A newly published CD Rom “Youth Actions for Sustainable Local Development in Senegal: From Global to Local Agendas” is the result of a research initiative undertaken within the framework of the International Year of Volunteers 2001 and aiming to gather information on all aspects related to youth volunteering and participation in Senegal. “Capitalizing 10 years in volunteering actions, I wish to share with all of you this important tool for research, training, learning experiences conducted abroad, advocacy and lobbying.” - Ibrahima Kane, Founder and President of the Senegalese Youth and Human Settlements Development Network, Senegal.

The group Initiatives Citoyennes has launched a web site that will cover internet topics, telecoms regulation and other related subjects. It will also host a discussion forum and mailing list.
[source: Batik via NEWS UPDATE 90 http://balancingact-africa.com">

Bulletin d'Analyse sur les Technologies de l'Information et de la Communication. Lettre d'information électronique mensuelle publiée par OSIRIS l'Observatoire sur les Systèmes d'Information, les Réseaux et les Inforoutes au Sénégal.

The Organisation Nationale des Droits de l’Homme (ONDH) organized a highly successful conference on the implementation of the Rome Statute into Senegalese law on October 23-26, 2001. This conference was organized in collaboration with the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights (LCHR) and the Fédération Internationale des Droits de l’Homme (FIDH) and took place with the support of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Canada and the assistance of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Final Report is available for download.

At the recent conference on implementation of the Rome Statute for the International
Criminal Court in Dakar, Senegal, participants called upon the government of Senegal, which was the first country to ratify the Rome Statute on February 2, 1999, to be among the first countries to adopt implementing legislation of the Rome Statute.

More and more Senegalese women are using the New Information and Communication Technologies to fight for equal rights and gender equality.

A new regional company called Manobi has been launched to deliver internet and wireless added-value e-services to farmers, fishermen, exporters, and all players involved in the value chain for tropical fresh food products. It claims its expertise covers all aspects of the agribusiness sector as well as internet and mobile hardware and software technology sectors.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Monday expressed "deep concern" at what it described as the increased harassment of Senegalese journalists by government authorities since President Abdoulaye Wade took office in April 2000.

Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade on Wednesday proposed the creation of an African pact against terrorism, Radio France International (RFI) reported.

Refugees who fled to southern Gambia to escape fighting in the Casamance region of Senegal have been trying to visit their villages to see if it is safe to return home, UNHCR said on Tuesday. However, some have returned to The Gambia after finding their houses destroyed. Others, UNHCR reported, said Senegalese troops who had taken up positions in their villages warned them to stay out of the area.

As Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade prepares to meet with President Bush Thursday, Human Rights Watch urged him to comply with a United Nations request to hold the exiled Chadian dictator Hissène Habré so that Habré could be extradited to face torture charges.

How can community organizations successfully exploit the new information and communication technologies (ICTs)? That is the issue confronting Rabia Abdelkrim Chikh, an anthropologist and researcher with Enda Ecopole in Senegal. As leader of a project that aims to demystify computers for young people in some of the most crowded neighbourhoods of Dakar and its outskirts, and make them a commonplace work tool, she has had some success.

Facilitating access to, and exploitation of, information and communication technologies (ICTs) for marginalized communities, especially women and youth: this is the main objective of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC)'s Acacia Initiative, which has launched a project to ensure massive representation of women in all aspects of the program, and to incorporate gender sensitivity into the design, implementation and evaluation of projects that are part of the Initiative.

Tension in Casamance, southern Senegal, continues to drive people into neighbouring Gambia, UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond reported on Friday in Geneva. He said more than 200 refugees arrived this week in villages along Gambia's southern border. This brought to more than 2,500 the number of people who have fled to The Gambia since fighting flared up in mid-May between Senegalese government forces and the Mouvement des forces democratiques de Casamance (MFDC).

More than 2,200 people have fled to Gambia in the past few days following an upsurge of fighting in the neighbouring Senegalese province of Casamance, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said in a statement issued today in Geneva. The first group of refugees reportedly crossed into southern Gambia on 18 May.

The Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade, has said the former President of Chad, Hissene Habre, must leave the country. "We have given him 30 days to leave Senegal," President Wade told Sud FM radio in Dakar, the Senegalese capital. But he said Senegal had not been given sufficient evidence by the Chadian Government for the courts to prosecute Mr Habre for alleged crimes against humanity.

This document from the program of the United Nations Research Institute in Social Development (UNIRSD), produced with the support of the Dutch Ministry for Development Cooperation, is the first report published by the UNIRSD research project on information technology and social development in Senegal. Its final objective consists of improving the level of debate on information technology policies.

Senegal's highest court yesterday ruled that Chad's exiled former president, Hissène Habré, could not stand trial on torture charges because his alleged crimes were not committed in Senegal.