CODESRIA/SEPHIS collaborative programme is pleased to announce the sixth session of its Extended Workshop on New Theories and Methods in Social History which is scheduled for the 3rd -21st of September 2009 in Dakar, Senegal. The theme of the workshop is: Historicizing Citizenship. The Workshop will be organised around the comparative experiences of Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Latin America.

The 53rd United Nations Commission on the Status of Women will consider the theme: "The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS" at its 53rd session at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 2-13 March 2009. As part of efforts to increase its focus on national-level implementation, the Commission will return to this theme in two to three years time to review the implementation of the policy recommendations adopted and to identify remaining gaps and challenges.

The Arab Regional Office in Amman of the Foundation Open Society Institute (FOSI) works to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. To achieve its mission, OSI seeks to shape public policies that assure greater fairness in political, legal, and economic systems and safeguard fundamental rights. Foundation Open Society Institute (FOSI) is recruiting a Program Manager whose responsibilities will include grant review administration and grants management as well as other programmatic and administrative responsibilities.

The International Council is pleased to announce the release of its report Corruption and Human Rights: Making the Connection. What impact does corruption have on enjoyment of human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights? When can human rights principles and tools help to curb and prevent corruption? In recent years, governments, NGOs and international organisations have taken many initiatives to fight corruption. However, these efforts have rarely been analysed from the point of view of human rights, despite their potential and relevance.

The University of Westminster has three new studentships available for students starting their PhD research in October 2009. Each studentship includes a stipend of £15000 and a fee waiver, and applications must be received by 5pm on March 3rd, 2009. Applicants need to apply for one of the specific projects advertised at

On the morning of February 16, 2009, President Hu Jintao delivered an important speech to a welcome conference attended by people from various sectors of Dar es Salaam. He stressed the Chinese people cherish their traditional friendship with Africa in the past, now and in the future, always take the African people as completely trustworthy and all-weathered friends and will maintain brotherhood and partnership with the African people forever.

Chinese President Hu Jintao completed his visit to the four African nations of Mali, Senegal, Tanzania and Mauritius on Tuesday. This was his first overseas trip in 2009 and his sixth visit to Africa. Obviously China is sending a strong message that it intends to expand and develop its relations with the continent. China’s goals in Africa include increased trade and greater market integration. They also include spreading its culture, values and political philosophy toward a harmonious world.

South Africa is hoping that its participation in the forthcoming International Engineering and Technology Fair (IETF) in Bangalore, as well as recent investments in India by South African firm Sasol, will lead to doubling of bilateral trade to $12 billion by 2010. The 18th IETF, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, will be held Feb 23-26, and will see 500 exhibitors from 25 countries.

India and the five-nation South African Customs Union (SACU), a regional sub-group of African countries, are likely to sign a preferential trade agreement by the year end, an official of South Africa High Commission said on Wednesday. "By the end of 2009, we should be close to signing of the PTA between India and its southern African customs union partners," Counsellor in the High Commission Jardine Omar said.

The trade and industry department has formally asked China to extend import curbs on clothing and textiles from that country. The request was apparently made without consulting industry players, as none of the industry’s representative bodies was aware of SA’s bid to extend the quotas.

SA’s first legal bid to protect itself against unfairly subsidised imports from China has been thwarted, under what appears to have been undue pressure from the Chinese government. South African manufacturing firms are already squeezed by heavily subsidised imports from China. The situation is set to get worse as the Chinese government increases payments to its manufacturers to keep exports competitive in the global economic downturn.

Emerging economic powerhouses China and India may be encouraged to strike a “grand bargain” at a coming London summit in which they will take on a greater role in the international financial system in exchange for keeping down protectionist barriers. The deal could be struck at the April 2 summit of the Group of 20 (G-20) countries in London - to be attended by US President Barack Obama - and forms part of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s efforts to seek sweeping reforms of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Chinese President Hu Jintao is on his first foreign tour of 2009, which includes four African states -- Mali, Senegal, Tanzania and Mauritius. Business is booming between China and Africa in commodities and energy. Here are some details of China's growing business in Africa: Trade between the two has jumped in the past decade, driven by China's resource needs and growing African demand for cheap Chinese-made products. In 2008, total Sino-Africa trade was $106.8 billion, up 45.1 percent on 2007.

A near-$20 billion (13.8 billion pound) investment by China's top state-owned aluminium producer in miner Rio Tinto and some of its best assets shows how Beijing can use the commodities downturn to buy good assets, and raise the game of China Inc. While China has a long-term strategic interest in securing resources supplies, its big banks are among the most likely to buy minority stakes in foreign counterparts, analysts said, as Western peers bleed red from the global financial crisis.

President Hu Jintao’s Friendship and Cooperation visit to Africa ended on a high note. With more than US$380 million loans and grant agreements signed during the whistle-stop visit to Mali, Senegal, Tanzania and Mauritius, President Hu put to rest any speculation or confusion regarding Beijing’s long-term strategy in Africa and reaffirmed its economic assistance during times of financial uncertainty and crisis. But the real significance of this visit was the keynote speech President Hu delivered in Tanzania entitled .

The global response to HIV and AIDS must be significantly reoriented to address the unmet needs of millions of children and their families in the worst affected countries, according to a new report by the independent Joint Learning Initiative on Children and HIV/AIDS (JLICA). The report summarises two years of research and analysis of AIDS- related policies, programmes and funding and their effectiveness in addressing the needs of children.

International Monetary Fund member countries, keenly aware of the need to give emerging nations more say in running the global economy, are considering a new policy-setting council that would more accurately reflect their rising economic clout. According to people familiar with the discussions, the council of ministers would be similar in make up and size to the Group of 20, and shift power more towards rising economic powers from the handful of industrial giants that have dominated post-World War Two policymaking.

Former child soldiers and other youth representing a grassroots campaign from around the world will present thousands of symbolic "red hands" to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to demand stronger action by international leaders to end the use of child soldiers.

After years of disappointments, AIDS researchers have announced results from a trial in which a vaginal microbicide appeared to offer promise in preventing HIV infection in women. According to findings from a clinical trial involving more than 3,000 women in Malawi, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and the United States, the microbicide PRO 2000 gel was 30 percent effective.

In the span of 24 hours between December 31st, 2008 and January 1st, 2009, three Black men were the victims of racial profiling at the hands of various law enforcement agencies throughout the US. Oscar Grant, a 22-year old father, was shot and killed by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police while laying face down and handcuffed after leaving a New Years Eve party. Adolph Grimes, was killed after being shot 14 times, 12 times in the back, by several New Orleans police officers in front of his home after leaving a New Years Eve celebration. Robbie Tolan was critically shot in the back by police in Bellaire, Texas, a suburb of Houston, after being falsely accused of a suspected robbery of his parents SUV.