Full Coverage: Africa

30.09.2004 UN-Habitat has established a Water and Sanitation Trust Fund targeted at poor urban communities in Africa. Projected population growth rates for African cities are the highest in the world. People in slums are already paying significantly more for scarce water supplies than North Americans.

30.09.2004 Three more states - - Burundi, Guyana and Liberia - - ratified the Rome Statute in support of the International Criminal Court (ICC) this week, bringing the number of signatories to 97. Liberia and Burundi join the ranks of countries like East Timor and the Democratic Republic of Congo that joined the ICC after suffering grave, prolonged atrocities.

29.09.2004 Police in Zimbabwe arrested 48 women on a protest march against new legislation that they say will be used to restrict human rights organisations. The members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (Woza) had walked 400km from Bulawayo, the country's second-largest city, and were stopped just 30km from Harare, their destination.

29.09.2004 Kenya is pushing for an international ban on trade in lion trophies and skins, arguing that the number of the animals has declined sharply over the years as a result of hunting, loss of habitat and lack of prey.

29.09.2004 The government of Namibia is working to introduce e-governance to improve administrative efficiency and cut service delivery costs to its people. With e-governance, officials hope to provide public services 24 hours a day.

29.09.2004 World famous photographer Don McCullin exhibits his latest collection "Life Interrupted" in London, 26 November -10 January 2005. Christian Aid is organising the event.

29.09.2004 Zambia's capital city Lusaka is facing difficulties in dealing with waste management. The institute of Waste management recently organised a workshop to help the city authorities with information and new methods in waste management.

29.09.2004 Afrikkalaiset lääkärit ja hoitajat jättävät yhä useammin kotimaansa ennen kaikkea huonojen palkkojen vuoksi. Asiantuntijat ovatkin nyt huolissaan, miten maanosan jo valmiiksi heiveröiset terveydenhoitojärjestelmät kykenevät vastaamaan HIV/aidsin haasteisiin vähäisemmällä henkilökunnalla.

29.09.2004 Join NetAid and CARE relief effort in Darfur by sending Sudan Action E-cards. For every five cards sent, $1 will be allocated from the NetAid World Schoolhouse Fund to finance CARE’s relief work which includes, distribution of UNICEF school-in-a-box kit to refugee children and teachers.

28.09.2004 Entrepreneurs in South Africa are queuing up ahead of the launch of a hub
that will provide ICT start-ups funding and support. The hub started by an
organisation, which has support from the Canadian government, promises to
broaden technology skills, create access to markets through technology and
use ICT for social benefits.

28.09.2004 This report of an East African Regional Water and Sanitation Seminar includes an assessment of the advantages and challenges of rainwater harvesting at household level. Prohibitive cost is the main concern and governments will be targeted to give formal recognition and support for domestic rainwater harvesting.

28.09.2004 Kooki County in Uganda has very difficult physical and climatic conditions for drinking water supplies. A programme to introduce simple rainwater harvesting techniques in selected households has successfully prompted replication throughout the district on a self-financing basis.

28.09.2004 An example from Zimbabwe of the use of local rock formation as catchment for rainwater, on a scale which benefits an entire community in a region suffering from extreme water shortage.

28.09.2004 Liberian sodan jaloissa sadattuhannet ihmiset ovat jääneet kodittomiksi ja perheenjäsenet joutuneet eroon toisistaan hakeutuessaan pakolaisleireille. Avustusjärjestöt yrittävätkin yhdistää sodan repimiä perheitä ja suojata lapsia hyväksikäytöltä valtavissa pakolaisleireissä, kertoo Pelastakaa Lapset -järjestön Auta Lasta -lehden tuore numero.

28.09.2004 Le Bilan fait lors de la célébration de la troisième édition de la journée internationale contre le travail des enfants révèle en effet que le fléau résiste aux actions menées pour le combattre. Aussi bien au Bénin que dans le monde tout entier, l’enfant continue d’être soumis aux travaux des adultes hypothéquant ainsi son avenir, celui de son pays et de toute l’espèce humaine.

27.09.2004 L'Africa è il solo continente ad aver attuato politiche di disarmo nucleare totale. Già dieci anni fa, il Sudafrica ha completato lo smantellamento del suo arsenale; ora è il turno della Libia. Tuttavia il continente è ancora coinvolto in manovre internazionali: programmi nucleari, forniture di uranio ed esperimenti di armi non convenzionali, dall'Algeria alla Nigeria, passando per il Niger e la Repubblica Democratica del Congo e per... Roma.
di Luca Mainoldi

27.09.2004 Una nuova indagine epidemiologica condotta da Medici Senza Frontiere (MSF) nel Darfur del Sud rivela che complessivamente il livello e la qualità degli aiuti umanitari continua ad essere insufficiente. Nel campo di Kalma, nei pressi di Nyala, dove circa 66.000 persone fuggite dalle violenze hanno trovato rifugio e dove MSF sta curando 3.900 bambini malnutriti, l’indagine ha riportato tassi di mortalità e malnutrizione ben sopra la soglia d’emergenza. MSF avverte che senza un aumento della mobilitazione degli aiuti nel Darfur del Sud, le condizioni sanitarie e nutrizionali nella regione potrebbero peggiorare ulteriormente.

27.09.2004 Mali’s war against locusts swarming its crop fields is being fought from a suitcase. The Unesco-donated mobile radio transmitter is being used to broadcast messages, which are then being retransmitted on the four radio stations in Timbuktu. With government resources not enough to reach communities, this radio is helping mobilise people.

27.09.2004 More than 80 per cent of websites in South Africa ignore the laws designed
to protect consumers of online business transactions, a survey conducted in
August 2004 has shown.

24.09.2004 A margine dell’Assemblea generale dell’Onu, Rwanda, Uganda e Repubblica democratica del Congo hanno sottoscritto ieri un accordo per risolvere le differenze in vista di una reale pacificazione della regione dei Grandi Laghi - comunica l'agenzia Misna. I combattimenti tra l'esercito regolare e i "dissidenti" del generale Lauent Nkunda che hanno destabilito per mesi l'intera regione del Kivu hanno lasciato 20.000 sfollati che si stanno muovendo attualmente tra il Nord e il Sud Kivu per sfuggire ai combattimenti - riporta Warnews.