South Africa’s peaceful democratic transition confounds Afro-pessimistic views that the continent is doomed. Yet the "Rainbow Nation" is still struggling to come to terms with the HIV/Aids epidemic — a crisis with long-term consequences for its political economy and the sustainability of Africa’s states and societies.
When George W Bush appeared at the White House correspondents’ dinner last year beside an impersonator, everyone other than those at the front tables had trouble telling who was who. A new cartoon that debuted on Wednesday night on the American cable channel Comedy Central could pose the same dilemma.
UNAids is careful in its assessment: "Without question, we absolutely have to ensure that men and women are aware that male circumcision is not a ‘magic bullet’ — it does not provide total protection and it does not mean people can stop taking the safe sex precautions they were already using."
Some mining companies dispute that billions have been lost in mining investment in South Africa, as reported this week. They argue that while there may have been delays because of the new Mineral Petroleum and Resources Development Act, there has not been a loss in investment and the Act has brought about an increase in exploration in South Africa.
Described as "one of the biggest economic phenomena of the last decade", the astonishing speed at which South Africa has become the largest investor in the rest of Africa has eclipsed even the recent surge in interest from non-African investors such as China. Following a gradual increase on the continent after 1994, investment opportunities have taken off in the past five years.
The CIA, faced with the impossibility of infiltrating white Americans into radical groups in the Middle East, is recruiting Arab-speaking Sudanese citizens, in spite of sanctions against the country over the killings in Darfur, it emerged this week. Sudanese recruits have been providing information about individuals passing through Sudan to Somalia and elsewhere in the the Horn of Africa and Iraq.
Everything we have been told about the Olympic legacy turns out to be bunkum. The games are supposed to encourage us to play sport; they are meant to produce resounding economic benefits and help the poor. It’s all untrue. As the evictions in London begin, a new report shows that the only certain Olympic legacy is a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich.
While Americans prefer timber-frame houses, most South Africans still like brick-and-mortar homes. But the newly elected president of the Timber Frame Builders’ Association, Ian Michelsen, hopes to change that. He is determined to get South Africans to fall in love with timber-frame homes.
India is looking to increase its economic and diplomatic visibility in Africa and elsewhere once again – and the West, other Asian competitors and particularly African leadership, need to wake up and take stock of what this means. India’s non-oil trade with West Africa stands at more than $3-billion and is rising rapidly, accounting for 1,2% of India’s world trade.
Women’s voices have largely gone unheard in the debate on male circumcision as an HIV-prevention method, but informal discussions with women reveal a range of concerns, preferences and views that researchers and governments would do well to consider before drawing up plans for rolling out a national circumcision programme.