DEVELOPMENT-SOUTHERN AFRICA: “We Are Raising the Alarm Now”

Images of skeletal children in Niger, wasted away by malnutrition, have featured prominently in the media over recent weeks. Amidst efforts to alleviate this suffering, however, there are fears that the crisis in Niger may undermine donor willingness to tackle problems elsewhere on the continent – notably in Southern Africa.

CULTURE-SWAZILAND: Sugar Daddies – The Bitter Truth

"People who don’t know me see this stylishly-dressed young woman driving a nice car, and they think, ‘Isn’t she lucky? She has a rich man as a lover to give her things’," says Angela Shabalala as she manoeuvres her blue BMW sedan onto a highway leading to the Swazi capital, Mbabane.

FINANCE: Emigrants Boost Zimbabwe’s Parallel Economy

It is enough to distress any new emigrant. Sending money back home is, for many Zimbabweans working in neighbouring South Africa, a frustrating, complicated and costly exercise.

RIGHTS: South Africa Urged to Stop Abusing Eviction Policy to Clean Up Cities

The South African government faces a dilemma. It has to evict people living in unacceptable housing conditions because of health and security risks, yet it is unable to provide enough adequate alternative accommodation - due to the backlog in low cost housing projects.

ECONOMY-SOUTH AFRICA: Classic Memento Today, Cliche Tomorrow

Elongated, wooden carvings of giraffes have become the classic souvenir of a trip to Southern Africa. But, curio sellers in Johannesburg are worried tourists may soon become bored with them.

DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: Land Reform Policies Under the Microscope

Civil society in South Africa has told government that the pace of land reform in the country needs to be speeded up.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Churches to the Rescue

South African churches sent relief aid to Zimbabwe this week to help more than 700,000 people affected by the country's urban clean-up campaign - Operation Murambatsvina, a Shona term meaning "drive out trash".

HEALTH-MOZAMBIQUE: Local Production of ARVs – Perhaps

With an HIV prevalence of over 12 percent, Mozambique is one of many African countries grappling with the challenge of supplying treatment to citizens who risk succumbing to AIDS-related diseases.

ECONOMY-ZIMBABWE: Running on Empty

The sight of cars caked with dust, lined up outside filling stations, has become a common one in Zimbabwe. Some of the vehicles have been there for days, even weeks, as motorists grapple with what many view as the worst episode yet in the country's recurrent fuel crisis.

POLITICS-DRC: “Stronger Commitment” Needed for Peace

Ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has underscored the difficulties of bringing lasting peace to this vast Central African country.

DEVELOPMENT-SWAZILAND: Farm More, Farm Better

While Swaziland's soaring HIV prevalence and the spending habits of King Mswati the Third are issues which often land the country in the headlines, problems also loom on another front: about a quarter of Swazis are currently dependent on international food aid.

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: To Loan, or Not To Loan

Zimbabwe's decision to seek a loan from neighbouring South Africa has sparked a heated debate in that country. Some have urged South Africa to turn down the request, while others say the loan should be granted - with stringent conditions attached. They fear a refusal to extend this financial lifeline to President Robert Mugabe would exacerbate Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis.

POLITICS-SWAZILAND: Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock

"We don't want Swaziland to explode like Rwanda, Burundi or Sierra Leone," says Gabriel Mkhumane, founder of the outlawed People's United Democratic Movement - a Swazi opposition party.

HEALTH-SWAZILAND: A Message to Teenagers – Take Charge!

A new advertising campaign aimed at curtailing teenage HIV rates by promoting abstinence is using a combination of traditional and modern values in its appeal to Swazi youth.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: Laying Out the Pros and Cons of the G8 Summit

Two years ago, Caroline Sande-Mukulira joined civil society activists in the French resort of Evian to plead Africa's cause.

HEALTH-SOUTH AFRICA: Two High-Profile Campaigners Tackle AIDS

Former South African president Nelson Mandela and United States First Lady Laura Bush campaigned in two South African cities this week against the spread of AIDS.

HEALTH-SOUTH AFRICA: Keeping Mom Alive Is the Best Medicine

It is tempting to call it a "no brainer": the idea that attempts to prevent transmission of HIV from mothers to children should be matched by initiatives to keep these mothers alive after they give birth.

POLITICS-COTE D’IVOIRE: Mediators Push for October Presidential Poll

Under pressure from an increasingly demanding and exasperated international community, Laurent Gbagbo, Cote d'Ivoire's head of state, has set Oct. 30 as the date for new presidential election.

G8 SUMMIT: London Blasts Spark Speculation and Sympathy in South Africa

Leaders of the Group of Eight (G8) major industrialized nations wrapped up their summit in Gleneagles, Scotland this week, amidst images of bloodstained commuters crying and struggling to get away from the scene of blasts that occurred in Britain’s capital – London.

HEALTH-NAMIBIA: “Wanted by Many People” – Cared For by Few

"It's the wrong profession to be in," says Father Herman Klein-Hitpass, with a nervous chuckle.

POLITICS-AFRICA: Sirte Looks to Gleneagles

The African Union ended its annual summit this week with an appeal for substantially more aid from the West and demands for two permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council.