Q&A: “You Can’t Kill Journalism”

Zimbabwean publisher and editor Wilf Mbanga will mark this year's World Press Freedom Day (May 3) in Britain, along with several other reporters from his country who have fled the repressive regime of President Robert Mugabe. As the political and economic difficulties gripping Zimbabwe have intensified, so have government's efforts to clamp down on journalists covering the crisis.

RIGHTS-SOUTH AFRICA: “Many Men Fear Losing Their Power”

One in four women in an abusive relationship, a woman killed approximately every week by her close male partner: these figures, from People Opposing Women Abuse, a Johannesburg-based non-profit, indicate the extent of the problem posed by gender-related violence in South Africa.

ENVIRONMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: Political Sins Continue to Scar the Land

While South Africa's "homelands" - areas formerly set aside for blacks - have been relegated to the dustbin of history for more than a decade, their legacy lives on in the form of land degradation, and even desertification in northern and eastern parts of the country.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Independence Day in Name Only, NGOs Fear

Reports that Zimbabwean Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu has annulled the registration of all non-governmental organisations (NGOs) active in the country have been greeted with dismay by civil society representatives.

ENVIRONMENT-MALAWI: Waste Not, Want Not

In many parts of Malawi, discussing human excreta is taboo. The mere mention of faeces, in any of the country's 10 official languages, makes those taking part in the conversation uncomfortable. But, excreta could be about to gain respectability.

ZIMBABWE: “Mbeki Needs to Move from Quiet Diplomacy to Open Mediation”

A debate is underway among analysts and civil society activists about how South African President Thabo Mbeki should proceed in fulfilling the mandate given to him last month by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), to continue mediating between Zimbabwe's government and opposition.

WORLD HEALTH DAY-SOUTH AFRICA: An Outbreak Kept From Breaking Out

South Africa seems to have succeeded in preventing an outbreak of Extreme Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (XDR-TB) from spiralling out of control and spreading beyond its borders, at least for now.

ENERGY-SOUTH AFRICA: Fuel in the Car at the Expense of Food on the Table?

South Africa has joined the race to find alternative sources of energy: government has already approved a 'Draft Biofuels Industry Strategy', and called on stakeholders to discuss it.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: A Regional – and National – Embrace for Mugabe

Hopes that Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe would be taken to task this week over human rights abuses in his country have been dashed - this after regional leaders reaffirmed their solidarity with Zimbabwe, and the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) endorsed Mugabe as its presidential candidate for 2008 elections.

LESOTHO: Local Elections May Hold the Key to National Success for Women

As Lesotho's newly-elected legislators settle down to the task of governing, activists are expressing disappointment at the low representation of women in the country's parliament.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: “This Dictator Must Be Brought Down”

Zimbabwe's outspoken Catholic archbishop, Pius Ncube, has volunteered to lead peaceful, mass protests to remove President Robert Mugabe from power, as Cardinal Jaime Sin did to unseat dictator Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines more than two decades ago.

Q&A: “We Want to Take Control of Our Water”

In a State of the Nation address delivered in February, South African President Thabo Mbeki said his country had "already achieved the Millennium Development Goals in respect of basic water supply, with improvement of access from 59 percent in 1994 to 83 percent in 2006."

POLITICS-AFRICA: Democracy Takes Root in Some Countries, Falters in Others

The progress of democracy in Africa has come under discussion this week at a conference in the South African commercial hub of Johannesburg.

INT’L WOMEN’S DAY-SOUTH AFRICA: A Fight Against Cultural Norms on Violence

International Women's Day, commemorated Thursday, is this year focused on bringing those who abuse women and girls to book. The theme is a pertinent one for South Africa, where the twin challenges of tackling domestic violence and ending impunity have topped the agenda of women's groups for years.

SOUTH AFRICA: How Discarded Bottles Led to the ‘DNA Project’

DNA profiling has rapidly proved an indispensable tool in fighting crime. The process offers a host of benefits, such as quick identification of criminals, and of innocent suspects - as well as solid evidence for presentation in court.

ZIMBABWE: Death Penalty Stifling Free Speech

Zimbabwean rights activists are campaigning with unprecedented vigour for an end to the death penalty as the country’s political and economic crisis deepens, arguing that this is essential for an open debate on the nation’s future and its joining the "civilised democracies of the world".

POLITICS-LESOTHO: “No Sense If People Vote and Their Lives Remain the Same”

Results issued this week show that the ruling Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) has swept to back to power in parliamentary elections held Feb. 17. The party, at the helm since 1998, won 61 of the 80 contested seats - leaving the main opposition grouping, the All Basotho Convention (ABC), to take 17.

DEVELOPMENT-MOZAMBIQUE: Waterlogged, and There May Be Worse to Come

Mozambicans are bracing themselves for a cyclone that could spell further hardship for the 120,000 people devastated by floods over the past few weeks.

DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: Unease in the Wake of an Expropriation

Fritz Ahrens has worked on the family farm, Sterkstroom, since he left school 20 years ago. Born on the 200-hectare property in South Africa's north-eastern Limpopo province, the 40-year-old Ahrens makes a living by helping his father produce litchis, macadamia nuts and avocados. The farm employs 46 full time and seasonal workers.

ENVIRONMENT: Plans to Halt Desertification in Africa a Work in Progress

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) requires signatories to create national action plans for dealing with this scourge that allow sustainable development - and encompass participation by communities, amongst others.

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.