The Medical Research Council (MRC) is under great political pressure to toe the party line and become "the trusted scientific voice that justifies unscientific findings or pseudo-science", according to MRC president Dr Malegapuru Makgoba.

A new South African project is set to revolutionise how AIDS patients manage their anti-retroviral treatment regimes, which often involve taking as many as 20 pills a day. The Cell Life project — a collaboration between the University of Cape Town and the Cape Technikon — hopes to solve the management problem of HIV/AIDS by using a mix of information communications technology, health and engineering expertise.

Very interesting and very comprehensive. I think that it will take me a while to find my way around and to get to know the Kabissa, Fahamu, Pambazuka and Sangonet sites, but I suspect that my efforts will prove to be worthwhile.

A South African archive of memory cloths created by 1000 women, belonging to the Zulu community and living in the region of KwaZulu Natal, is a project conceptualized by Andries Botha as a part of his ongoing exploration of the relationship between creativity and society.

South Africa is to set up an advisory group to ensure that women’s interests are adequately addressed in all spheres of science and technology policy, according to Bridgett Mabandla, deputy minister in the country’s Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST).

With the Prevention of Corruption Bill, a powerful instrument could be added to our democracy's anticorruption arsenal. Corruption has many faces in SA. Perhaps this is why the public seldom bears witness to a united political voice willing to challenge it there is instead a preference to allow such initiatives to falter on party lines.

"The non-profit sector is a major economic force in South Africa. It employs more people than the mining sector or the government - and its size and significance are far greater that previously thought."

"An important new study into South Africa's non-profit sector investment in the development activities of non-profit organizations is considerable-3, 5 billion annually."

In a ground-breaking move, the man accused of Marike de Klerk's murder and rape is to get R30 000 from the Foundation for Human Rights, funded by the European Union, so he can afford his own DNA expert.

The Irish Government has injected R2-million into the preparation and running of the World Summit on Sustainable Development to be staged in Johannesburg from August 24 to September 04.

Denmark has committed more than a R100 million to boost South Africa's fight against HIV/Aids. The funds will go towards two programmes aimed at reducing the impact of poverty and Aids, and tackling the link between violence against women and HIV/Aids.

Ways should be found to direct state resources to the 98920 nonprofit organisations in the country as a way of facilitating development, University of Natal's Centre for Civil Society director Prof Adam Habib says.

Three internet centres are to be established in underprivileged communities by Freedom International, an organisation launched by cousins Fidel and Richard Jonah to identify technology investment opportunities in Africa.

ANC MP Winnie Madikizela-Mandela has been found guilty by her peers in Parliament of failing to disclose donations and some of her financial interests in the register of members' interests.

Editors in South Africa have employed a lawyer to look at grounds for a possible challenge against a media bill that is widely seen as taking away editorial independence and giving the government of President Thabo Mbeki control over the country's national public broadcaster.

Corruption and maladministration in South Africa's prisons and the Correctional Services Department are turning out to be much more widespread than initially thought, according to Judge Thabani Jali.

In yet another row over racism in the Democratic Alliance (DA), black members of the party in Gauteng North this week complained bitterly about a Gauteng legislature caucus decision instructing them to circulate separate pamphlets for "white supporters".

Financial institutions would stop unfair discrimination on various grounds, including HIV status, and access to financial services would be provided to poor South Africans, according to a declaration signed in the National Economic, Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) on Tuesday.

Provide managerial and technical support to the TTS project, in support of the Southern Africa Initiative on Youth and HIV/AIDS (SAY). Propose plans, budget and methods for handling communications strategy for TTS including promotion of special events. Maintain programmatic oversight on TTS staff activities.

South Africa has been asked to send a battalion of peacekeeping troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).