As an African Union summit on agricultural investments opens in Libya, donors and non-profits are calling participants' attention to the role smallholder farmers – mostly women – can have in feeding their communities. Agriculture is an overlooked “emergency” that deserves as much attention as the global financial crisis, according to Kate Norgrove with Oxfam UK’s office in Dakar, Senegal.

Madagascar's foreign minister has said that the Indian Ocean island's army-backed government was ready to hold elections before the end of 2009 if the "means" were available. Madagascar has been rocked by political instability since Andry Rajoelina took power in March from then president Marc Ravalomanana with the help of dissident soldiers -- a move that was labelled a coup by many countries and regional blocs.

A new article by Dr. Korinna Horta of the Environmental Defense Fund outlines the World Bank's commitment to human rights to date and advocates that the institution integrate a human rights approach into its own policies and programs.

The names of key suspects involved in violence after the 2007 Kenyan election have been handed to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Mediator Kofi Annan said he had handed the names in a sealed envelope to the prosecutor in The Hague.

Zimbabwe's power-sharing cabinet issued an ultimatum Wednesday to the three principals in the national unity government to resolve numerous issues that have been straining relations between the Movement for Democratic Change and ZANU-PF sides of the government.

Niger's controversial referendum aimed at changing the country's Constitution to allow President Mamadou Tandja to run for a third term will be held 4 Aug., according to the chair of Niger's National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI), Moumouni Hamidou. The holding of the referendum will coincide with a meeting between President Tandja and the electoral body.

Leaders of churches in West Africa have cautioned the political authorities in the sub-region against signing the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) by African, Caribbean and Pacific countries in its present form. The leaders said the EPA in its current form was not beneficial and would not give member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) enough political and economic leeway to improve production of staple foods.

Much attention has been focused on China’s growing presence in Africa. But Iran too has been seeking expanded ties on the continent. Just this month, Iran’s President Ahmadinejad expressed Tehran’s readiness to expand all-out relations with African countries. “The Islamic Republic of Iran sees no limits for the expansion of ties with African countries,” and sharing its experiences with them, Ahmadinejad told his Kenyan counterpart in New York. “Iran has always sought to boost ties with African countries in all arenas,” Ahmadinejad added.

Cikiah Thomas responds to Horace Campbell’s article, .

Meeting donor requirements can come at the expense of effective collaboration with grassroots organisations, writes Simon Kikoyo, in response to .

cc The South African government will have to bail out private companies as the global financial crisis begins to bite the national economy, writes William Gumede. But which companies should the government nationalise? Moreover, given its 'depressing record' thus far, is it actually capable of running a complex organisation without making the headlines for mismanagement and corruption? Dismissive of BEE consortiums or majority foreign ownership as an alternative, Gumede calls for ‘a stress test’ to prioritise which companies to rescue, based on what the country would lose if they were to close.

The seven members arrested in Bulawayo on Wednesday 17th June appeared on remand in Bulawayo Magistrate’s Court on July 3. The state was not prepared with either the docket or state witnesses. They have been further remanded out of custody until 22nd July.

cc Israel is practising both colonialism and apartheid in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), an interim report released by the Human Sciences Research Council of South Africa (HSRC) suggests. Based on 15 months of research, the report reviews Israel’s practices in the OPT according to definitions of colonialism and apartheid in international law. Violations of international prohibitions on colonialism cited include Israel’s policy to fragment the West Bank and annex part of it permanently and its appropriation of land and water in the OPT. Laws that give privileges to Jewish settlers and disadvantage Palestinians in the same territory based on their identities are among the examples of apartheid highlighted in the study.

cc Cynthia McKinney, human rights advocate and former US congresswoman was arrested and forcibly abducted to Israel, while attempting to take humanitarian and reconstruction supplies to Gaza on 30 June. Speaking from the jail in which she and other activists were detained until July 5, McKinney said she wants 'the people of the world to see how we have been treated just because we wanted to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza.' Questioning how she could be imprisoned 'for collecting crayons to kids', McKinney added that 'if Israel fears for its security because Gaza's children have crayons then not only has Israel lost its last shred of legitimacy, but Israel must be declared a failed state'.

cc The Presidential Standards Task Force, the Ugandan government's web-based service for engaging with citizens, sent the following letter to human rights activist Vincent Nuwagaba. The letter, apparently signed by President Museveni, responds to comments Nuwagaba submitted to the website, covering issues from corruption to unemployment.

cc The Left finds it hard to condemn torture when it is carried out by 'progressive' governments rather than imperialists, writes Bill Fletcher Jr, and often attempts to deny its existence or downplay its significance. Speaking with reference to acts of torture perpetrated by the Mugabe government – some against people he knows – Fletcher argues that if 'the Left is to hold the moral high ground, it must mean that it is prepared to engage in criticism – including constructive criticism – when crimes are uncovered'.

cc Chambi Chachage explores when and how ‘subjects' become ‘citizens’, in the second part of

The purchase of huge swathes of African farmland by rich countries, Obama's visit to Ghana, women's official dress in Buganda and the proliferation of new political parties in Zambia are among the topics covered in this week's round-up of the African blogosphere, by Dibussi Tande.

cc As US President Barack Obama heads to Accra, Ghana, this week, Charles Abugre hopes a new 'wind for change' is blowing. Coming from a 'son of Africa' held with pride and esteem by Africans across the continent, Obama's speech will have major influence on the way the world regards Africa. For all the anticipated talk about 'good governance' and 'democracy', Abugre stresses, the US president should first acknowledge his country's historical role in undermining African countries' stability and progress. If Obama is to spark a new beginning in US–Africa relations based on genuinely mutual interests and respect, he must actively allay fears around US militarisation and seek to review US economic relations with the continent. Through building trust and commending Ghana's democratic successes, who better, asks Abugre, to understand the wind of change than Barack Obama?

cc Following the death of Michael Jackson, Sokari Ekine considers the motivation and meaning behind the pop icon's changing features within the context of the politics of 'pigment-ocracy'. While unconvinced by the idea that Jackson needed to change his features to become more 'marketable', Ekine concludes that the entertainer made a personal choice, one which ultimately did not change him from being anything but a black man.