Nicolas Guilhot For 50 years the World Bank has been the arbiter of development. Its annually published World Development Report defines the priorities, the jargon and the issues that shape and express the concept of development. From the reduction of poverty so close to the heart of Robert McNamara (bank president from 1968 to 1981), […]

Race has been a major issue in 2000 it was a theme of President Thabo Mbeki’s speech at the opening of Parliament; the Human Rights Commission investigated race in the media and organised a conference on racism in South Africa. The politicians and the academics have been heard and read on the subject throughout the […]

“The daily slaughters of men, women and children is an indictment against each and every one of you.” Former president Nelson Mandela, addressing the belligerents in the Burundi conflict in Tanzania “The only way in which Dene Smuts was disadvantaged by apartheid was that she was prevented from having sex across the colour line.” Minister […]

Andrew Muchineripi soccer Just when I thought it was safe to put my weary feet up, light the pipe (sorry, Mrs Tshabalala-Msimang) and forget about the sometimes beautiful game for a couple of weeks, the telephone rang. My worst fears were realised. It was the sports editor of your favourite newspaper on the line to […]

THE government of Kano State has become the second in northern Nigeria to introduce women-only buses in line with strict Islamic law, officials said on Wednesday. Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, who signed the Islamic code known as the Sharia into law last month, on Tuesday received 10 buses which will be for use of […]

SOUTH Africa has donated more than four million rand as well as goods like clothes and food to Angola’s war victims, the social development minister said on Wednesday. At a ceremony to hand over the donation to United Nations agencies, Minister Zola Skweyiya thanked Angolans for their support during South Africa’s struggle against apartheid and […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Harare | Friday ZIMBABWE’S Supreme Court this week again tried to end a violent squatter campaign on white-owned farms, and gave President Robert Mugabe’s government six months to craft an acceptable land reform program. The nation’s highest court told police for the third time in two months that they had to evict squatters […]

THE corpse of man was left lying in Kampala’s main taxi park for two days because of fears that he had died of the highly contagious Ebola fever. The old man had been bleeding through the nose, eyes and mouth shortly before he collapsed and died on Sunday morning, according to media reports. A lorry […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, United Nations | Friday CANADA has proposed that the UN Security Council create a team of experts to permanently monitor the sanctions regime applied against diamond and weapons smuggling that funds armed conflicts. The best way to ensure a follow-up of UN sanctions is “establishing a permanent office … to monitor the sanctions,” […]

SOME 28 million people are going hungry in sub-Saharan Africa because of drought and civil war, the UN food agency said in a report this week. The Food and Agriculture Organisation said in Eritrea, some 1.5 million people have been displaced by a two-year border war – now officially over – with Ethiopia, and they, […]