MALAWI: Rural Communities Jointly Care for Orphans

At the age of 66, village headman Kamwala of Dedza district in central Malawi is starting to feel the effects of ageing. He gets tired easily and needs frequent naps but says he cannot afford this luxury. He and his wife are caregivers to a one-year-old orphan.

CULTURE: Poor Patronage Killing Arab Cinema

Arab cinema, which had a promising presence at international film festivals during the 1990s, may now be going through a declining phase for lack of patronage.

MEXICO: Music and Dance Classes Foster Tolerance, Self-Esteem

Ten-year-old Jessica Algoneda leaps in the air, raising her arms and spinning around at her primary school in the Mexican capital, as if in honour of Terpsichore, the Greek muse of dance and poetry.

CHINA: Binge-drinking Culture Turning from Fun to Lethal

After Chen Lusheng, a police sergeant from the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, died in December after an off-duty night of heavy drinking with local officials, his superiors tried to have him designated a "martyr" who "died in the line of duty," so that his family would receive greater compensation.

KENYA: New Bill to Improve State Witness Protection, If Passed

Kenyans affected by the violence that erupted after the country’s disputed presidential elections in 2007 may soon be able to speak out without fear. A new bill will offer better protection to state witnesses.

ASIA: Religious Advocates Heed the Call of New Media

Not even religious advocates and leaders and can say no to the power of online media, whose call they are heeding in order to spread various messages of spirituality.

SINGAPORE: As Casino Opens, Watch for Its Social Impact Begins

An unfamiliar sight in Singapore – that of vehicles with foreign licence plates filling the car park – meets visitors at the basement of the city-state’s first casino, which opened nearly a month ago.

NAMIBIA: Female Hip-Hop Artists Challenge Stereotypes

African hip-hop prides itself on a more positive portrayal of women, but traditional cultural attitudes towards women still dominate the industry, say Namibian female rappers.

ECUADOR: Avatar Downfall a Blow for Indigenous Communities

Science fiction blockbuster Avatar was the big loser in the Oscar awards ceremony - not only a blow for director James Cameron but also seen as a symbolic reverse in the struggle to recover Amazon rainforest areas in Ecuador from the effects of oil pollution.

MALAWI: Patrilineal Inheritance Prevents Women’s Access to Land

Mercy Gondwe, 51, from Rumphi in northern Malawi, was married for 34 years. When her husband died in 2008, she assumed she would inherit the land they had been cultivating together since they got married. But this was not the case.

Q&A: 11.8 Seconds That Broke Taboos for Women

Dressed in an abaya (long, loose gown worn by women to cover their dress) and a headscarf, Naseem Hameed cannot be recognised as she alights from a crowded, rickety public bus to reach her destination – the sports stadium.

MEXICO: Scientists Reinvent the Corn Tortilla

The process of making corn tortillas - the filling, age-old traditional food throughout much of Mexico and Central America - pollutes huge volumes of water and consumes a great deal of energy.

RIGHTS-SWAZILAND: Property Rights At Last for Women

A recent court ruling has finally given Swazi women the right to own and administer property in their own names.

VIETNAM: War Movie with Peace Theme Seeks to Heal Wounds

A Vietnamese film that is vying for an Oscar this month offers a glimpse into how Vietnam and the United States are healing decades-old war wounds, as well as how that war still generates emotional debate today.

INDIA: Latest Riots Show Simmering Communal Tensions

This week's riots in two southern Indian towns highlight how communal tensions in this country of nearly 1.2 billion people simmer just under the surface, exploding at the slightest provocation.

IRAQ: Are Kurds’ Days of Kingmaking Over?

In the run-up to Iraq's parliamentary elections next week, the once-united Kurds are not only suffering deep fissures but are expected to lose their privileged kingmaker position after the polls.

RIGHTS: Women More Educated, Not More Equal

When it comes to female education rates, progress has been made around the world, and in many countries girls and young women have outnumbered and outperformed boys and men at all levels of schooling for decades. Nevertheless, these advances have yet to translate into greater equity in employment, politics and social relations.

US-HAITI: Katrina Victims Feel Kinship, Offer Help

Many survivors of Hurricane Katrina, which struck New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast in August 2005, have been seeing their own reflection in media images of Haiti earthquake victims. And despite - or even because of - their own struggle, many feel personally driven to help organise assistance for the people of Haiti.

RIGHTS-GERMANY: ‘Catholic Church Protects Paedophile Priests’

The Catholic Church has for decades protected paedophile priests and clerics who sexually abused children from judiciary prosecution, according to German theologians, law experts, and internal church documents.

Q&A: Brazil Leans on South America to Adopt Its Digital TV Standard

Brazil is lobbying hard to get the rest of Latin America to adopt the Brazilian version of the Japanese digital television standard, as Argentina, Chile, Peru and Venezuela have already done.

MEDIA-INDIA: More Women Now, But Few in Top Posts

Young Indian women are increasingly taking to careers in journalism, but this trend is restricted to the metropolises and to non-decision making positions in media organisations, leading women journalists say.