A significant decline in agriculture, still considered by many to be the economy’s backbone, has seen the emergence of information communication technologies (ICT) and telecommunications as the new pillars of the economy. 'We have been getting requests to increase allocations to the agricultural sector. The ICT sector, including the numerous outsourcing ventures which employ mostly the youth, appears more attractive,' Joseph Kinyua, treasury permanent secretary told Financial Journal.

Politically motivated sexual violence against women in Zimbabwe takes many forms. These include extreme violence, gang rape and insertion of objects (bottles and sticks) into the women's genitalia. This report from the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) and Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) is the first coming out of Zimbabwe focusing particularly on politically motivated rape; the aim of the study was to provide a valid and reliable description of cases of politically motivated rape. Since this was a clinical rather than an epidemiological study, there was no attempt to determine either the prevalence of political rape or to establish how representative the sample was.

FEMNET will be unveiling the first issue of The African Women’s Journal on 20 January 2011 in Nairobi, Kenya. The first of its kind in the region, The African Women’s Journal will provide well researched and analytical articles on women, gender and development issues in Africa. The theme for this first issue of the Journal is 'The African Women’s Decade (2010-2020): A Call for Action, Action and More Action'.

Haiti on Tuesday briefly detained former dictator Jean-Claude 'Baby Doc' Duvalier, back from exile in France, and charged him with corruption, theft and abuses of power allegedly committed during his 15-year rule. While a noisy crowd of his supporters protested outside the prosecutor's office, Duvalier, 59, was questioned over accusations that he stole public funds and committed human rights abuses after taking over as president in 1971.

Following his address to the 99th ANC anniversary celebrations, The Right2Know campaign has written to President Jacob Zuma pointing out that he has 'failed to address a number of disturbing political developments that threaten the free flow of information in South Africa.'The Protection of Information Bill – the Secrecy Bill – currently before Parliament would cast a shroud of secrecy over the workings of the state. This Bill would impose harsh penalties, up to 25 years in prison, on whistleblowers, activists and journalists who expose information in the public interest. We welcome your reassurances that the ANC will continue to promote and fight for media freedom, yet this Bill would be disastrous for media freedom in South Africa.'

'GALZ applauds the National Aids Council for taking steps to carry out an assessment of HIV prevalence and risk behaviours among the prison populations in Zimbabwe. We believe that men, women and children in these settings are vulnerable hence it is important to ensure that the health of those who constitute this population is protected, as they are a part of the broader community.'

The American Political Science Association (APSA) and the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) University of Nairobi, are pleased to announce a call for applications from individuals who would like to participate in a workshop on 'Representation Reconsidered: Ethnic Politics and Africa’s Governance Institutions in Comparative Perspective' from 23 July to 6 August 2011. The Workshop will be held at the Institute of Development Studies in Nairobi, Kenya. The organizers, with a grant secured from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will cover all the costs of participation (travel, lodging, meals, daily stipend, and materials) for up to 23 qualified applicants (20 African, 3 U.S.). The working language of the workshop is English.

Wikileaks cables have revealed a disturbing development in the African uranium mining industry: abysmal safety and security standards in the mines, nuclear research centres, and border customs are enabling international companies to exploit the mines and smuggle dangerous radioactive material across continents. The Wikileaks cables reveal that U.S. diplomats posted in a number of African countries – the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania, Niger, and Burundi, among others – have had direct knowledge of the poor safety and security standards in these countries’ uranium and nuclear facilities.

Soldiers from 42 lnfantry Battalion in Gutu on Friday 14 January 2011 allegedly banned vendors from selling Masvingo province's weekly independent newspaper, The Mirror, after it published a story alleging that army personnel had beaten up people at Mupandawana growth point on Christmas Eve.

The five states making up the East African Community (EAC) are in a hurry to prepare for their common currency, which according to plans is to be introduced already next year. Experts now see how they can fast-track the process. Experts from the five EAC states on 17 January embarked on a four-day meeting in Arusha, Tanzania, that sets the stage for negotiations for the East African Monetary Union.

A new set of research studies – available now on the International Land Coalition (ILC) website – explores the growing wave of large-scale international and domestic land acquisitions and the factors that are driving demand for investments in land. The studies examine how changes in demand for food, energy and natural resources, along with liberalisation of trade regimes, are making the competition for land increasingly global and unequal.

The autonomous region of Puntland in Somalia has announced that it will break with the federal government based in the embattled capital, Mogadishu. After a special meeting of Abdirahman Mohammed Farole's presidential cabinet, the government issued a statement saying that the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) 'does not represent Puntland in international forums' and that the United Nations Political Office for Somalia should 'reconsider its position and support for the TFG at the expense of other Somali stakeholders'.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has issued a statement opposing prosecution demands for lengthy prison sentences for the editor and deputy editor of the independent weekly Umurabyo. State Prosecutor Agustin Nkusi requested a 33-year prison sentence for Editor Agnès Uwimana and 12 years for her deputy, Saidati Mukakibibi, at a High Court hearing in the capital, Kigali. The two, arrested in July 2010, face charges of incitement to violence, genocide denial, and insulting the head of state in connection with several opinion pieces published in mid-2010, according to news reports.

There is currently a vacancy at BCR for a senior fellow or a part-time researcher for a 2-year period. As a specialist in governance studies or impact research, the successful candidate will carry out collaboratively-funded research and coordinating work within BCR’s CORE team.

The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten released a series of US diplomatic cables from 2006 on massive and pervasive corruption and nepotism in Tunisia and its effect on economic development and social problems. The cables show that the United States government was fully aware of the dangerous and debilitating level of corruption in Tunisia, and its anti-democratic implications.

Former president Thabo Mbeki's office has refused to say whether he helped draft a key policy document for the Congress of the People, insisting that the ousted head of state was still a member of the ANC. According to a US diplomatic report leaked to the WikiLeaks website, former ANC spokesman Smuts Ngonyama told University of South Africa professor Dirk Kotze in 2008 that Mbeki had helped to write a COPE policy draft. If this proved to be true, Mbeki could find himself in hot water with the ANC.

On 29 December 2010 Togolese authorities closed down three privately-owned radio stations in the capital, Lomé, citing administrative reasons. A statement issued by the Post and Telecommunications' Regulatory Authority and signed by Palouki Massina, its director general, said the decision was taken after a 10-day joint review of the stations, together with the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication (HAAC), in November 2010.

A US Embassy cable from 2006 discussed the possible replacement of Tunisia's Dictator Zine El-Abedine Ben Ali. It left little faith in the opposition but in many ways foresaw PM Mohammed Ghannouchi's attempt to consolidate the ruling party's power and who will attempt to gain power.

South Sudan has appealed for investors to plough $140 million into its war-hit wildlife parks, seeking to kick-start a tourism industry and wean itself off oil months ahead of its expected independence. The south has the world's second largest migration of mammals, untamed wildernesses and vast herds of gazelles and antelopes, rivalling anything seen in Kenya, Uganda and other African holiday hotspots, say experts.

Basel Saleh

Bernard Founou Tchuiguoua

Salim Ahmed Salim