“Pilgrimages,” a new project of the Chinua Achebe Center for African Writers and Artists at Bard College and Chimurenga, will send 14 African writers to 13 African cities, and one city in Brazil, for two weeks to explore the complexities of disparate urban landscapes. The writers will create 13 nonfiction travel-writing books about their trips that will capture each city as South Africa hosts Africa’s first World Cup. At the same time, the continent will be on display—to itself and to the world—to a greater degree than at any time since independence.

Rober Molteno reviews ‘A House in Zambia: Recollections of the ANC and Oxfam at 250 Zambezi Road, Lusaka, 1967-97’, edited by Robin Palmer: a reflection on ‘Southern Africa’s twin struggles for political freedom and economic development’ through the window of an ordinary house with extraordinary occupants.

Leading up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, reports have come out alleging that South African authorities had made efforts to hide the homeless population to make areas seem more welcoming to tourists. Now, as the games go on, one organization is taking a stand to raise awareness about the negative impact of the World Cup on the poor and homeless.

With World Cup security stewards complaining of poor working conditions and unpaid wages, a labor dispute threatens to overshadow the action on the pitch in South Africa. SPIEGEL spoke to union head Evan Abrahamse about the workers' complaints.

The 2010 Africa Oyé festival took place in Liverpool on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 June. Alex Free reflects back on the ‘UK’s biggest Africa-based music festival’, which boasted ‘an eclectic selection of accomplished musicians from across the pan-African world’.

As the World Cup gathers momentum in South Africa, so do its critics. Explo Nani-Kofi investigates the real impact of this tournament on a nation still recovering from apartheid oppression. Nani-Kofi insists that poor South Africans ‘pay a big price’ for this monumental sporting extravaganza.

Amir Demeke reviews , a book he regards as an essential read for Africans 'fighting for the real liberation of your community'.

For Pambazuka readers in Tanzania and East Africa at large, Dar es Salaam's Soma Book Cafe now stocks a range of titles. Soma's details are as follows:

Soma Book Cafe
53 Mlingotini Circle, Regent Estate
Kinondoni
Dar es Salaam
TANZANIA
Tel: 00 255 022 277 2759
Website:

UNESCO's decision to delay awarding a controversial prize named after and funded by the dictator of Equatorial Guinea is a positive initial step, civil society groups said. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) announced June 15, 2010, that its executive board, consisting of 58 countries, approved Director-General Irina Bokova's proposal to postpone the award and instead engage in consultations to consider the prize's future.

The World Cup has rightly captured the country’s imagination, writes Leonard Gentle. Despite Bafana’s anaemic performance against the Uruguayans, there is still a clear sense of relief amongst opinion makers that we’re pulling off hosting the event. The dominant voice proclaims that we’ve proven everyone – meaning the prophets of doom – wrong.

"Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it's much more serious than that," former Liverpool manager Bill Shankly once said. Uncomfortably close to a bald statement of fact for fans of the beautiful game in Somalia, who risk their lives to watch the World Cup unfolding in South Africa. In the final weeks before the tournament kicked off on Jun. 11, demand for satellite dishes was high. But the Islamist groups that control much of the country have declared the World Cup un-Islamic, threatening dire consequences for anyone found watching.

On the 13th of June 2010, the Poor People’s World Cup successfully kicked-off their first day of matches at the Avendale soccer fields, next to Athlone stadium in Cape Town. Early in the morning, the first minibuses with soccer teams arrived from all over Cape Town to play their first games in this Poor People’s tournament. Everybody was excited and the atmosphere was amazing, considering the bad weather forecasts.

Security stewards angered over low pay expanded their strike Tuesday to five of the World Cup's 10 stadiums, forcing police to assume their duties in a bitter counterpoint to the generally festive tournament. South African Police Services said it deployed about 1,000 extra officers in and around Johannesburg's Ellis Park to guarantee security for the night match between Brazil, one of tournament favorites, and North Korea.

At long last, soccer fans, the moment is here. On Friday, South Africa took the field against Mexico, the World Cup was officially underway. Nothing attracts the global gaze quite like it. Nothing creates such an undeniably electric atmosphere with enough energy to put British Petroleum, Exxon/Mobil and Chevron out of business for good. And finally, after 80 years, the World Cup has come to Africa.

The soccer World Cup began this weekend here in South Africa, with the home team playing a 1-1 draw with Mexico before 95,000 fans at Johannesburg’s Soccer City stadium. Regardless of whether South Africa’s Bafana Bafana (our boys), ranked #90 in the world, can survive its next matches against France and Uruguay to advance a round, we know this society is already a big loser. The reason: egregious mistakes made by national and municipal governments, apparently under the thumb of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

Following the kick-off of the World Cup last Friday, Sokari Ekine finds herself torn between joining in with the ‘hooray vuvuzela-blowing madness’ and watching the games, or blanking out ‘the whole flag-waving charade.’ Ekine reports back from the African blogosphere with its views on the matter, as well on the unawarded Mo Ibrahim Prize, homosexuality and homophobia in Africa and the Niger Delta Amnesty.

The Zimbabwean artist, Owen Maseko, was arrested on 26 March when his art work illustrating ‘decades of oppression and violence that have characterised Zimbabwe’ was exhibited by Radio Dialogue, the Zimbabwean community radio station. Radio Dialogue praises Maseko’s bold political statements presented on canvas.

Pambazuka Press books are now available at Prestige Book-Sellers & Stationers in Nairobi, Kenya.
Situated on Mama Ngina St in the Prudential Building, on the Ground Floor
TEL : (254) 20 - 223515 FAX : (254) 20 - 246796

UNESCO has said that although social science from Western countries continues to be of great global influence, the field is expanding rapidly in Asia and Latin America, particularly in China and Brazil. Quoting from its findings in a 2010 World Social Science Report - "Knowledge divides", UNESCO said in sub-Saharan Africa, social scientists from South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya produced 75% of academic publications

As the 2010 World Cup kicks off this Friday, thousands of football fans will arrive in South Africa to cheer on their favourite teams. HIV awareness and prevention is also a high priority during this time. HIV can spread particularly among young people, through the dangerous combination of alcohol and unsafe sex.