TRADE-AFRICA: How to Turn The Curse of Oil Into a Blessing

Africa's abundance in natural resources, especially oil, has been called a curse because of the fierce global thirst that exists for these assets.

POLITICS-THAILAND: Main Political Parties Face Crippling Ban

Thailand's political temperature may rise further after May 30 when a special tribunal determines the fate of the country's oldest and largest political parties.

CORRUPTION: Where Civil Society Found Inspiring Success

Some retired engineers in the Pakistani port city Karachi figured they'd had enough of corruption in the awarding of contracts. They found support from the Partnership for Transparency Fund, no more then 23,000 dollars, to do no more than watch a process of awarding of contracts in a 100 million dollar project of the Karachi Water & Sewerage Board.

CIVIL SOCIETY: Accountability – Long Word, Long Way to Go

Long word, "accountability". Been around a long time as well. Why then, Civicus secretary-general Kumi Naidoo asked at the opening plenary of the Civicus World Assembly in Glasgow, is it only now becoming current?

EUROPE: For Big Business, Accountability Still a Foreign Word

On Mar. 15, 2006, Noel Forgeard, at the time chief executive officer of the European aerospace corporation EADS, sold, apparently without any reason, some 170,000 shares he owned of the company, making an instantaneous profit of almost three million U.S. dollars.

POLITICS: Departing Wolfowitz Names New Iraq Director

The World Bank has just appointed a new country head for Iraq despite security and corruption concerns, according to a leaked document.

ROMANIA: Referendum Asserts Popular Will Over Parliament

A decision by parliament to oust Romanian President Traian Basescu was overturned in a historic referendum that has endorsed his wide popular appeal despite recent political turmoil.

POLITICS: World Bank Should Go With Wolfowitz – Activists

Paul Wolfowitz's fall from grace is symptomatic of the double standards and hypocrisy of the World Bank and strains the marriage between neo-liberal policies and militarism that he embodied, say activists and analysts.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Fueled Tensions That Led to His Demise

Disgraced World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who announced his resignation Thursday, may insist that his staff and the Bank's directors ganged up on him because of his role in the Iraq war, but analysts and a Bank source say the ouster was mostly self-inflicted.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Is at the Door

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who has been warding off accusations of favouritism and nepotism at the Washington-based institution, will resign effective Jun. 30, the first president ever to be forced out.

POLITICS-US: Halliburton Looks to Greener Pastures

As Halliburton held its annual meeting Wednesday in Houston, Texas, the Washington-based Corpwatch released its own "Alternative Annual Report" which details the alleged wrongdoings of the company and its former subsidiary, Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR), and questions the motivation behind Halliburton's planned move to the United Arab Emirates.

EU-DEVELOPMENT: Never Mind the Lobbyists’ Fee

Corporate lobbyists in Brussels are resisting calls by European Union legislators to disclose how much they receive from firms determined to water down EU rules on the environment and public health.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Scandal Spotlights U.S. Reign at Bank

Recent White House backing for the beleaguered World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, despite the findings of an internal report that said he had violated the Bank's ethics rules, is bringing the role of the United States in running the Bank in "undemocratic" ways under scrutiny, with rising calls for Washington to loosen its grip on the institution.

DEVELOPMENT: Arab Regimes, Local Elites Shun Reforms

Economic changes needed to alleviate biting poverty in the Arab world have largely been derailed at the hands of ruling regimes and entrenched local elites who use whatever revenues their economies generate to cement their own positions, charges a new report released here.

ECONOMY-KENYA: Buying Airtime to Chat About Poverty

In an election year, it's undoubtedly something that Kenyan officials hoping to regain power will be pointing to: steady economic growth during President Mwai Kibaki's first term in office.

POLITICS: Kellems, First Head to Roll in Wolfowitz Scandal

Kevin Kellems, the right-hand man of embattled World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, has resigned from the Bank in what analysts say is likely an effort to save his boss.

PRESS FREEDOM: Journalists in Colombia Create New National Federation

Journalists in Colombia, one of the most dangerous countries in the world for reporters, finally have their own national association.

POLITICS: Charges of Dishonesty Fly at World Bank

The controversy over allegations of misconduct by World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is turning ever more sour, with Wolfowitz and former top managers, who together oversaw billons of dollars in loans to thousands of projects in developing nations, trading barbs and accusations of dishonesty.

ROMANIA: What are Intellectuals Doing with Politics

Over the past months, the Romanian Parliament passed a censorship motion against reformist justice minister Monica Macovei and suspended President Traian Basescu. As the elected representatives of the people get increasingly entangled in power games, prominent intellectuals try to speak up, only to be slandered in response.

Q&A: Victims in Colombia Are Gagged, the Public Misinformed

When a murder occurs in a Colombian community, the locals know who committed it: far-right paramilitaries, leftwing guerrillas, or the security forces. They also know if fighting really took place, or if the "enemy" bodies displayed on television as "trophies" by army officers were in fact dead civilians.

ROMANIA: Corruption Concerns Split Government

The Romanian government stands divided by differences that have emerged between the President and the Prime Minister, many of them over the issue of corruption.