled more than $80 million over the past twelve years.