Statistics show that chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes are on the rise in developing nations. A number of these nations are still battling infectious diseases such as HIV. Having to deal with both infectious and chronic diseases puts even more pressure on health systems that are already struggling to cope. Zimbabwe’s brain drain of medical professionals has further compounded this situation due to the shortage of nurses, doctors and specialists.

China and Africa called for deeper and more frequent people-to-people exchange as they launched the first China-Africa nongovernmental organization (NGO) forum to bring together civil society actors.

This piece on the Women's News Network blog recounts that despite the country’s urban political turbulence, most rural communities in Zimbabwe are still governed under patriarchal rules that permit polygamy and exclude women from property rights.

Corruption is eroding the benefits of good health projects in Africa and governments must look inwards for funding, the World Health Organisation (WHO), has said. In a meeting with African Ministers of Health and Ministers of Finance in Yamoussoukro, Cote d’Ivoire, the organisation said solving the problem of funding was necessary for the health sector to thrive in the continent.

The African Development Bank released a book titled 'China and Africa, An Emerging Partnership for Development?'. In recent years, China has been the prominent emerging partner for most of Africa and new China-Africa relations have generated heated debates. Is China really the sole winner in its relations with the African continent? This book challenges this idea by analysing opportunities and challenges for both parties.

South Africa remains committed to resolving and stamping out the recurring problem of xenophobia in all its forms wherever it manifests itself within the Republic. This was the message from Minister for Public Service and Administration, Mr Richard Baloyi during his opening remarks of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) meeting of select Focal Points with African Peer Review (APR) Panel members.

It is time to challenge the conventional explanations of gender based violence. Patricia Daley argues that it can only be understood in association with contemporary geo-economic forces and the Central African experience of modernity.

How can technology be used to fight food insecurity in a region as large and diverse as east Africa? Karen Peachey, the British Red Cross’ east Africa representative, gives a few ideas: 'Mobile phones are everywhere in east Africa, even in many remote areas. If mobile companies could improve access further then people’s lives can change. A mobile phone gives you access to information –you can find out that your goat is worth more money than the middleman is offering, meaning you have better access to food, medical care, and education.'

Indian agribusiness companies are ready to spend $2.5bn buying, or renting for decades, several million hectares of cheap land in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda in what could be some of the largest farming deals struck in Africa in the last 50 years.

The African Union (AU) is to launch the Pan-African Media Network (PAMEN), a platform run by the African Forum for Media Development of the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) and the African Media Initiative (AMI).

The BBC has produced a podcast about Zimbabwe as part of their BBC documentaries podcast series Assignment. In 'Assignment - Zimbabwe's Child Migrants' (25min) Mukul Devichand goes on the road with young children travelling alone on a journey of desperation, danger and hope - south from Zimbabwe and across the border to South Africa.

Somalia has the world's highest mortality rate for children under age 5, according to data released by the United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation.

Organisations in Africa have been urged to develop and enhance partnerships amongst governments and other stakeholders in order to promote gender equality. International Federation of Journalists General Secretary Beth Costa made the statement during the All-African Conference on Gender and Media held in Kigali. Issues of gender inequality took centre stage as sexual harassment, poor pay, lack of training, unfavorable working conditions and little or no maternity leave were identified as some of the major challenges facing women journalists.

This project was formulated by the EU Delegation with full participation of NAO, EPA, MoA and MoWE aims to contribute towards the construction of a carbon neutral and climate resilient economy through the corresponding socio-economic development program (CRGE). Identification of Services is a key aspect of the project which focuses advisory and support functions.

Human rights advocates watching Gambia are worried that abuses against perceived dissenters will rise as the November presidential election nears, killing any chance of a free and fair poll. Already the official campaign period - the only time opposition parties are given access to the media and allowed to actively campaign - has been shrunk to 11 days from four weeks, sparking concern among political leaders.

The Kenyan government is pushing fish farming to provide an alternative to small farmers who are scrabbling to eke out a living from poor soil.

The 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development finds that women's lives around the world have improved dramatically, but gaps remain in many areas. The authors use a conceptual framework to examine progress to date, and then recommend policy actions.

Lifestyle influenced non-communicable diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and cancer, kill about 36m people each year – 80 per cent of them in developing countries. The rate is growing fastest in Africa, where it will overtake the death toll from infectious diseases such as malaria and HIV by 2030.

South Sudan’s new minister of higher education said during a visit to Uganda that 'a lot of changes' will be made to processes of awarding scholarship to students due to lack of transparency and corruption at his ministry.

REDD+ intends to develop financing mechanisms that will compensate developing countries as an incentive for changing the way forest resources are used to curb CO2 emissions. The performance based compensation will pay for actions that prevent forest loss or degradation, conservation, the sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks. Isilda Nhantumbo argues that REDD+ is now driving a race for land in Mozambique.