POLITICS: African Union to Clip the Wings of Rebel Groups, Errant Gov’ts

African leaders are becoming increasingly determined to crack-down on the rebel groups and errant governments whose relentless conflicts are hampering the development of the continent.

CULTURE-MALAWI: Young Women Leaders Rise Up To Challenges

-Faced with high prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection, environmental degradation and sluggish economic growth, young women professionals in Malawi have put their heads together and intensified efforts to bring about a major paradigm shift.

POLITICS-AFRICA: South Africa Exerts its Muscles

There is a behind-the-scenes tussle between South Africa and African Union for control of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

CULTURE-MALAWI: Women Champion For Removal Of Discriminatory Laws

With domestic abuse and violence against women on the rise, Malawian women activists have drafted several bills aimed at ending the suffering they endure in their lives.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Talks Hit Snag

The delicate nature of bringing the long-running crisis in Zimbabwe to an end has produced varying public statements, which in some instances make it hard for any meaningful dialogue to take place.

POLITICS-AFRICA: Angry Protestors Target Bush Trip

Protestors in three African nations are gearing for marches to coincide with the visit to five countries by U.S. President George W. Bush.

TECHNOLOGY-SOUTHERN AFRICA: A Tall Order for IT to Fill

Southern African nations are entering the modern information age by hammering out polices to coordinate the growth of information and communications technologies (ICT) in their countries.

POLITICS: Donor Funding Still Needed to Get the African Union Up, Running

The operating costs of the African Union are expected to reach as much as 100 million U.S. dollars a year, once all its structures are up and running.

ECONOMY: Ten Years After the End of Apartheid, Blacks Still Own Nothing

What does political power matter if it is not matched by economic power? This is the rationale gripping South Africa ten years after the end of apartheid.

POLITICS-AFRICA: War on Terror, Access to Oil Likely to Dominate Bush’s Trip

War on terror and access to oil seem to be behind the visit of U.S. President George W. Bush to Africa next week, say analysts.

DEVELOPMENT-SOUTHERN AFRICA: Aid Operations Hampered by GMO Controversy

As more than 14 million people in Southern Africa face the threats of starvation, aid operations in the region continue to be hampered by the controversy about the uses and dangers of genetically modified foods.

POLITICS: South Africa’s First Female-Led Party Launched

South Africa's first significant female-led political party was launched in South Africa by Patricia de Lille, a former trade unionist and leader of the Pan Africanist Congress.

CULTURE-SWAZILAND: Seeking Equality From Gender Biased Ancestral Spirits

An early dusk falls on wintry Swaziland, the time for the head of the traditional homestead to lead the family in prayer to the ancestral spirits. The household head kneels at the umsamo, the sacred spot on the far wall directly opposite the door of a hut designated for this purpose. The other family members kneel in a semi-circle on either side. "Emadloti (ancestral spirits), we greet you, we hail you, we welcome you . . ."

ENVIRONMENT: Alien Plant Species Invade Southern Africa

Environmentalists are calling it "the invasion of the invasives." Non-indigenous plant species brought to Southern Africa are alarming conservationists by the way they are taking over the habitats of native plants and, in some cases, causing indigenous species to become endangered.

RIGHTS-SOUTH AFRICA: Anti-Terror Bill Draconian

South Africa's draft anti-terrorism legislation, which the country must put on its statute books to comply with its international commitments, has been slated as being heavy-handed and threatening human rights guaranteed in the country's constitution.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Being in Opposition, the Most Dangerous Job Today

A key characteristic of the political terrain in Zimbabwe, dating back to pre-independence, has been the systematic suppression of political competition and use of violence as a tool of sustaining political hegemony.

POLITICS-MALAWI: Al Qaeda Suspects in ‘U.S. Custody’

Five al Qaeda suspects arrested by Malawi over the weekend 'have been handed to U.S. authorities', but the Americans are not saying where they are holding them.

POLITICS-MALAWI: Five Suspected Al Qaeda Operatives Arrested

-Malawi joined the global war on terror with the arrest of five foreign nationals suspected of belonging to the Al Qaeda network.

POLITICS: Conflicts, Poverty at the Bottom of the African Union Agenda

The second summit of the African Union is likely to be marked by political wrangling as the continent's leaders try to reach agreement on the functioning and final structures of the pan-African body.

POPULATION-SOUTH AFRICA: Xenophobia, Red Tape Hurt Refugees

Even though refugees are entitled to the same constitutional rights as South Africans, they often end-up competing with the locals for access to essential social services provided by the government - and losing.

LABOUR-SOUTH AFRICA: Job Seekers’ Plight Increases in a Globalising Economy

"It is hopelessness, even more than pain that crushes the soul, but I have no other medicine left now except to keep hoping," says Simon Rapopo, an ex-miner in Welkom in the Free State province, who has looked for work for 10 years.