ZIMBABWE: To Yuan or Not to Yuan, That is the Question

From downtown shops that stock cheap clothing and shoes that fall apart after one wear, to mining concessions in platinum, gold and diamonds - the Chinese finger is now in virtually every Zimbabwean pie.

CAMEROON: Anglophones Feel Like a Subjugated People

When Cameroon’s President Paul Biya announced that the 50th anniversary of the reunification of French and British Cameroon will take place later this year, it resurrected bitter feelings among Anglophone Cameroonians who say they do not feel like equal partners with their Francophone counterparts.

MALAWI: Street Vendors Lose Customers after Stripping Women Naked

A campaign to stop people buying merchandise from street vendors is gaining momentum in Malawi’s main cities of Lilongwe, Blantyre and Mzuzu after the small-scale traders went on a rampage undressing women and girls wearing trousers, leggings, shorts and mini-skirts.

AFRICA: Miracle Tree is Like a Supermarket

When a food crisis hits the continent, African countries tend to look to the international donor community to mobilise aid. But a fast-growing, drought- resistant tree with extremely nutritious leaves could help poor, arid nations to fight food insecurity and malnutrition on their own.

KENYA: Four Years On, IDPs Remain in Camps

Six-year-old Victor Muruga points to a hole in the bush that he calls his "bedroom". "I sleep there, under that tree and my mother sleeps under that blanket," says Muruga.

SOUTH SUDAN: Still Counting the Dead in Inter-Ethnic Conflict

In the ward of a partially destroyed clinic, Mangiro (who did not give his last name) sat on a bed next to his wounded nine-year-old daughter, Ngathin. The little girl is fortunate, she survived the recent inter-ethnic clashes in Pibor county that killed her mother and sisters.

MAURITIUS: The Decline of Consumer Cooperatives

Amateurism, high prices, mismanagement, and a limited product range have discouraged Inderjeet Rajcoomarsingh, the former chairman of the Mauritius Agricultural Cooperative Federation, from shopping at cooperative stores.

Progress Towards a Food-Secure Africa

A growing number of African countries are making significant progress towards eradicating extreme hunger and poverty. Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and South Africa are some of the countries that have made tremendous achievements towards achieving these goals.

ZIMBABWE: Street Vendors’ Protest Sparking a Revolution

There are some unlikely comparisons between the work lives of Mohammed Bouazizi, the Tunisian fruit seller who sparked the Arab revolution, and Francis Tachirev, a fruit seller in Zimbabwe.

Woe Betide the Return of the Zimbabwean Dollar

Tinashe Zuze’s story is a typical one of Zimbabwe’s professionals who have shunned formal employment. Instead of working for someone else, Zuze left his job as a bank teller and entered into the world of "wheeling and dealing" in illegal foreign currency.

SWAZILAND-SOUTH AFRICA: New Railway Line to Boost Economies

The 146-kilometre railway line to be established between South Africa and Swaziland will help reduce the cost of doing business between the two countries.

KENYA: Key Lakes Succumb to Human Activities

Several years ago, Lakes Kamnarok and Ol Bollosat in Kenya were vibrant water bodies that supported and shaped the ecosystems around them. But today they are shells of their former selves, due to heavy siltation caused by human activities.

GUINEA-BISSAU: Another Blow to a Fragile Democracy

The death of the president of Guinea-Bissau, Malam Bacai Sanhá, could usher in a replay of the military uprisings that have set an unmistakable seal of instability on the political life of this small West African country.

NIGERIA: Corruption Fuels Public Anger

As a nationwide strike and protests against the lifting of the fuel subsidy paralysed Nigeria for the third day in a row Wednesday, analysts say the billions of dollars a year lost to corruption in the oil industry could have been used to leave the subsidy in place.

CAMEROON-CHINA: A Wedding with Uncertain Prospects

The Cameroon government is increasingly turning to China as a privileged partner in its development efforts. But there are many discordant voices who say the long-term effects of China’s economic relations with Cameroon could be disastrous for domestic industry.

Africa Begins to Rise Above Aid

An increasing number of African countries are beginning to step away from aid dependency, as the domestic private sector becomes the engine of growth across much of Africa.

Brown Revolution Brings New Hope

Picking spots for cattle to graze could reverse desertification and even do its bit to retard climate change, new experiments in Zimbabwe have shown. It’s what is coming to be called the Brown Revolution.

CAMEROON: Stepping Naturally Away from Plastic

Maya Stella, a restaurant manager in the capital of Cameroon, no longer uses plastic to wrap the corn-fufu that she sells to her customers. She now uses banana or plantain leaves instead, because these are "natural and it is our African culture to use leaves in wrapping food."

Double Sentence: AIDS in a Senegalese Prison

Amadou* takes in a long, deep breath, clears his throat and steps to the front of the room. He turns to look out at a familiar group of faces sitting on long wooden benches here at the Camp Penal maximum-security prison in Dakar. This is the last in a group of 150 inmates Amadou has been speaking with today. He’s tired, but remains focused.

NIGERIA: Police Crack Down on Fuel Protests

Police fired tear gas and beat protesters to force them out of a square they had occupied in an overnight sit-in in Nigeria's northern city of Kano as part of demonstrations over soaring fuel prices, an organiser said.

ZIMBABWE: Microcredit Aggravates ‘January Disease’

Thomas Dlakama has experienced what he calls "January disease" all his working life. This phenomenon afflicts millions in Zimbabwe, and its symptoms include an empty purse, rising blood pressure among irascible breadwinners, and a general inexplicable hope of manna from heaven.