Washington has publicly welcomed the British Africa initiative, and the Bush administration says it has already started working towards the same goals. But on the road to African development, the United States is clearly going its own way.

Both British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown have taken a big political risk in setting an ambitious programme on Africa — and will certainly struggle to disguise any failure to make progress in 2005. Most governments that hold the presidency of the Group of Eight nations opt for relatively small targets, in order to claim victory.

Scientists have made them walk and talk. There are even robots that can run. But a South Korean professor is poised to take their development several steps further, and give cybersex new meaning. Kim Jong-Hwan, the director of the ITRC- Intelligent Robot Research Centre, has developed a series of artificial chromosomes that, he says, will allow robots to feel lusty.

The Sudanese government could be hit by targeted United Nations sanctions after the publication on Tuesday of a 244-page investigation into the Darfur crisis which detailed horrific and widespread crimes against humanity, including the systematic use of rape as a weapon of terror.

The leader of a powerful Shi’ite coalition claimed ”a sweeping victory” in Sunday’s elections in Iraq but pledged to include minority groups, including Sunni Arabs, in the running of the country. Election officials were starting the second stage of a long vote-counting process on Tuesday and an official result is not expected for at least a week.