THE United Nations Population Fund announced the appointment of Nigerian literary legend Chinua Achebe as its goodwill ambassador on Thursday. The appointment will see Achebe, currently professor of literature at New York’s Bard college, acting as a voice for the population fund on such issues as family planning, gender equity and reproductive health. Achebe, author of Things Fall Apart, said: “I am delighted to have been appointed goodwill ambassador for the population fund. I am a supporter of the United Nations and its agencies and of the work of the population fund in family planning and gender equity.”
POLL LOBBY IN CHURCHES
CHURCHES and religious groups have been requested by Frank Chikane, the director general in Deputy President Thabo Mbeki’s office, to encourage their members to register for this year’s election. Chikane, himself a minister, believes efforts in this sector could lead to another 17 million voters registering in the registration drives later in January. About 9,4 million people registered last year.