ECONOMY-SOUTHERN AFRICA: Getting in Touch with Mobile Phones

Only a decade ago many southern Africans thought a mobile phone was a luxury reserved for rich chief executives of multinational companies.

RIGHTS: NGOs Campaign for New U.N. Women’s Agency

When the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) holds a two-week session beginning Feb. 26, a coalition of over 150 international non-governmental organisations will use it as a platform to urge Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to help implement a proposal for the creation of a new U.N. women's agency.

CORRUPTION: The Poor Take the Brunt

Poor people are the intended beneficiaries of a large proportion of public policies. They are also those who suffer most from the harmful effects of corruption, according to experts gathered in the Venezuelan capital for a symposium hosted by Transparency International (TI) and its national branch in this country.

MEXICO: Law on Violence Against Women – Necessary but Not Sufficient

"This is the last time Patricia will be battered," says a radio spot about the law on violence against women, which entered into force this month. But will this hopeful statement come true?

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: President’s Lavish Birthday Plans Slammed

Someone who’s managed to reach the advanced age of 83 might argue that they’re entitled to a sizeable celebration. But this argument doesn’t hold water if the person is Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, says activist Tapera Kapuya.

TECHNOLOGY-AFRICA: A Rural-Urban Digital Divide Challenges Women

Janet Malika owes her success to the little gadget that is her cell phone. Formerly a struggling food hawker in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, she has become a cafeteria owner since acquiring the device about five years ago, and using it to conduct business.

FINANCE: US Cancels Liberia’s Debt, But Billions Pending

Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf gained major ground in a campaign to cancel her country's debts with the announcement Tuesday that Washington will write off some 358 million dollars in debts incurred by Liberia's previous undemocratic regimes.

DEVELOPMENT-TANZANIA: High Growth Still to Benefit the Poor

Just more than a year after Jakaya Kikwete was elected president of Tanzania his name was mentioned in the halls at the Africa Union (AU) summit in January in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, as the possible new chairperson of the AU.

HEALTH-INDIA: Campaign to Stop Monopoly of Clinical Trial Data

As public health groups await the outcome of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG’s legal challenge to India’s patent law, a campaign is building up against a parallel move to obtain 'data exclusivity' on clinical trial data submitted to government for marketing approval.

FINANCE: Rich Nations Prodded on “Illegitimate” Lending

Industrialised countries that knowingly lent billions of dollars in "irresponsible" debts to corrupt and dictatorial regimes in poor nations should cancel the debts and reconsider their harmful policies, a new study says.

PORTUGAL: Legal Abortion After Decades of Struggle

It took more than three decades of struggle by activists for Portugal to give the green light, via referendum, to parliament to make the country's strict anti-abortion law more flexible.

POLITICS-BRAZIL: Lula, Placing His Pieces

The complexity of juggling the interests of the 11 parties in Brazil's governing coalition has led President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to delay announcing appointments of the ministers who will serve in his second term until the end of the month.

TRADE: The WTO’s Glass Ceiling

This week's election of the chairpersons of the main World Trade Organisation (WTO) bodies for 2007 went largely unnoticed, as part of the global body's routine procedures. But one aspect stood out: none of the appointed chairs are women.

LABOUR: Few “Decent Jobs” in the Booming Informal Economy

The service sector, comprising finance, banking and tourism, but also much lesser-paid jobs in retail and food services, overtook agriculture as the largest source of employment last year, according to a report released this week by the U.N. Commission for Social Development.

EDUCATION-MOZAMBIQUE: Orphans’ Choice: School or Survival?

The school year kicks off in Mozambique with more children enrolling for primary school than ever in the past. But educational prospects remain bleak for orphans like Regina Massango.

NEPAL: ‘Privatisation’ Violates Right to Health – Activists

Hiring a private firm to manage the drinking water system in Nepal's capital violates the right to health guarantee in the country's interim constitution, activists are set to argue before the Supreme Court.

PORTUGAL: Graphic Leaflets Backfire on Anti-Abortionists

Just when those in favour of legalising abortion in Portugal were faltering in the polls, a hair-raising campaign against voluntary termination of pregnancy could backfire against the anti-abortion cause, instead of winning over more supporters.

SOUTHERN AFRICA: Floods Leave Trail of Destruction, Disease

Floods have hit a swath of southern Africa, from Mozambique in the east to Angola in the west, causing a marked increase in cholera and malaria cases, say aid workers.

HEALTH-INDONESIA: WHO Feathers Ruffled Over Bird Flu Vaccine

A decision by the Indonesian government to be selective about sending local samples of the bird flu virus to the World Health Organisation (WHO) reflects fears harboured by developing countries of being marginalised in the race to find a vaccine for this deadly disease.

RIGHTS-SOUTH AFRICA: “No Reason for a Child to Go Hungry”

"My child watches TV at the neighbours' and wants me to buy him a toy car, a toy gun and a bar of chocolate being advertised. I can't afford them," said Sibongile Nkosi.

COSTA RICA: CAFTA Not a Solution But an Opportunity, Says Oscar Arias

Monday marked the first anniversary of Óscar Arias' second electoral victory in Costa Rica with the National Liberation Party. During his first term (1986-1990), Arias was known as the "peace president". Today, the left are criticising him for promoting free trade with the United States.