Q&A: “Farmers Are ‘Doubting Thomases’. What They’ve Not Seen, They Don’t Believe”

More than two decades of work in the agricultural sector have taught Grégoire Comlan Houngnibo that it's not a lack of technology which is preventing Africa from solving problems of poor soil and food insecurity - but rather lack of political will.

ENVIRONMENT-CHAD: Plastic Bags Convenient, Ubiquitous, Stifling

You see them in roads, public squares and dump sites. Even more are unearthed when road building operations get underway in Chad's capital, N'Djamena, making plastic bags one of the biggest sources of pollution in the city.

COTE D’IVOIRE: New Farms, New Lives – At an Environmental Cost

For Katienéfoha Yéo, two decades of cotton farming that resulted in nothing but debt were enough to get him on the road, out of Tanikaha in northern Côte d'Ivoire to Sarala in the west.

Q&A: In Benin, “People Exploit What They Want, As They Want”

For many people, the importing of tomatoes is probably not a topic of great fascination. But then, they're not Sylvestre Fandohan.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: ”Extreme Water Events” Predicted

In Africa, 25 countries are expected to experience water scarcity or water stress in the next 20 to 30 years. This translates into 16 percent or 230 million of Africa's population facing water scarcity by 2025, and 32 percent or 460 million people living in water-stressed countries by that time.

POLITICS-MALI: A Presidential Election That Breaks With Tradition

When Malians queue to cast ballots in presidential elections Sunday, they will be participating in a poll with a difference: for the first time ever, a woman will be amongst the candidates voters have to choose between.

POLITICS-NIGERIA: Watershed Elections – For Men, That Is

Declarations of no confidence in the electoral commission, threats of an opposition boycott, a key candidate clawing his way back onto the ballot at the last minute...There has been no shortage of political theatre concerning Saturday's milestone elections in Nigeria, or debate on whether the country can successfully hand over power from one civilian government to another for the first time since independence in 1960.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: The Arrival of ”Homo Urbanus”

The year 2007 marks the birth of a new ''species'': Homo Urbanus. For the first time in history there will be as many city dwellers as rural inhabitants in the world.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: UN Habitat Fund to Finance Slum Housing

Some relief for the pressing housing needs of slum dwellers may be in sight. The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN Habitat) is planning a revolving fund to assist poor people with credit to build houses in slum areas.

DEATH PENALTY-NIGERIA: Hope Held Out for Death Row Inmates

"You see the fear in their eyes. When someone has been on death row for 10 to 20 years and a strange face comes closer, he thinks the hangman is probably coming to take him to the gallows."

NIGERIA: What Have Eight Years of Democracy Done for Women Politicians?

"Men are the decision makers; women should be cooking in the kitchen while men play politics." This is the type of comment that Dorothy Ukel Nyone's male counterparts repeatedly made when she announced her intention to contest a seat in Nigeria's state elections, which got underway Saturday.

ENERGY-MALI: Wood – The Gift That Can’t Keep on Giving

Year by year, the figures have increased relentlessly. While some 600,000 tonnes of wood were transported to the Malian capital of Bamako in 1994, according to official figures, 750,000 tonnes were sent in 1997. This year, the city is projected to consume 900,000 tonnes - and the country as a whole, seven million tonnes.

HEALTH-AFRICA: Beef up Budget Allocations to Achieve MDGs

African states should put in place sufficient budget allocations and the right policies if the continent is to meet the global and regional health care targets that governments have committed themselves to, say campaigners.

ENVIRONMENT-BURKINA-FASO: A Pilot Project That Defies Desertification

The village of Guié in central Burkina Faso may not have much name recognition in the grand scheme of things. But for more than a decade, this community has been the site of an initiative that provides hope in the fight against desertification.

Q&A: Community Involvement in Conservation a “Big Step Forward”

This year marks the fifth anniversary of Benin's Programme to Manage Forests and Surrounding Areas (Programme de gestion des forêts et terroirs riverains, PGFTR), started to prevent wooded regions of the West African country from succumbing to soil degradation - and ultimately desertification.

ENVIRONMENT-SENEGAL: An Ongoing Battle Against Deforestation

Where does a four-fold increase in a country's population over half a century make itself felt most acutely? Concerning Senegal, the answer to this might well be: in the forests.

ENERGY-CHAD: A Solution to Deforestation That Some Also View as a Problem

It's affordable, and central to stopping deforestation in Chad. But, butane gas has a long way to go before it becomes a household staple in this Sahelian country: many Chadians have a fixed belief that gas is simply too dangerous to use.

TRADE-KENYA: East Africans May Be Stripped of the Kikoi

Kenyan activists are fighting to retain cultural designs that have been developed in East Africa but are being patented by companies in rich countries. After losing the kiondo basket trademark to Japan, the popular kikoi fabric design is currently at risk of being patented by a British company.

ENVIRONMENT-MALI: Forests in Decline

The figures tell the story. In 1990, forests in Mali extended over more than 14 million hectares. But by 2000 they covered 13,117,643 hectares, according to a national report on the state of the environment made public in 2005. This marked a reduction of about seven percent in the West African country's forests, in just a decade.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: Renewable Sources the Key to Energy Crisis?

Biofuel and other renewable energy sources may hold the key to Africa's energy crisis. Without intervention, this crisis is set to grow. Southern African cities such as Lusaka in Zambia, Harare in Zimbabwe, Gaborone in Botswana and Dar-Es-Salaam in Tanzania will be affected.

DEVELOPMENT-COTE D’IVOIRE: Traditional Practices Exact a Steep Toll

For Dua Kouadio, it is déjà vu of the worst kind: the destruction of yet another harvest by a bush fire run amuck.