POLITICS-SOUTH AFRICA: Swaziland Seeks Border Adjustment

South Africa’s agreement to take seriously Swaziland’s claim to its national territory has implications for all of Africa, and the pledges African countries have made to honour boundaries drawn up during the colonial era, diplomats tell IPS.

RIGHTS-SOUTH AFRICA: Judging the Judges

A statement by South Africa’s ruling party concerning judicial reform has sparked heated debate in the country.

POLITICS-AFRICA: A Challenging Road Ahead for the Peer Review Mechanism

Since the African Peer Review Mechanism was launched about two years ago, less than half of the African Union’s 53-member states have acceded to the process – designed to improve governance on the continent.

TSUNAMI IMPACT: South Africa Reaches Out to Disaster Victims

A South African delegation will be amongst those attending an international donor conference in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, Thursday, to discuss the needs of people affected by last week’s tsunami disaster.

RIGHTS-ZAMBIA: If You’re in the Dock, It’s Useful to Be a Man

In Zambia, the battle for equality between men and women is being waged on many fronts - not least concerning the sentences handed down by courts.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: A Gloomy Election Countdown Begins

And so, another year in Zimbabwe – and in less than three months time, another election. It is a prospect that few seem to welcome.

POLITICS-SUDAN: Conflict and Trade on the Agenda of Talks with South Africa

South African President Thabo Mbeki begins a three-day visit to Sudan, Thursday, during which initiatives to end the various conflicts in the East African country will come under discussion.

CHALLENGES 2004-2005: For Zambia’s Street Kids, the Outlook is Bleak

The festive season is traditionally a time of giving in Zambia, where the streets of the capital – Lusaka – are awash with people caught up in the buying frenzy that characterizes the end of the year. Accordingly, the city’s street children are tracking the mood of consumers as carefully as any economist.

CHALLENGES 2004-2005: Drugs Make a Good Christmas Gift

On Christmas Day in South Africa, who will get the most precious present of all – the gift of life?

DEVELOPMENT: Donor Fatigue Leaves 2.8m People Hungrier in Southern Africa

2004 is ending on a grim note for many in Southern Africa, where emergency food supplies cannot meet their needs.

POLITICS-MOZAMBIQUE: Another Five Years for Frelimo

There were few surprises this week when the final results for Mozambique’s general elections on Dec. 1 and 2 were announced.

DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: A Different Sort of Revolution

As the year hurtles to a close, a good many inhabitants of South Africa's commercial hub, Johannesburg, have deserted their home town for coastal resorts.

POLITICS-MOZAMBIQUE: Electoral Victory at Hand for Frelimo – But Apathy Rules

It would come as no surprise to find that Mozambique’s ruling Frelimo party has put champagne bottles on ice. Preliminary results from general elections held earlier this month (Dec. 1 and 2) show that its presidential candidate, Armando Guebuza, has taken a comfortable lead in the poll.

RIGHTS: Chinese Migration to South Africa Presents Challenges

Two months after the murder of a prominent Chinese businessman together with his family in South Africa, the small but growing number of Chinese immigrants here remains tight-lipped about the incident.

CORRUPTION: Graft Trial Reaches High Into South African Government

International Anti-Corruption Day, held Thursday, may well have struck a particular chord with South Africans this year. The country is currently witnessing a high-profile corruption case, which is being held in the eastern port city of Durban.

ECONOMY-MAURITIUS: Officials Try to Sweeten a Sugar Price Reduction

Mauritius is bracing itself for upheaval in the national sugar industry, this as a 37 percent drop in the price of sugar exports looms. The price decrease, expected at the beginning of next year, will result from reduced trade preferences under the Sugar Protocol that was signed with the European Union (EU) in 1974.

DEVELOPMENT: After Mines Conference, It’s Business as Usual at Lopiding

Rough bits of plastic, wood and metal become - instruments of new life" in Edward Wafula's hands.

HEALTH-ZIMBABWE: Risky Sex and the Law – Incompatible Bedfellows?

For teenagers in the eastern Zimbabwean town of Mutare, a popular disc jockey who goes by the name of Kaiboni has long epitomized the glamorous life. But now, his future is anything but enviable.

HEALTH-SOUTHERN AFRICA: AIDS Initiative Focuses on Women

"HIV is just a virus...If we change our attitudes, HIV will die. It will have no space and capacity to spread," says Musa Njoko, a young South African woman who has been living with the virus for the past decade.

EDUCATION-AFRICA: Universal Schooling an Elusive Goal

A new report by the South African Institute for International Affairs (SAIIA) has highlighted the challenges and constraints facing education in Africa.

POLITICS-NAMIBIA: "Decentralisation Is a Process and Not an Event"

The term decentralisation has become a buzzword in Namibian political and economic circles during recent years. In 2000, the Decentralisation Enabling Act was passed in a bid to give regions a bigger say in the policies implemented there.