Zambia was once one of the wealthiest countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet after the oil crisis and commodity price collapse of the early 1970s, it was forced to turn to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank for assistance. So began some thirty years of Bank and Fund intervention in the Zambian economy, a period of increasing debt, economic stagnation or collapse, and social crisis. From the early 1970s to the late 1980s, Zambia's total external debt rose from US$814 million to US$6,916 million. And yet, by 2003, Zambia had received only 5 per cent of the debt service reduction committed to it under HIPC. A forthcoming World Development Movement report on Zambia clearly demonstrates that the IMF and World Bank's involvement in Zambia has been unsuccessful, undemocratic and unfair. The evidence suggests that the past twenty years of IMF and World Bank intervention have exacerbated rather than ameliorated Zambia's debt crisis.

The UN report entitled "Agricultural Biotechnology, Meeting the needs of the poor" and supplemented by a press release, "The gene revolution; great potential for the poor but no panacea" raises some valid issues. However, due to its inherent ambiguities, it has led to a misplaced emphasis being placed on the potential of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) to provide a solution to hunger and poverty in developing nations by most commentators, mainly from the developed world. In fact the report pronounces that GM or even biotechnology cannot be seen as a panacea. Most of the initial international mainstream media emphasis has misrepresented important sections of the UN report. Instead of reporting and commentating, news copy has clearly been influenced by industry aligned PR being run on newswires, that is directed to increase the market penetration of those who already dominate the market in GMO crops.

Parliament's mixture of new and long-term MPs were on Friday advised that the tough new anti-corruption bill passed earlier this year applied to them as well - and they could not use their parliamentary privilege to malign anyone outside parliament itself. Anton Meyer, parliament's chief legal adviser, was taking the MPs through the rules and regulations that affect them as office bearers as much as they do ordinary members of the public. The new Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, passed by the previous parliament before the April elections, applied to all South Africans and indicated that government was "very, very serious" about rooting out corruption at all levels of society, Meyer said.

At a time when Africa is struggling to redefine its place in the global village and battling against marginalisation in a world shaken by terrorism, the African Partnership Forum - a vehicle originally established for dialogue between Nepad and the Group of Eight industrialised countries - provides a key window on the continent's progress. The second meeting of the Forum in Maputo on 16-17 April included discussions on peace and security, HIV/AIDS, food security, education and poverty alleviation. Expanded beyond the G-8 and Nepad, the Forum brought together high-level representatives from the African states, the G-8, the UN, the World Bank, seven African regional economic communities, the World Trade Organisation, 11 member states of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the African Union (AU) and the Nepad Secretariat. The Forum is meant to bring about a new constructive dialogue between Africa and donor countries.

At least six serving state governors and a former governor are under investigation in Nigeria for alleged illegal transfer of state funds abroad, local media reported Sunday. A total amount of about 417.4 million US dollars has been transferred to other countries from the African country.

The United Nations has published the official report of its inquiry into the bloody repression of an opposition demonstration on 25 March and has announced plans for a wider probe into human rights abuses since the beginning of the country's civil war in September 2002. The report, which was leaked to Radio France Internationale on 3 May, accused "the highest authority of the state" of orchestrating "the indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians by the security forces."

Zambia's anti-corruption task force has come under attack following the flight of two co-accused in the graft trial involving former president Frederick Chiluba. Chiluba has been charged with the theft of tens of millions of US dollars during his 10 years in office. The Task Force on Corruption was set up two years ago by Chiluba's successor, Levy Mwanawasa, to investigate the allegations against the former president. The task force comprises officers from the Drug Enforcement Commission, the state's intelligence service, the police, the Anti-Corruption Commission and state prosecutors.

The Burundian government, in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) international programme for the eradication of child labour, has launched a three-year programme on the rehabilitation of former child soldiers. During the launch on Monday, Labour Minister Dismas Nditabiriye said the US $1.4-million programme would work in conjunction with a national child demobilisation and rehabilitation programme already in place.

The appointments are six months late and the political infighting revealed the fragile relationships within the transitional government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but the nomination of provincial governors on Sunday has been heralded as an important step in the country's return to peace and democratic elections in July 2005. "The announcement of the list is a great step towards reunification of our country," Crispin Kabasele, a spokesman for Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie-Goma (RCD-Goma), said. "This is an important step in the restoration of the authority of the state in our country."

Zimbabwe's ruling ZANU-PF party took a step closer to gaining a two-thirds parliamentary majority after its victory in a weekend by-election. The seat for the Lupane constituency in the Matabeleland North province became vacant on the death of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MP, David Mpala, earlier this year. ZANU-PF candidate Martin Khumalo beat Njabulo Mguni of the MDC by 883 votes in the two-day poll, taking the ruling party to within two seats of a two-thirds majority in the 150-seat parliament, and the right to amend the constitution, should it wish to do so.

President Laurent Gbagbo said on Tuesday that he wanted some ministers to leave Cote d'Ivoire's broad-based national reconciliation government and was suspending the salaries of 26 opposition and rebel ministers who have boycotted the cabinet since the security forces killed at least 120 people in Abidjan at the end of March. Gbagbo said in a surprise television broadcast that he had sent Prime Minister Seydou Diarra a list of the ministers who he wanted to remove from government, but he did not reveal their names.

The World Bank has approved its largest environment grant to help the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar protect its unique environment and native species, the bank said on Wednesday. Madagascar, the world's fourth largest island, has a unique array of wildlife, flora and fauna but the impoverished country has few funds available to address conservation concerns. The grant of $49 million will be used to expand protected areas, establish conservation sites in forests and transfer forest management responsibilities to local communities.

Election reporting fatigue appeared to be taking its toll on the media and this was reflected by the way they covered the run-up to the Lupane by-election on the weekend May 15-16, says the Media Monitoring Project Zimbabwe in its weekly newsletter. While the private media generally have reported political violence and manipulation of the electorate in recent weeks, there were virtually no stories updating their audiences of the situation in the final week leading to the election, and precious little information about the electoral process itself. The government media, as epitomized by The Sunday News, seemed pre-occupied with campaigning exclusively for the ruling party in its two articles, 'Zanu-PF vows to bury MDC in Lupane' and, 'A choice between barren politics of protest and fruitful politics of progress'.

African countries must do more to maximize the benefits of trade for development, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), K.Y. Amoako, has said. Addressing a three-day meeting of the Committee of Experts of the Conference of Africa's Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Kampala, Uganda, Amoako said that even though international action was vital to allow Africa to trade more successfully, "domestic bottlenecks" at home must also be addressed.

Southern Africa has made significant progress in the past decade in institutionalising democracy. This is reflected in a number of developments in SADC countries including the holding of successful multi-party elections in several of them in the past ten years. There is evidence of increased popular participation in governance, and dialogue between governments and stakeholders has taken root. Democratic institutions have been set up and a number of major constitutional, legal and administrative changes have been undertaken with the objective of consolidating and deepening democracy. Notwithstanding these achievements, major challenges remain. There are pockets of conflict in several countries in the region and there have been situations in which election results have not been acceptable to all parties involved, resulting, on occasion, in violence and instability. The draft Principles for Electoral Management, Monitoring and Observation were developed by a Task Team and are premised on the understanding that every country has its own political, legal, social and cultural peculiarities. It is expected that countries will adapt the document to their particular national situations.

I have read your article with a lot of interest (Pambazuka News 156, Comment and Analysis). It is accurate and very informative. One of the issues you raise about the diverting of "Bush Money" to faith based organisations was also raised as a serious concern by one of the NGOs funded by Ford Foundation at a Ford Grantees Round Table held at the Centre for Basic Research.

Led by the First Lady of Uganda (who is said to be a born-again Christian), faith-based organisations are not only combating the use of Condoms - but also fighting those NGOs who have been active in provision of sex-education - particularly in schools.

It was indicated for instance that books on lessons on reproductive health are not allowed even to have drawings indicating reproductive organs - male or female - and the Ministry of Education has indirectly been "directed" on this.

Therefore, with time - as you have correctly observed, we might be on the backward trend - in the name of religion and particularly preaching of Abstinence. I hope articles of this nature - short and to the point - will reach those in decision-making positions!

SWAPO has increased its control over Local Authority councils countrywide by three, up from 26 to 29 out of 44 - but had to endure defeat at some towns where the ruling party's head office had forced candidates onto supporters. Following Friday's election, Swapo controls 29 councils, the United Democratic Front (UDF) two and the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA) one, while 14 councils did not achieve an absolute majority for any party.

The Task Force on Corruption has disclosed that some local and international law and accounting firms were involved in the plunder of national resources through money laundering activities. Financial analyst Maulu Hamunjele said the trend created a number of difficulties in accessing information because these firms claimed that their clients enjoyed legal professional confidentiality and concealed critical evidence. He was speaking at a public discussion on Public Finance Management and Utilisation organised by Transparency International-Zambia (TI-Zambia) at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Lusaka.

Dear Mr Mugabe,

Please receive notice that the people of Zimbabwe, your employers, hereby advise that your services are no longer required and therefore give immediate notice of termination of your employment. Please relinquish your post, vacate the offices of the people of Zimbabwe, return your vehicles and such monies and material commodities as have been accrued by you during your term of office and vacate the residential premises provided by the tax paying public. The people of Zimbabwe are not compelled to give reasons for the termination of your employment, however, given the serious nature of the breech of conditions of your employment, the following serves to explain this decision, whereafter no further debate will be entered into.

The people, the sovereign guardians of democracy in Zimbabwe, deem you guilty of flagrantly disregarding the foundations of freedom; justice and peace in their country; disregarding their inherent dignity, equal and inalienable rights and their security. You show absolute condescension for respect for human rights, resulting in barbarous acts injuring the helpless, maiming the innocent and outraging the consciences of a peace-loving nation. You deny the country the right to enjoy freedom of speech, the right to believe and the right to freedom from fear.

You invoke heinous acts that repudiate all Zimbabweans the right to reject your tyranny and oppression and you deny the people their rights to be protected by the rule of law. The people of Zimbabwe reaffirm their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of their fellow people and the determination they have to promote social and economic progress and better standards of their lives freely, but you deliberately strive to unequivocally destroy all.

The two articles 'The political economy of regional trade agreements in Africa' and 'Africa needs action not words' (Pambazuka News 155, could be combined in one as they address the same issues from different viewpoints. The statement 'Africa produces what it does not consume and consumes what it does not produce' lies at the core of its continued poverty. When I worked for a timber company in Holland in the sixties, we could easily import logs from Africa. When we needed Oregon pine and Parana pine from the United States we were asked to give the sizes we wanted, as they did not export logs but only planks, one side planed. Primary labour done in the US!

Commodity exports from Africa include billions of lost employment. South Africa ships tons of iron ore to Japan and other places, while we have the facilities to make steel in bars, sheets or any other shape or form. Gold leaves the continent in blocks instead of in the shape of coins or jewellery or any other pre-industrial shape. I wonder what would happen if the African countries would unite and tell the world: you cannot have our raw products, tell us how you want it and we will make it for you! And - by the way - if you want the raw product, this is the price. OPEC did it. Remember the shivers going through the world in the seventies when OPEC laid down the law for oil supplies? Why can Africa not do it?

Ben Laauwen, South Africa