LABOUR-NIGER: Gold Miners Exploit Children

Abdou Adamou spends his days in a pit 50 to 80 metres below ground at the Komabangou gold prospecting site. His job involves hacking up rocks and raising them to the surface with a bucket.

RIGHTS-TOGO: A Valuable Weapon in the Fight Against Trafficking

For children's rights activists like Deleli Kpeglo, efforts to combat child trafficking in Togo have often produced dispiriting results.

POLITICS-IVORY COAST: Coup Threat Elicits Varying Responses

A mixed reaction has greeted this weekend's threat by a former head of the Ivorian army to depose President Laurent Gbagbo. General Mathias Doue made the announcement in a letter printed by various Ivorian publications on Friday, and during an interview with Radio France Internationale, Saturday.

RIGHTS-TOGO: Plus Ca Change…

The human rights group Amnesty International has issued a report alleging serious human rights violations in Togo during the West African country's recent elections.

RIGHTS-CAMEROON: When Husbands Become Pimps

Business at the numerous money transfer agencies in Cameroon's capital, Yaoundé, is typically a brisk affair. Of the many people who frequent the agencies, one group is of particular interest, however: the husbands of women who have gone abroad to earn money from prostitution.

ENVIRONMENT-CAMEROON: Corruption Rooted in Logging Industry – NGOs

Just over a decade ago, Cameroon drafted a law that was intended to regulate commercial use of the country's forests. In spite of this, corruption and uncontrolled exploitation are putting forest areas at risk, say non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

POLITICS: Africa’s Big Men Cling to Power

Most people in this tiny West African nation of Benin seem pleased that President Mathieu Kerekou has given up plans to run for another term of office in 2006. But they are wondering if he has done so voluntarily.

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.

G8 SUMMIT: Debt Cancellation No Panacea for Benin – Analysts

Some may see it as a just reward for years of fiscal discipline. For others, it is a gesture that will ultimately do little to address poverty in Benin. What there is no disputing, is that the debt relief given to Benin last month by the Group of Eight (G8) is as much a source of controversy as satisfaction.

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.

ENVIRONMENT-NIGERIA: The Downside of Being a “Benchmark for Eco-Tourism”

An initiative that aspires to turn a national park into what officials term a "benchmark for eco-tourism developments" may seem beyond reproach. If the conservation area is Yankari National Park in north-eastern Nigeria, however, it could well give pause for thought.

G8-SUMMIT: “We Are Making Good Progress, Considering Where We Came From”

Demands for good governance and tough action on corruption could eclipse calls for increased aid to Africa when the Group of Eight (G8) leaders meet this week in Scotland for their annual summit, African academics and civil society groups fear.

RIGHTS-IVORY COAST: Abuses Across the Board

Talks to end years of rebellion in the Ivory Coast resumed this week in the South African capital. But although government and rebel representatives in Pretoria may be speaking of peace, the areas they control are marked by persistent human rights abuses.

REFUGEES: After the Struggle to Arrive in South Africa, a Struggle for Education

The effort to combine work and studies is taking its toll on Desiré Rwamagana, a Rwandan refugee who lives in South Africa’s commercial hub – Johannesburg.

POLITICS-CODE D’IVOIRE: Ethnic War Threatening to Spiral Out of Control

The injury of three persons, two seriously, in western Cote d'Ivoire this week reflects the deep-seated animosity between some ethnic groups in this West African country.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: Small Arms That Do Big Damage

A global week of action against the flow of small arms that is fuelling conflicts in Africa and elsewhere kicked off Monday.

ENVIRONMENT-SENEGAL: Local Eggs Not All They’re Cracked Up To Be?

Odds are that a few weeks ago, most Senegalese would have looked blank if asked to comment on "persistent organic pollutants". Now, they’re only too aware of the dangers posed by these chemicals – also known as POPs.

DEVELOPMENT-AFRICA: That Elusive Target of 0.7 Percent

The contentious issue of how much national income wealthy countries are setting aside for development assistance came under scrutiny this week.

RELIGION-NIGERIA: One Year On, Perpetrators of Violence Remain At Large

One year after some 900 people were slaughtered in clashes between Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, the government of President Olusegun Obasanjo has failed to prosecute those responsible for the cycle of violence, a Human Rights Watch report charges.

RIGHTS-AFRICA: Press Freedom in the Spotlight

The International Press Institute kicked off its 54th general assembly Sunday, in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.