The first-ever official meeting of Ministers of Agriculture from G20 countries, to be held in Paris 22-23 June presents an extraordinary opportunity, says this IPS article. 'Tasked with developing an action plan to address price volatility in food and agricultural markets and its impact on the poor, the ministers are uniquely positioned to not only tackle the immediate price volatility problems, but also to take on a more fundamental and long-term challenge - extreme poverty and hunger. As experts in agriculture, the ministers no doubt know what extensive research confirms: Investing in agriculture and rural development, with a focus on smallholder farmers, is the best bet for achieving global food security, alleviating poverty, and improving human wellbeing in developing countries.'

Amandla has been on the air for 23 years, making it Canada’s longest running African current affairs radio show. It works every week to shift the public’s attention away from the mainstream media’s narrow portrayal of Africans as passive victims of war, famine, drought, dictatorship and corruption. Amandla seeks to explain the root causes of these afflictions, but also to move beyond this focus to encompass the creativity, ingenuity, innovation, ideas and struggles for change that Africa also embodies. Amandla, Wednesday, 7pm to 8pm EST, on

Critics are challenging the way a major procurer of vaccines for the developing world operates. The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), a public-private initiative that held a major funding meeting in London, United Kingdom recently, raising US$4.3 billion, has come under fire for the way it spends its money. 'The GAVI model depends on giving more and more money, year after year, to get vaccines to poor countries in ways that are not self-sustaining and at prices that are unaffordable,' says Donald Light, a professor at Princeton University, United States. GAVI's decisions are skewed by the pharmaceutical companies that sit on its board, non-governmental organisation Médecins Sans Frontières and development charity Oxfam, tell The Guardian.

'A nation?wide escalation of threats and violence against foreign traders in townships and informal settlements is spreading across South Africa. The African Centre for Migration & Society (ACMS) calls for the South African government, in collaboration with civil society actors, to implement an urgent, public and sustained response to this xenophobic intimidation.'

Raising Voices welcomes applications from qualified individuals interested in being SASA! TA providers. SASA! TA Providers are consultants who will support the Raising Voices SASA! team to conduct trainings and provide TA to organizations using and interested in the SASA! approach to prevent violence against women and HIV. SASA! TA providers will work with Raising Voices to respond to the ever growing demand for TA on the SASA! approach to organizations in the region. This is an exciting opportunity for Raising Voices and the TA providers to strengthen quality of VAW programming in the region. Download the SASA! TA Providers Terms of Reference and application form at

The recent revelation that the Syrian blogger activist 'Gay Girl in Damascus' was actually 'Straight American Man in Scotland' Tom MacMaster sent ripples through international media circles and left deep scars in the LGBTI community. But why is this hoax so potentially harmful? asks the Association for Progressive Communications. 'It comes down to identity and rights. This case touches on some of the core issues surrounding identity and human rights - especially online...MacMasters, in claiming that his fictitious lesbian persona had been arrested by Syrian authorities, lends credence to the claim of many repressive regimes that LGBTI movements within their countries are somehow alien or under foreign influence.'

The aim of this issue is to discuss the multi-dimensional interactions between African universities and 'their' territory. More than anywhere else, African universities are facing the hardly reconcilable missions and objectives of meeting growing socio-educational demands, maintaining academic standards to preserve their reputation, contributing to local development while keeping their autonomy and negotiating political pressures. These are challenges which young African universities are confronted with in a context of declining public funding. This issue proposes to analyze those interactions and their mutual effects.

The Climate Change Media Partnership has published a briefing paper that recommends ways for policymakers to support a better class of climate change journalism that is relevant to local audiences, builds public awareness of the issues and contributes to improved policymaking. You can download the four-page briefing paper from the CCMP website.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni should ensure independent and transparent investigations into killings which occurred during the 'Walk to Work' protests and hold security forces accountable, a coalition of 105 human rights, media, and development organisations said in a letter to the president. The coalition, including civil society groups from every corner of Uganda, urged the president to invite the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions.

The Somali Journalists Association Network said on 14 June they had learnt that the National Security Agency for the Somali government had detained two radio journalists in the capital city of Mogadishu. Both were working for the privately owned independent Radio Kulmiye Based in the capital Mogadishu.

The Zimbabwean state has dropped the most serious charges against six activists who faced the death penalty for treason. They now face the lesser charge of 'subverting a constitutional government' - but this still carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. Their trial begins on 18 July. Their bail conditions have also been relaxed - they have to report to the police once a month instead of three times a week. The six, including former MP Munyaradzi Gwisai, were among more than 40 people arrested on 19 February for watching a video about the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia.

ARTICLE 19 has urged the Rwandan Parliament to pass the Access to Information Bill that was adopted by the Rwandan Cabinet on 1 June 2011 as a matter of priority. 'The Rwandan Government’s adoption of the Access to Information Bill is a clear acknowledgement of the key role free flow of information can play in good governance and transparency and in the sustainable development of the country. The Rwandan Parliament must now expedite the enactment process so that the people of Rwanda can start enjoying the benefits of this law,' said Henry Maina, Director, ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa.

A and explanation of the history leading to the Libyan conflict. But you failed mention that it is Canada's warplanes (at the direction of Prime Minister Stephen Harper) who have taken the lead role in the air assaults on the Libyans--to the cheers of many Canadians and to the heartfelt shame of many others like myself.

Africa needs more support to develop the major regional trading blocs on the continent. African leaders, at a meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, said this would improve business competitiveness and build on successes of the free trade initiatives. The one-day summit, at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, ended with the signing of a tripartite document formalising the negotiations process of the 26 leaders present. The Heads of State and government leaders from the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) signed a declaration launching the negotiations for the establishment of the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Free Trade Area.

A cheap new meningitis vaccine designed to treat a type of the disease common in Africa could significantly reduce or even halt future epidemics in Africa's so-called 'meningitis belt', scientists said. International researchers said the vaccine, called MenAfriVac and made by the Indian generic drugmaker Serum Institute, was far more effective than older so-called meningococcal polysaccaride vaccines, including Mencevax from GlaxoSmithKline, in trials in three African countries. In two studies in the New England Journal of Medicine, in which MenAfriVac's potency and effectiveness was compared with a standard vaccine often used during meningitis outbreaks in the region, scientists said the new shot was 'dramatically better'.

Nigeria's national biosafety bill has been passed by the country's upper house. But those opposing it say that this month's enactment of the bill - two days before the end of Nigeria's sixth national assembly - results from a hidden foreign agenda to legalise GM organisms. Mariann Bassey, food and agrofuels programme manager for the Nigerian advocacy group Environmental Rights Action, called for a transparent process that includes the views of all stakeholders, 'not one that is shoved down our throats by biotech agents'.

The World Bank and IMF have been restructuring the economies of the Middle East for decades, with largely negative results. Yet they are poised to play a major role in the post-revolutionary efforts to stabilise Egypt, Tunisia and other post-authoritarian states. Despite the less than encouraging history of involvement in the region, the World Bank, IMF and other mainstream institutions have all sought to insert themselves into the economic reform process that most observers believe must accompany political reform in order for the latter to succeed.

Every electoral district is set to have a primary health care nurse-driven team established in future with specialist doctor teams assigned to districts where maternal and child mortality is high, the health department has revealed. The recruitment of retired nurses to promote health schools will kick off in the next week. Health minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi returned from a study tour to Brazil last year and announced that he was determined to revitalise the country’s primary health care system, copying some of the successes from the Latin American country.

With homophobia on the rise, large numbers of South African lesbians are being subjected to discrimination and violent assaults. There has also been an increase in 'corrective rape' by men trying to 'cure' them of their sexual orientation. More than 30 lesbians have been killed since 2006. But most of these crimes go unrecognised by the state and unpunished by the legal system.

Civil rights groups are up in arms about Faustin Kayumbe Nyamwasa's refugee status in South Africa, arguing that the decision violates South African and international law and increases the likelihood of South Africa being used as a safe haven by perpetrators of mass crimes. This comes after Consortium for Refugees and Migrant Rights (CoRMSA) and Africa Litigation Centre (SALC) submitted a detailed legal briefing to the South African authorities highlighting his ineligibility and outlining the legal implications of the decision. (CoRMSA) together with (SALC) have launched legal action seeking the cancellation of former Rwandan general and suspected war criminal Faustin Kayumbe Nyamwasa's refugee status in South Africa.