Other news from around the world

Acknowledge the Support of the Diaspora to Africa’s Development

The head of an African Diaspora organization has called for greater acknowledgement and practical support from the British government and an end to the exclusion of the African Diaspora in policymaking and decisions affecting the development of the continent.  Dr. Emmanuel Argo, President of the Global African Diaspora Coalition, which has its headquarters in the UK, called for greater recognition of the contribution of the African Diaspora towards Africa’s development.
 “People from the Diaspora who are a natural link to the continent are always excluded from discussions on Africa’s development, yet remittances sent by the Diaspora are a vital resource, which if seriously channelled could not only help reduce debt but could also help eradicate poverty.”  According to Dr. Argo, “Africans in the Diaspora already contribute greatly towards world development. We would like to see the UK government and other western governments work more closely with the Diaspora and support the work that we are doing.”

EISA: Internship Programme 2007

The Election Institute of Southern Africa (EISA), a nonprofit whose mission is to strengthen electoral processes, good governance, human rights and democratic values through research, capacity building, advocacy and other targeted interventions, invites applications for the 2007 internship programme. Applications for 2007 should be submitted between 1 July and 30 September 2006 only. Applications should be marked for attention Internship programme, EISA and may be submitted via email to: eisa@eisa.org.za or fax to 011 482 61 63 or can be posted to: P.O. Box 740, Auckland Park 2196. 

£15 million Pledge to support African Higher Education Institutions to tackle Poverty

The UK Government and the British Council have called on higher education institutions in the UK and 25 developing counties to bid for a share of £15 million of new funding for ways to fight global poverty. The UK Department for International Development (DFID) is contributing the funds over seven years to support a range of partnerships that will include Higher Education institutions in the UK and overseas. The new projects will bring together understanding and expertise across the world which will contribute to reducing poverty, promoting science and technology and help meet international targets for providing basic health and education services by 2015.  The Development Partnerships in Higher Education (DELPHE) initiative will be managed by the British Council and the Association of Commonwealth Universities will assist by promoting DELPHE through its network of universities and academics around the world. Institutions which link up will work on initiatives for skills development, knowledge sharing, problem solving research and other activities that will contribute towards achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals. The selection criteria and guidelines will be posted on the British Council website by the beginning of June. Each grant will range from £15,000-£50,000 and successful applicants will be announced in September.
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-delphe.htm 

Rwanda submits Country Peer Review Report to NEPAD

The Country Review Report on Rwanda was submitted to NEPAD at the recent AU Summit in Banjul, The Gambia by the APR Panel of Eminent Persons.    The African Peer Review Mechanism is a process conceived by NEPAD which enables African countries to voluntarily examine each other’s commitment and focus to development efforts.  Rwanda signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the APRM in March, 2003, in which the four benchmarks: Democracy and Good Political Governance, Economic Governance and Management, Corporate Governance and Socio-economic development, are measured.  The Rwanda Country Review Team consulted with a wide range of stakeholders, including, civil society organisations, the private sector, women, youth, and political parties.  The team visited all the 12 former provinces and gathered ideas with stakeholders countrywide, including President Paul Kagame.
Source: New Times (Rwanda)

Call for Nominations – 3rd Annual Development Gateway Award

The Development Gateway Foundation is calling for nominations from around the globe for the third annual Development Gateway Award. The award recognizes outstanding achievement in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve the lives of people in developing countries.  This year the award is highlighting projects that empower or improve the conditions of youth. The nominated projects must leverage the power of ICT to create fresh opportunities and address development challenges such as health, education, employment or other areas important to social and economic development. In addition to giving a significant cash prize to the award winner, the Development Gateway will highlight the stories of all the finalists on the Development Gateway Foundation website; their stories will also be available to the worldwide membership of dgCommunities online networks.  The deadline to receive nominations is August 11, 2006, and the winner will be announced toward the end of 2006. For further information, e-mail at award@developmentgateway.org

South Africans Score Highly in National Pride Rankings

According to a report from the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, South African citizens scored amongst the highest with a score 17 out of a possible 25 when asked if they would rather be a citizen in their country than any other country.  The report is based on a survey of people in 34 countries carried out by the International Social Survey Program and which asked people to rate how proud they were in their countries in ten different areas. The report showed some general patterns: former colonies and new nations had high levels of pride, while nations in Asia and countries in Europe, especially those in Eastern Europe, had lower levels of pride. http://www.norc.org/

Workshop for Women Leaders Held in Botswana

A workshop on 'Leadership, Gender Mainstreaming, Tracking HIV/AIDS and Poverty' has been organized by the International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA), UNESCO in collaboration with other UN agencies and the Tertiary Education Council (TEC) of Botswana. Participants examined modern theories of leadership in light of their experiences and contexts, gender mainstreaming in organisations and institutions and a range of approaches to tackle the challenges posed by HIV/AIDS and poverty. The first of its kind in Botswana, the workshop is meant to enable women in leadership positions to relate leadership to gender, HIV/AIDS, poverty, peace and conflict resolution challenges. It is one of a series planned for the sub-Saharan African region and further workshops will be run in Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia during 2006, with a further five countries targeted for 2007.

African Diaspora in Brazil holds Conference

During a 3 day state visit in Brazil, President Kufuor of Ghana attended the plenary session of the Second conference of Intellectuals from Africa and the Diaspora held in Salvador. The conference themed "The Diaspora and Africa Renaissance" is a follow up to the first conference held in Dakar in October 2004.   African statesmen and dignitaries attended the conference along with the heads of many international organisations.  The conference aims at reviving and harnessing the contribution of intellectuals in Africa and the Diaspora. It also aims at broadening mutual understanding and fostering greater cooperation for development between Africa and Diaspora countries. Source: Accra Daily Mail

Africa Investment Climate and Business Environment Research Fund

The International Development Research Centre and TrustAfrica have established an Investment Climate and Business Environment (ICBE) Research Fund, which will make available up to US$2.8 million through various initiatives and rounds of funding for researchers in private sector development based in African universities, business schools, and independent research institutions.  The grants will be awarded following an open, competitive process and the final deliberations of a pan-African jury.  The Fund anticipates research from African universities, business schools, professors, graduates students, African investment and SME promotion agencies.  The Fund will operate in English and French and will include all regions of the African continent.  The closing date for applications is October 16, 2006.
http://www.trustafrica.org/documents/ICBE_RF_Call_for_Proposals.pdf 

ODI Report asks ‘What’s Next in International Development?’

A new report issued by the Overseas Development Institute poses the question of ‘What’s Next in International Development?’ This report compares the international development agenda of the ‘20% Club’ - countries which derive around 20% of GDP from aid and the ‘0.2% Club’ -countries that are becoming aid donors themselves. These different agendas challenge aid agencies to rethink their roles and their competencies. They also challenge development researchers to work on new issues and in new ways. 
http://www.odi.org.uk/publications/working_papers/wp270.pdf

Tanzania tackles Shortage of Secondary School Teachers

The Tanzanian government will recruit almost 6,000 teachers within the next two months in a bid to address an acute shortage in its secondary schools.  According to the Minister for Education and Vocational Training, Margareth Sitta, the country needs 9,500 teachers to staff its 1,699 public secondary schools but currently suffers a deficit of 5,793 teachers. Sitta said the increased demand for teachers was the result of the successful implementation of a five-year Secondary Education Development Programme (SEDP) that began in 2004, under which 1,050 new secondary schools were built countrywide.  Recruiting so many teachers presents new challenges. Form Six leavers who meet specific criteria will be hired as teachers and undergo a one-month crash course before being deployed and 250 retired teachers will be recalled.  Plans are also underway to recruit 260 university graduates to pursue teaching careers.  Source: Irinnews.org

Handbook of Effective Labour Migration Policies Published

A handbook has been published is to assist States in their efforts to develop new policy approaches, solutions, and practical measures for better management of labour migration in countries of origin and of destination. It analyses effective policies and practices and draws upon examples from Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) participating States as well as other countries that have considerable experience in this field. http://www.eldis.org/globalisation/

Africa Progress Panel Announced to Monitor Promises of Aid

Tony Blair has announced the setting up of the Africa Progress Panel to produce an annual report for the G8, UN and the Africa Partnership Forum. an existing body tasked with monitoring progress in the continent.  The Africa Progress Panel will include Nigerian President Obasanjo and Kofi Annan among its members while Bill Gates of Microsoft has committed funding support for the Panel.  The British Prime Minister has stressed that the Panel will be independent of the British Government and says that its focus will be to track progress on promises made at last year's G8 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland.

South Africa Journalism Institute Offering Courses

The Institute for the Advancement of Journalism is offering several courses for working journalists: sports reporting, interviewing, basic reporting and writing for print, over the next few weeks.  Courses will be held in Johannesburg. Closing date for application is two weeks before the start of the course. Source: Pambazuka News  http://tinyurl.com/lr5q2