Nbr. 326, December 2006

Index

• Africa's energy: east is east, west is ...
• Botswana Mining: setting the record straight.
• Trade figures: is globalisation taking hold?
• A deadly trade: fakes cost lives.
• A rail alternative: Nigeria's plans on track?
• Our cultural assets: use them or lose them.
• 'Zimbabwe alive and kicking'.
• MDG indicators improve.
• More nuclear power for Egypt.
• Pirates strangling Africa's growth.
• SAPP confronts energy crisis.
• There's not an awful lot of coffee left ...
• AB guide to African currencies.
• Africa looks east for energy inspiration.
• Air Botswana privatises.
• SA overhauls expatriate worker laws.
• Global warming and Africa.
• Taking the first steps: while the rest of the world has availed itself of scientific advances to triple its food production, Africa's output is stagnating. It imports more food than it grows and three quarters of its farmland is degraded. But, as Anver Versi reports, the first step has been taken in launching the continent's Green Revolution.
• SG 2000: twenty years of Sasakawa-Global 2000.
• Symposium: Stimulating African Smallholder Commercial Agriculture--Bamako, Mali; Green revolution inexorable.
• Fertilisers--food for a hungry Earth: no continent on Earth is in greater need of fertilisers than Africa and yet, no continent uses fewer fertilisers than Africa. In a bid to understand this paradox, Anver Versi talked to one of the world's leading experts in the field, Amit Roy.
• African grain markets.
• African growth remains buoyant: over the past three years, Africa's growth has hovered impressively around the 5% mark and per capita income is also rising. The need now is to sustain the growth over the next five years if real change in the standard of living is to be achieved. Report by Neil Ford.
• 'Doing business' climate improving--slowly: the only way for African economies to grow is by expanding the business base in each country; yet, some African countries seem to be doing their best to make it as difficult as possible to do business within their borders. However, as the IFC's recent Doing Business 2007 report shows, improvements are taking place in some countries.
• Taking the nuclear option: the Egyptian government's decision to restart its nuclear power programme has highlighted the possibility of a renaissance for this most controversial of power sources. How important is nuclear in the African power mix? Neil Ford discusses.
• Have your chocolate and drink it too.
• Lights of your life.
• Pumpkin power.
• Sun shines on Kibera entrepreneurs.
• The buzz without the bite.
• Calm kids with fish oil.
• Dial up your 2010 game.
• Elephants' awakening self-awareness.
• Enter the salamander.
• Instant diabetes diagnosis.
• Livers from stem cells breakthrough.
• Recycled off-cuts.
• Slimming spinach?
• Student power rules.
• Think red for a good night's rest.
• Maputo Corridor--a qualified success: the Maputo Development Corridor initiative began life 10 years ago. The idea was to provide southern Africa's industrial heartland with a shorter link to the sea in Mozambique and in the process generate wealth all along the route. Has this happened? Tom Nevin discusses.
• Gautrain on track.
• Walvis Bay Corridor Group--desert pioneers: the Walvis Bay Corridor Group is an ambitious project that links several transport and logistics systems in southern and central Africa all eventually converging on the port of Walvis Bay in Namibia. Tom Nevin describes the system.
• China and Africa tie the knot: one of the biggest gatherings of African heads of state and ministers outside the continent took place in Beijing last month. The summit has confirmed the new relationship between a resurgent China and Africa. Trade is expected to hit $100bn a year by 2010 and a whole slew of new projects are in the pipeline. Neil Ford assesses what this means to Africa.
• India, China lead bribery index: Africa's development efforts are being hampered by exporting companies from the developed and emerging markets which continue to bribe their way into winning contracts, says Transparency International. Tom Nevin reviews several comparative reports on the state of Africa's economic health.
• Drugs syndicates target Africa: crime syndicates are targeting the region as a major transit route, using its airports, harbours and postal systems for shipping all manner of dangerous drugs. Tom Nevin reports.
• Mo Ibrahim launches world's biggest prize: an inspirational new prize to promote good governance was launched recently in London. It aims to transform the African polity and provide additional momentum for the continent's economic development. Stephen Williams has the details.
• Mining windfall buys critical time: with Levy Mwanawasa back in the driving seat, Zambia is reassessing its fortunes and how best to get on with business and life, neither of which has been particularly easy. Now Zambians will be watching closely to see if he can improve on his first term. Report by Tom Nevin.
• Ports facelift gathers steam: the recent announcement that China has signed an $8.3bn contract to develop a rail link between the north and south of the country comes as very welcome news to the country's business community. But greater volumes of trade will be generated only if Nigeria's ports are also modernised. Neil Ford reports on Nigeria's determination to upgrade its ports infrastructure.
• Kibaki takes the long view: although the ruling National Rainbow Coalition party has only one year to go before the next elections, President Mwa Kibaki's policies are aimed at the longer term. High on his list of priorities is the proposed East African federation with neighbouring Tanzania and Uganda. Report by Neil Ford.
• Business made easy: Ghana has done more than any other country in Africa to improve the ease of doing business over the past year and is now ranked ninth in the world in terms of the efforts that have been made over the same period. Neil Ford reports.
• Farming the riches of the sea: Mauritius has the potential to rapidly develop an aquaculture industry by farming marine and freshwater fish in its lagoons. The island plans to export locally grown fish on a large scale in the coming years, Nasseem Ackbarally reports from Port-Louis.
• Rewrite global economic rules: fair deals for a better world.
• A Human Being Died That Night: Forgiving Apartheid's Killers.
• From Our Own Correspondent: A Celebration of Fifty Years of the BBC Radio Programme.
• Mandela: A critical Life.
• Too Close to the Sun.
• African Snacks: With a Twist.
• AVCA Yearbook 2006.
• When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir.
• A deeper shade of blues: Ali Farka Toure's farewell album.