The recent revolutions in Tunisia and Libya have brought the issue of trans-Mediterranean migration to the forefront of popular discussions about Europe’s relationship with its immediate neighbours in the Middle East and North Africa, writes Polly Pallister-Wilkins on 'It was on the back of hyperbolic and cataclysmic predictions of Europe being “swamped” by migrants that the case for intervention in Libya was partly made and following this, a number of EU member states have agreed on a temporary suspension of the Schengen Agreement. Schengen is an agreement that deals with the free movement of people throughout the European Union and was first signed on 14 June 1985 by five out of the ten members of what was then the European Economic Community (EEC).'

Ghanaians are being treated to fascinating intrigue and allegations of chicanery and underhand dealings as the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) scrambles to regain its grip ahead of an anticipated election primary. A few weeks ago former President Jerry Rawlings used the broken English language proverb of 'Who born dog' to support his claim that incumbent John Atta Mills was allowing his appointees to get away with poor performance, and that this would not have happened when he was in power. But Rawlings, considered the strongman of Ghanaian politics, is finding batting from the other side a tad unfamiliar, with an aide alleging that his boss's phone has been tapped by the country's intelligence service.

The Group of Eight (G8) industrialised nations are posed to put aside the pledge on fighting poverty in developing nations. Their attention has now shifted to supporting the aspirations of ‘Arab up spring’ through a new commitment called ‘Deauville Partnership’. The world leaders said in a statement that the international development banks could give more than $20 billion to Egypt and Tunisia as they seek to support countries that overthrew dictators this year and are trying to establish free democracies.

Six opposition political parties have launched a coalition in Monrovia in a bid to oust President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf in the October polls. Johnson-Sirleaf is seeking re-election for a second five-year term, which she has promised to win against all odds. Several interest groups have also signed up with the coalition, arguing that they were supporting the coalition because of the ideals it stood for.

Germany’s colonial genocide at the beginning of the twentieth century against the Herero of then German South West Africa, today Namibia, ranks among the most egregious human right catastrophes. An extermination order (Vernichtungsbefehl) was issued in 1904. In a very short time between 60 000 and 100 000 people; almost all civilians, many of them women and children, were killed by means of German bullets and clubs, by hanging, or by burning the huts where they lived. Many were forced into the desert to die of starvation and thirst or by drinking water at poisoned water wells. Thousands, including women and children were condemned to slavery in the German military and civil institutions, as well as for private companies and on German farms. In the concentration camps the mortality rate was more than 45 percent. Surviving Herero women were forced to become ‘comfort women’ for the settlers and soldiers. German geneticists came to the country to perform racial studies of alleged Herero inferiority. Herero skulls and skeletons were shipped to Germany, supposedly for further study. The book argues that the genocide was not the work of one rogue army general or the practises of the German military in general, but that German colonial policy at the turn of the twentieth century laid the foundation for the Herero genocide; GSWA’s status as ‘new Germany’ precluded the option of military, economic or social failure in the colony; international and domestic political pressures fuelled the Herero genocide; Germany conducted the Herero genocide in order to acquire Herero land, rebuild German pride and fulfil Germany’s racist ideology; the Kaiser ordered the genocide; and Germany’s actions in GSWA provided it with relevant experience to the orchestration of the Holocaust a few decades later.

La Directrice Exécutive est responsable de tous les programmes et projets du Réseau de Développement et de Communication des Femmes Africaines (FEMNET), notamment de leur conceptualisation, de leur mise en oeuvre suivant les obligations contractuelles et les politiques internes et de faire rapport là-dessus. La Directrice Exécutive rend compte au Comité de gestion et au Conseil d’administration et elle assure quotidienne des ressources humaines et financières de FEMNET et elle est à la tête du Secrétariat régional à Nairobi, Kenya.

A new blog known as Society's Perfection aims to bring issues affecting the LGBT community worldwide to the fore, although it has a focus on Africa.

The Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa, CODESRIA, will hold its 13th General Assembly on 5-9 December 2011, in Rabat, Morocco. The triennial General Assembly is one of the most important scientific events of the African continent. It provides the African social science research community with a unique opportunity to reflect on some of the key issues facing the social sciences in particular, and Africa and the world at large.

The University of Sussex invites applications for a fully funded PhD scholarship for research into climate change and the African climate system. ??

The ‘The Peter Carpenter Climate Change Scholarship’ is open to citizens of African countries only, and has a start date of October 2011. The scholarship covers 100 per cent of tuition fees and provides a stipend for living expenses of approximately £13,400. The scholarship is one component of the African Climate Initiative at Sussex, which aims to better understand the nature, causes and consequences of, and responses to climate change in Africa. ??We invite applications from those with an exceptional academic record including a first class degree in a relevant discipline (e.g. meteorology, physics, environmental science, geosciences, geography). Candidates with the equivalent of an upper second class degree and relevant professional experience may be considered.

Closing date for applications is 8 July 2011.??

The PhD programme??

The PhD will be supervised within the department of Geography, where there is a vibrant research programme into the climate of Africa (www.sussex.ac.uk/geography/research/clusters/climateresearch). The PhD will be focus on one of the major research themes in the department; Climate change and the water cycle, atmospheric aerosols; land-atmosphere interaction. Potential topics are provided on the webpage. Depending on qualifications the successful candidate can undertake a one year MSc in either ‘Climate Change and Development’ or ‘Climate Change and Policy’ prior to the 3-year PhD research programme (www.sussex.ac.uk/climatechange/mscprogrammes).

??Climate Change research at Sussex??

The cross campus Sussex climate change network (www.sussex.ac.uk/climatechange) is a virtual centre for multi-disciplinary research and teaching into the causes, consequences of, and responses to climate change. The network brings together world leading researchers from the University of Sussex and the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) in a multi-disciplinary programme of research and teaching to improve our understanding of how climate change is developing, the impacts on people and the implications for mitigation and adaptation policy and action. Within the context of Africa, the network facilitates multi-disciplinary research to improve the quality of climate information available and its use in sustainable climate adaptation practice, for example in water management and agriculture. The University offers state-of-the-art computing facilities for climate research.??Contacts??For further information email [email][email protected]?Or informally email [email][email protected]??How to apply??Candidates should apply on-line at http://www.sussex.ac.uk/study/pg/applying/

Candidates should ensure that they clearly state on the application form that they are applying for the Peter Carpenter Climate Change Scholarship

??Applications should be submitted by 8 July 2011

Members of the gay and lesbian community have said they will lobby for the abolition of laws which criminalise their sexual orientation. Speaking at a dinner to mark the international day against homophobia and the minority groups, they said they will seek to have sections 162 to 165 of the Penal Code repealed. It was hosted by the Coast regional office of the Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals,Transgender and Intersexuals.

Fahamu’s Refugee Programme is pleased to announce the , a monthly publication that provides a forum for providers of refugee legal aid. With a focus on the global South, it aims to serve the needs of legal aid providers as well as raise awareness of refugee concerns among the wider readership of Pambazuka News. You can also read the newsletter on our new blog and

The Executive Director is responsible for all programmes and projects of the African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) including their conceptualisation, implementation according to FEMNET’s contractual obligations and internal policies and reporting on them. The Executive Director is responsible to the Board of Trustees and Executive Board and manages on the day to day basis the human and financial resources of FEMNET and is the Head of the Regional Secretariat in Nairobi, Kenya.

Jalaa Writers’ Collective was created in 2009 by ten Nigeria-based writers who came together in an effort to tackle the book production and distribution challenges of the local publishing industry. The business model of Jalaa is based on the premise that there exists 'a gap between professional, traditionally published books that sell in the thousands and amateurish subsidy and self-published books that sell in the hundreds'. As such, the collective aims to engage the weaknesses of the industry by pooling the talent, resources and experience of its members in a systematic and profit-oriented manner.

There are obvious gaps in access to the Internet, particularly the participation gap between those who have their say, and those whose voices are pushed to the sidelines. Despite the rapid increase in Internet access, there are indications that people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region remain largely absent from websites and services that represent the region to the larger world. A research project is assessing the connection between access and representation - click on the URL provided to read more on this topic.

Women in the developing world need new methods of contraception that meet their needs and lifestyles, according to a Guttmacher Institute report. The study focused on sub-Saharan Africa, south central Asia and southeast Asia, which 'are home to 69 per cent of women in the developing world who have an unmet need for a modern method'. The report said new forms of contraception are needed in the three regions 'where there are 49 million unintended pregnancies every year resulting in 21 million abortions'.

Almost 4,000 Chadians who have returned home from strife-torn Libya via Niger are in a critical situation in the border town of Zouarke, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has warned. 'According to the Chadian government, more than 3,800 migrants including 310 women and children are in a very difficult situation in Zouarke with limited food, no water and transport to make their journey south,' the IOM said in a statement. Most of the migrants are Chadians, of whom 25,000 have already fled the Libyan conflict and made their way to the northern towns of Faya and Kalait, but the latest batch lacks the means.

Inaction marked the Extraordinary Summit of Southern African Development Community heads of state in Windhoek, despite an agenda covering Zimbabwe elections, political deadlock in Madagascar, the suspension of the regional court and allegations of corruption within SADC itself. In the days leading up to the summit, there was the chance that it might not take place at all, with the South African president, Jacob Zuma, pulling out at the last moment, preferring to concentrate on local elections in his own country. In the end, eleven heads of state and their representatives met in Windhoek, but deliberations lasted only a few hours before the summit was ended.

Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem was born on 6 January 1961 in Funtua, Katsina State, Nigeria. He died tragically on African Liberation Day, 25 May 2009 in a motor accident in Nairobi Kenya.

s the Libyan uprising enters its fourth month, people in the liberated eastern part of the country are playing a waiting game, and for many, patience is running thin. The spontaneous jubilation that marked the early days of the revolution is all but gone. In its place, an unmistakable sense of weariness and uncertainty fills the cool springtime air. Concerns of a civil war or an Islamist takeover do not predominate here; most people laugh these off as overblown Western fears that are not grounded in Libyan realities. Now that the fate of the uprising is almost wholly in the hands of those with the best weapons, foremost on people’s minds is how much longer they must wait for the regime to fall.

For many in the developing world, the IMF and its draconian policies of structural adjustment have systematically 'raped' the earth and the poor and violated the human rights of women, says this article about the arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It appears that the personal disregard and disrespect for women demonstrated by the man at the highest levels of leadership within the IMF is quite consistent with the gender bias inherent in the IMF’s institutional policies and practice.