HEALTH-ZIMBABWE: Government Promises to Rebuild Health System

The resuscitation of Zimbabwe’s health care system has been identified as one of the major challenges facing the country by the country’s new unity government.

AFRICA: Arbitration Mechanism Demanded to End Scourge of Debt

International debt campaigners are calling for the establishment of a debt arbitration mechanism to respond to the difficulties that many countries of the South are increasingly facing as they attempt to service debt arrears to international lenders.

HEALTH-ZIMBABWE: Doctors Fear High Risk of Drug-Resistant TB

Zimbabwe’s crumbling health system makes it almost impossible to detect and treat tuberculosis (TB), doctors say. As a result, they suspect the country has large numbers of unidentified cases of multi-drug resistant (MDR) as well as extensively drug resistant (XDR) TB.

ECONOMY: Using the Rand Makes Zimbabwe ‘South Africa’s Province’

Zimbabwe may soon become part of the South African rand monetary union when the troubled southern African country officially assumes the use of the rand as part of a raft of economic initiatives aimed at kick-starting its comatose economy.

Q&A: Zimbabwe's Finance Minister, ‘‘The Worst Job In The World''

Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe last week presided over the formation of a new unity government. Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) secretary general Tendai Biti was appointed to the post of finance minister.

Q&A: ‘An Opportunity to Do Things Differently’

As Zimbabwe's government of national unity begins its work, gender activists are pushing for a greater place for women in decision-making.

ZIMBABWE-POLITICS: Thou Shalt Not Give Up Your Right…

Among the vital tasks spelled out in the Global Political Agreement (GPA) that frames Zimbabwe's power-sharing government is the drafting of a new constitution. Even before the process begins, it is under challenge from Zimbabwean civil society.

ZIMBABWE: Teachers' Strike Infringes Children’s Right to Education

The crisis of Zimbabwe’s education sector is deepening by the day, as the country’s schools remain closed due to the unremitting teachers strike.

ZIMBABWE: Unity Govt or Not, People Must Mobilise

Following an extraordinary Summit of SADC heads of state in Pretoria on Jan. 26-27, it was announced that a unity government is to be formed in Zimbabwe, apparently resolving months of disagreement following a power-sharing agreement in September 2008.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Little Hope at SADC Summit

After a 12-hour meeting behind closed doors, Southern African Development Community leaders emerged early on Jan. 27 to announce that bitter political rivals Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai will form a unity government.

ZIMBABWE: ‘Life Is Like A Casino – We Live Each Day As It Comes’

Long lines of stalls, run by women, have sprung up next to many of Zimbabwe’s highways, selling honey, milk, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions and chickens. As prices in towns skyrocket due to unprecedented inflation levels running in the millions, people leave their towns to purchase basic commodities.

ZIMBABWE: Contradictory Claims About Ivory Trade After CITES

The decision by an international body to again allow some southern African countries to conduct once-off ivory sales has been attacked by an animal rights activist saying elephants are being threatened by poaching because of the breakdown in the legal and social order in Zimbabwe.

HEALTH-ZIMBABWE: Cholera Now a National Emergency

"Funerals of people dying of cholera are a common feature of our daily lives," said Tapiwa Hove, a resident Budiriro, a high-density suburb of Harare. "But it seems no one cares. Sewage is flowing all over. It's like living in hell."

EDUCATION: Zimbabwe’s School System Crumbles

Glen View 5 Primary School in one of Harare's high-density suburbs is deserted. Classrooms are empty, desks and chairs are piled up in corners and instruction charts are peeling off the walls. Yet, the school's third term is in full swing.

TRADE: Africans Should Confront ''Blind Governments'' on EPAs

African governments came under fire for ‘‘blindly’’ negotiating the controversial economic partnership agreements (EPAs) and not making an effort to educate ‘‘ordinary people’’ on what they were negotiating.

DEVELOPMENT: Zimbabweans Worried About Aid With Strings Attached

Aid with strings attached frequently does not translate into the improvement of the lives of the people for whom that money was ostensibly sourced in the first place. Most of the capital received in aid is used to pay back debt owed to Western donors.

AFRICA: Financial Crisis May Increase Pressure for Debt Repayment

The collapse of the financial markets may force the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to come down hard on African countries to repay their debts because the huge rescue packages for collapsing banks will need to be recuperated.

SOUTHERN AFRICA: More Debt But Still No Development

Shupikai Machinya, a Zimbabwean cross-border trader who attended the recent Southern Africa Social Forum in Manzini, Swaziland, is one of the many delegates who wanted to understand just how a country ends up in debt.

TRADE-AFRICA: Customs Union to Be Launched at COMESA Summit

Following the signing of a power-sharing agreement in Zimbabwe on September 15, the country seems to be growing in confidence. Harare has announced that it will now host the 13th Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) summit in the resort town of Victoria Falls.

ZIMBABWE: Economic Package Being Crafted For New Government

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is mobilising economic aid for its troubled member state Zimbabwe. The economic aid package is part of efforts by the region to help bolster the faltering political deal, widely regarded as the initial phase towards the recovery of Zimbabwe's wretched economy.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Power-Sharing Deal Signed

Zimbabwe's political leaders signed a long overdue power sharing deal late on Thursday night.