Leaders of the world's 370 million indigenous peoples are reiterating their calls for the 192-member U.N. General Assembly to recognise their sovereignty over ancestral lands and resources. "It is now time for the General Assembly to adopt the declaration by vote, if necessary," Les Malezer, chairman of the U.N.-based Indigenous Peoples Caucus, told reporters at a news conference Wednesday.

Information technology company Microsoft will give technical assistance to enhance access to online research for scientists, policymakers and librarians in the developing world.This was announced at a meeting in Washington on 10 July.

Rejection. Fear. Anger. These are some of the feelings that come to the surface when HIV-positive women talk about stigma and discrimination. "It's like being completely invisible to society," said Esther Sheehama, 24, of the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) of Namibia. Sheehama and other women living with the virus have many stories about how they were rejected by their families and communities because of their status.

Short-sighted and inadequate foreign aid has worsened the plight of millions of people in Africa's parched and poverty-stricken Sahel belt, according to a report commissioned by major charities in the region. The study entitled "Beyond Any Drought", backed by charities including Oxfam and Save the Children, argues that unless aid programmes are overhauled Africa's poorest nations face harsher famines as free-market reforms deepen the roots of poverty.

In an effort to strengthen needed capacity, the Open Society Institute Public Health and Information programs are seeking applications from qualified organizations interested in receiving institutional support for their work on access to essential medicines. Grants for up to $75,000, renewable for up to three years, will be awarded to local NGOs with a mandate and demonstrated capacity to advance policy and civil society engagement related to access to medicines in Brazil, India, Kenya, Malaysia, South Africa, and Thailand. Interested organizations should submit an application no later than Monday, July 16, 2007.

It is now settled that Kenya ’s public debt portfolio of US$10 billion is a matter of concern. That a substantial portion of it – over US$1 billion – relates to uncertain commercial creditors is a matter of urgent national importance. That by the admission of senior Treasury officials, some of the entries of commercial debt are falsified is a national scandal, says corruption watchdog, Mars Group.

Countries around the world, including some of the poorest in Africa, have made “significant progress” in improving governance and fighting corruption over the decade, the new “Worldwide Governance Indicators” (WGI) report by the World Bank Institute and World Bank Development Economics Vice-presidency shows.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has launched year two of the Knight News Challenge, a contest awarding as much as $5 million for innovative ideas using digital experiments to transform community news. Do you have a big idea for informing and inspiring community using bits and bytes? Cell phone documentaries? New operating software for news collectors? Journalism games? Nothing is too far out to qualify.

The Global Forum will bring together development partners, donors, UN Agencies, Civil Society organizations, Law Enforcement Agencies, Human Rights Activists and research Organizations to develop a Consensus Document on a global Strategy to eliminate FGM/FGC Date: 30th July to 4th August 2007.

Seated on beer crates around a cattle kraal on the Wild Coast, a small gathering of tribal elders, headmen and residents this week resolved that their communal land was not on offer for mining. Recent prospecting has revealed a heavy minerals deposit extending 22km from the Mzamba and Mtentu rivers south of Port Edward.

The CIVICUS Civil Society Index Global Survey of the State of Civil Society: Volume 1 is the result of rigorous self-examination by civil society actors around the world. By featuring the civil society profiles of 44 countries around the world, the publication presents a detailed, yet concise description of the current state of civic activism, highlights the key strengths and weaknesses of each country’s civil society and puts forward specific recommendations to strengthen the sector’s capacity to contribute to positive social change.

The Social Mobile Group - for non-profit organizations, ICT professionals and members of the general public interested in the growing impact and uses of mobile technology in developing countries.

The Maltese-based international non-profit organisation, the DiploFoundation has trained a total of 265 persons on its Internet Governance Capacity Building Programme (IGCBP) from developing countries since 2003 with 45.5 per cent coming from Africa.

The Justice Initiative is seeking a Litigation Director to develop, oversee, and refine as needed the strategic direction and implementation of all litigation activity by the Justice Initiative. In carrying out this cross-cutting activity, the Litigation Director collaborates closely with staff in each of the thematic and geographic programs of the Justice Initiative. Start Date: October 2007.

Patrice Emery Lumumba (July 2, 1925 - January 17, 1961) was the first freely elected Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Beloved by his people, he was assassinated by western interests for advocating that the Congo's vast mineral wealth be used first and foremost, to benefit the people of the Congo. A monument by Nijel PBG will pay tribute to the vision and legacy of Patrice Emery Lumumba.

The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) has released a new report: "Easier Said than Done: A report on the commitments and performances of the Commonwealth members of the UN Human Rights Council". CHRI has been monitoring the performances of the 13 Commonwealth members of the Council (Bangladesh, Canada, Cameroon, Ghana, India, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, UK and Zambia) and compared them with the pledges the Commonwealth countries made prior to their election in the Council.

The Asian Political and International Studies Association (APISA), the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO) and the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) are pleased to call for applications for participation in the South-South comparative research seminar series they are organising within the framework of the initiative. The seminar will take place in Accra, Ghana, from 21 to 23 September, 2007.

China's biggest oil company CNPC has reached a deal with Sudan to search for oil and gas in the north of the country on the coast of the Red Sea. The exploration will be carried out jointly with the Indonesian state oil and gas company PT Pertamina.

African nations are used to being plundered - the West perfected the art. Now the new scramble for Africa's resources is coming from the east. With a voracious economy to feed, China is devouring raw materials - oil, copper, cobalt and zinc. And it is wooing governments, including those who trample on human rights, with soft loans, aid and arms sales.

An important debate is underway in South Africa, on whether it should protect its deteriorating textile industry. A paper published by South Africa's Poverty and Economic Policy Network examines whether implementing trade barriers will result in better domestic policy objectives. It provides a dynamic analysis on the link between textile protection and poverty.