The UN's release of a long awaited report on crimes committed in the Democratic Republic of Congo between 1993-2003 is not only an opportunity to re-examine the historical record of mass violence in DRC - the scale and nature of which was often overlooked in the wake of the genocide in neighbouring Rwanda - but is also a chance to correct the terms of the deceptive and fragile peace some leaders wish to proclaim in the resource-rich Great Lakes region of Africa, writes Fabienne Hara, the vice president for multicultural affairs at the International Crisis Group.

A failed harvest and the effects of prolonged flooding may be fuelling an outbreak of Visceral leishmaniasis, also known as Kala-azar, in parts of Southern Sudan, say health officials. Some 6,363 Kala-azar cases and 303 deaths have been reported since the outbreaks began in September 2009, according to a UN World Health Organization (WHO) update from 8 October.

Seven presidential candidates will take part in the 31 October general elections in Tanzania, with incumbent President Jakaya Kikwete being the clear favourite. But the opposition may make important gains. Education, health and employment are some of the main issues dominating the election campaign as Tanzanians prepare for the 31 October election. President Kikwete and the CCM are expected to be rewarded by voters for the positive economic development in Tanzania during his first period.

Islamist militant group al-Shabab said on Monday it would ban all mobile phone cash transfers in Somalia. The rebels released a statement ordering three local mobile phone companies which have developed the popular service in the country to stop mobile money transfers within three months. Al-Shabab argued that the transfers were 'unIslamic'.

Fairtrade has assisted greatly in steering agricultural in a developmental direction, despite its lack of a bottom–up approach, says this post on the blog of the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies at the University of the Western Cape. However, in South Africa, with its stark legacy of oppression more is needed. However, Fairtrade beneficiaries need to lead the process of bottom up development, to direct the Fairtrade movement in terms of their reality and their needs.

Nigerian security forces have arrested the brother of Henry Okah, a former leader of the rebel Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend), over his suspected involvement in deadly bombings in Abuja, the capital, on October 1. Charles Okah was taken into custody at his home in the southern city of Lagos on Sunday.

With many African countries marking the 50th anniversary of their independence, 2010 should have been a year of celebration but the continent’s journalists were not invited to the party. The Horn of Africa continues to be the region with the least press freedom but there were disturbing reverses in the Great Lakes region and East Africa.

On 14 October 2009 the draft Anti Homosexuality Bill was introduced to the Parliament of Uganda by Ndoorwa West MP David Bahati. Bahati’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill stipulates the death penalty for repeated same-sex relations and life imprisonment for all other homosexual acts. A person in authority who fails to report an offender to the police within 24 hours will face three years in jail. Likewise, the promotion of homosexuality carries a sentence of five to seven years in jail.

Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa has created a new multimedia website to present the story of Africa’s development. The website launch in Africa will coincide with the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, commemorated on October 17.

The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) will hold its 5th Programming Conference and General Assembly from 16 - 18 October 2010, at Crowne Plaza Hotel, Nairobi under the theme: ‘The African Women’s Decade- A Road Map for Bigger Dreams’. The conference which brings together over 120 women rights activities from across Africa.

Confined field trials of genetically modified maize will begin in Kenya and Uganda this year, the US-based non-profit African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) said. Scientists from Kenyan and Ugandan government research bodies, Monsanto and research body International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) developed the 12 varieties of Water Efficient Maize for Africa (Wema) due to be planted.

The Rwandan government should fully respect the rights of opposition party members and allow them to carry out their legitimate activities without fear for their safety, Human Rights Watch has said. Human Rights Watch issued its statement in response to the re-arrest of Victoire Ingabire, president of the opposition party FDU-Inkingi, and the transfer from prison to a hospital of Bernard Ntaganda, president of another opposition party, the PS-Imberakuri, both on 14 October 2010. Both parties have been critical of the Rwandan government and were prevented from participating in the presidential elections in August.

Elizabeth Njeri, a social worker at a camp for thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Kenya's Central Province, frequently feels powerless, especially when faced with medical and logistical difficulties that can have catastrophic results. 'I watched two children die of pneumonia in my arms; they needed a professional health expert who could administer strong drugs, but I was helpless,' Njeri, herself an IDP, who also serves as a medical officer at the Mawingo IDP camp, told IRIN, underlining the camp's lack of access to health facilities.

Swaziland is one of very few African countries where hunger has become more widespread during the last decades, new evidence shows. But Swazi authorities tried to manipulate data to the UN, saying the opposite. Today, 18 per cent of Swaziland's one million people are suffering from hunger, compared to 12 per cent in 1990. In addition, 6.1 per cent of Swazi children under five are underweight, compared to 8.1 per cent in 1992.

Computer Aid has launched its first solar powered Internet cafe in Kenya in conjunction with longstanding Kenyan partners Computers For Schools Kenya (CFSK). The Internet cafe made its long journey from London to Nairobi in the guise of a standard 20ft shipping container, normally used to transport refurbished computers. On arrival the container converts into a fully functional Internet cafe for 11 users at a time.

The Rural Poverty Report 2011 from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) provides a coherent and comprehensive look at rural poverty, its global consequences and the prospects for eradicating it. Young people and children make up the single largest group among poor rural people, and the Report emphasizes the importance of creating new and better opportunities for them – in particular, with a focus on expanding educational opportunities that specifically address the skills young people will need to succeed in the rural context.

On Thursday October 14, Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the president of Somalia, appointed Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed 'Farmajo' as his new prime minister. Mohamed, a Somali - American and a member of the Somali diaspora, is a relative unknown in the Somalian political scene. Systemically, institutional divergence prevents Somalia from establishing a strong system of national governance. The appointment came after the September 21 resignation of former prime minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke.

How much state attention and help can you expect if the area where you live is not even marked on official maps? Not a lot, decided the residents of one of Africa's biggest slums and designed a digital map of Kibera - a great help in all too familiar emergency situations. Such information is useful to the Kenya Red Cross, which deals with 144 fires in Kibera each month.

The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) has expressed its dismay at the Egyptian government’s ongoing policy of punishing and discriminating against individuals because of their religious beliefs. Several media reports have reported in the past few days that a group of Shi’ites, both Egyptians and non-nationals, had been arrested and questioned by the Supreme State Security Prosecutor because of their religious beliefs, information confirmed by the EIPR. The EIPR asked the Public Prosecutor to immediately intervene to secure the release of the suspects and put an end to successive Interior Ministry campaigns of harassment against religious minorities in Egypt.

Vocal actors within policy and practice contend that environmental variability and shocks, such as drought and prolonged heat waves, are important drivers of violent conflict. This paper examines the scientific evidence base for this claimed relationship, investigating whether future wars will be fought over diminishing resources. This document from the International Peace Research Institute shows that exposed societies that lack necessary capacity and knowledge to adapt successfully may face increasing asymmetries between demand and supply of subsistence resources.