AFRICA: Resources for Development “Scarce and Grossly Mismanaged”

The first United Nations Millennium Development Goal (MDG) could arguably be seen as the mother of MDGs, as a country's ability to eradicate extreme hunger and poverty will be a determining factor in whether it attains the other seven goals.

LIBERIA: Before UN Sanctions Are Lifted, a Timber Industry Clean-Up

Liberia's newly-elected but cash-strapped government has begun to find ways that the U.N. sanctions can be lifted to allow the country to exploit its immense timber resources for the benefit of its war-ravaged people.

POLITICS-BENIN: A New Broom to Clean Out the Augean Stables

Benin is preparing to swear in a new leader, this after a former head of the West African Development Bank won the second round of presidential elections held earlier this month in the West African country.

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Different Continents, Similar Problems

There is much that separates Africa and Asia, not least ethnicity, culture and language. But, as the third and final leg of this year’s World Social Forum (WSF) gathers momentum in the Pakistani financial centre of Karachi, the hope is that civic groups will build on common aspirations for the two continents.

HEALTH-AFRICA: A Somber Outlook on AIDS

A former director of the United Nations Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa has painted a gloomy picture of efforts to bring the pandemic under control across the continent.

HEALTH-AFRICA: Anti-Abortion Laws a “Silent War Waged Against Women”

Calls for abortion laws across Africa to be revised have dominated the first days of a meeting in Ethiopia – the ‘Regional Consultation on Unsafe Abortion in Africa’.

ENVIRONMENT: Taking Aim at MDG Targets

Halving the number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation, improving the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers...The targets for the seventh United Nations Millennium Development Goal (MDG) sound impressive.

DEVELOPMENT: Trade Rules a Stumbling Block to Realising the MDGs

Less than a decade remains for countries to reach the ambitious targets laid out in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - agreed on by global leaders at a summit in 2000.

ENVIRONMENT-NIGERIA: Villagers Flee Landslides

It all started some 30 years ago as development began to creep into this small community following Nigeria's oil boom of the 1970s.

TRADE-GHANA: The Chilling Effect of Frozen Poultry Imports

It is only mid-morning in Ghana's capital, Accra, but the day is already hot - and business brisk at the Beyeeman Freezing Company Limited, which imports frozen poultry products.

DEVELOPMENT-COTE D’IVOIRE: Putting Urban Crime in the Cross Hairs

They are published almost daily in the local press: articles that tell of the latest robberies or rapes to be reported in Côte d'Ivoire's financial capital, Abidjan. From the high-density suburbs of Yopougon and Abobo to the beautiful residences of Cocody and Riviera, few areas seem immune to this urban crime wave.

DEVELOPMENT-IVORY COAST: Falling Global Prices Make Cotton Unattractive

To stem famine and counter a major reduction in rice imports, more and more farmers have been growing rice during the political crisis that has split Ivory Coast in two since 2002.

HEALTH-IVORY COAST: A “Neglected Tropical Disease” on the March

As illnesses go, Buruli ulcer does not receive the attention given to conditions such as AIDS or bird flu: the World Health Organisation (WHO) has even termed it a "neglected tropical disease".

ENERGY-CAMEROON: A Dam Good Idea, or a Bad One?

With just months to go before construction of a hydroelectric dam gets underway along Cameroon's Lom river, environmentalists are raising concerns about the initiative.

ENERGY-SENEGAL: Theft Casts a Shadow Over Solar Programmes

At a time when concerns about global warming and the need for renewable energy sources are grabbing headlines the world over, it seems particularly regrettable that communities would be afflicted by the theft of solar panels.

POLITICS: AU Bails Out of Controversy to Focus on Africa’s Ills

Sudan's decision to withdraw its bid for the leadership of the African Union (AU) has been welcomed by human rights groups and local activists, who say it has enhanced Africa's reputation.

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Taking Mumbai Forward to Bamako, Caracas and Karachi

Indian participation in the first two phases of the polycentric World Social Forum (WSF), which wound down in the Malian capital of Bamako on Monday and opened in Caracas, Venezuela, on Jan. 24, is mainly from the WSF Indian Working Committee (IWC).

POLITICS-AFRICA: AU Summit Faces a Host of Crises

The annual summit of the African Union (AU) begins in Sudan’s dusty capital of Khartoum, Monday, amidst a political crisis in the Ivory Coast, famine in East Africa and conflict in the western Sudanese region of Darfur.

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Tackle Corruption, Cancel Debt

Mali, one of the international community’s poorest nations and host of the World Social Forum (WSF), presents the picture of a country that has been overburdened by debt. Government spends much of its budget repaying what is owed to international creditors – at the expense of development.

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Let the Debates Begin

The Malian capital of Bamako opened its doors to the World Social Forum (WSF) Thursday with a passionate call for justice in all walks of life. The historic event – which marks the first instance in which a global forum is being held in Africa – has attracted some 10,000 representatives from civil society organisations and social movements around the world.

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: The Spirit of Bandung Alive and Well in Bamako

As the sixth World Social Forum (WSF) got underway in the Malian capital of Bamako, Thursday, memories of another landmark meeting were in the air – namely the Bandung Conference, held in the Indonesian city of the same name in 1955.