A bill before Nigeria's National Assembly to ban "same gender marriage" would expand Nigeria's already draconian punishments for homosexual conduct and threaten all Nigerians' rights to privacy, free expression, and association, Human Rights Watch has said.

cc. Following the unprecedented focus on sexual and gender-based violence by the Waki Commission, Kenyans for Peace, Truth and Justice (KPTJ) reviews the commission’s findings. While supportive of its recommendations, KPTJ emphasises that the commission’s report is lacking in its focus on individual experiences at the expense of investigating patterns of conflicts, violations and violence. For the purpose of ensuring the implementation of these recommendations, KPTJ sets out a series of essential steps for the prevention and response to instances of sexual and gender-based violence, including greatly improved access to health and legal services for victims, and the removal of any form of amnesty for the perpetrators of sexual crimes.

The Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network is a local Non-Governmental Organization that seeks to empower women in Zimbabwe. ZWRCN is looking for a consultant to carry out a gender analysis of the Zimbabwe Education Sector Policies, Programmes and Budget. The analysis is expected to contribute to the main objectives of the Gender Budgeting and Women’s Empowerment Programme currently under implementation by ZWRCN, including the promotion of gender equality and equity in public policies and resource allocation to the education sector, and the upholding of the right to education for children in Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network is a local Non-Governmental Organization that seeks to empower women in Zimbabwe. ZWRCN is seeking a consultant to carry out a Gender Analysis of the 2009 Zimbabwe National Budget. The gender analysis of the 2009 National Budget is expected to contribute to the main objective of the Gender Budgeting and Women’s Empowerment Programme currently under implementation by ZWRCN. The programme seeks to promote the formulation and implementation of gender sensitive national policies, programmes and budgets at the national level.

A narrow hallway leads to a makeshift wooden counter where a shelf displays a few empty beer cans and soft drink bottles; a side door opens to a corridor with a series of bedrooms, almost all of them occupied. This is the 25 de Setembro Social Centre, one of the largest brothels in Chimoio, capital of Mozambique's central province of Manica.

A group of Darfuri women was saved from the hands of bandits who are believed to have been on a mission to take them hostages or possible war slaves. The Un reports said troops from the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur, tasked with protecting civilians and suppressing the bloody conflict in the region, foiled an attempted abduction of several women who had strayed outside a makeshift camp in the war-torn western flank of Sudan.

Ugandan gay rights activist Victor Mukasa is pleased with Judge Stella Arach’s December 23 ruling which he says affirms the rights of LGBTI people in Uganda. Arach’s ruling, citing constitutional violations of rights to privacy, property and fundamental rights of women, was a result of a case filed by Mukasa and Oyo Yvonne against Ugandan Attorney General after an “illegal” raid at Mukasa’s home four years ago.

The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the subsequent African human rights treaties do not consider minorities as a legal category recognised in African human rights law. This guide outlines regional opportunities for minority rights protection in Africa, highlighting the legal as well as the institutional framework that is in place

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, intersex and queer young people from all over the world can sign up to send and receive messages with other activists. Members will be encouraged to share their experiences, ideas and expertise, and to work together to solve problems and run projects. The working languages of the list are English, Spanish and French.

Join Ashoka's Changemakers competition "GameChangers: Change the Game for Women in Sport," a search to identify sport innovations that challenge the barriers girls and women face around the world. Submit your entry by February 11, 2009 at to take advantage of the funding opportunities and global exposure, while contributing to the next big change!

The sixth edition of the Gender and Media Diversity Journal will focus on the topic of “Gender, Diversity, Elections and the Media.” This topic is particularly relevant given the large number of elections happening in the SADC region in the next few years, the August 2008 signing of the SADC Gender Protocol (which includes commitments from leaders to 50% women in decision-making), and Gender Links’ ongoing work with media and politicians around gender and elections. Submission of abstract: 2 February
Deadline for submission of commissioned articles: 2 March
Deadline for revisions: 20 March

"We are not waiting. We are moving", says Pilda Modjadji, a founding member of the Pankop Women Farmers Forum in Mpumalanga, South Africa. "We mean business." The Pankop group, which now has 300 members, started with the humble goal of growing fruit collectively and using the proceeds to supplement family diets, raise incomes and pay school tuition fees. But the women quickly realized that the village offered few job prospects for graduates — their children were going off to the cities.

This course aims at giving the students a thorough overview and understanding of international law instruments pertaining to migration movements and to migrant and refugee women and children in particular. The course will have a human rights focus. The course will be structured around an examination of two groups and their rights; women and children. No single international treaty governs migration and migrants’ rights, but that does not mean that there is no “international migration law”.

Khadija's baby Noha is almost one year old and is her mother's greatest joy. But in deeply religious and conservative Morocco, Noha is also Khadija's greatest problem. Khadija was not married to her child's father - and Moroccan society finds it very difficult to accept children born out of wedlock.

For years, the Togolese government and its NGO partners have been trying to convince women who perform female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) to trade in their knives for microcredit loans and agricultural equipment. Despite a 10-year-old law in Togo that criminalises FGM/C some ethnic groups in Togo still report clandestine cuttings.

Some 500 girls were circumcised in Sebei region over the Christmas period! This is an alarming rise in Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) because the number of mutilated girls stood at 90 in the previous circumcision season. The ritual involves the removal of the clitoris and the entire labia. Why is this done? It is only through the FGM that a woman becomes a full woman and commands respect in society.

The Women's World Summit Foundation WWSF cordially invites you to submit nominations for its 16th annual edition of the PRIZE for women's creativity in rural life, honouring creative and courageous women and women's organisations working to improve the quality of life in rural communities around the world.

A law passed in November 2008 prohibiting female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) in the state of Southern Kordofan is unique in Sudan. But for it to translate into genuine abolition, deep-seated attitudes and misinformation will have to be overcome. More than two-thirds of women in the state have undergone FGM/C, according to a 2006 household survey conducted by the Ministry of Health.

Cécile Moutouba marched with a knife in one hand, a stick in the other. She said her husband has used both against her. Moutouba was among some 100 women who recently walked for more than 2km, their hands on their heads (a sign of mourning), in the Chadian town of Guelendeng, 153km from the capital N’djamena.

To strengthen the effectiveness of African Women's Regional Networks in participation in African Union (AU) Policy formulation and implementation processes, UNIFEM has organised a consultative and planning forum for Regional and Sub-Regional Women's Networks and Organisations.