* Kenya. The challenge of providing free primary education — 7 February: Free and compulsory primary education for Kenyan children was one of the key pre-election promises that led the current government, led by President Mwai Kibaki, to power in December 2002. Since then an estimated 1.5 million children, who were previously out-of-school, have turned up to attend classes. «We will not be content until every child of primary school age is enroled. By educating the children we are investing in the future of this country. In the long term, educating children is one way to eradicate poverty,» says the Minister for Education, George Saitoti. Parents and children alike have greeted the move with euphoria. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 7 February 2003)

* Kenya. L’éducation primaire gratuite — La Banque mondiale a promis une subvention de 40 millions de dollars au programme kényan d’éducation primaire gratuite, a révélé le ministre de l’Education, George Saitoti. Le ministère espère que cet argent sera débloqué d’ici juin. Les fonds serviront essentiellement à l’acquisition de matériels didactiques et à renforcer les capacités des écoles, a dit M. Saitoti. L’Unicef a aussi promis, la semaine dernière, 2 millions de dollars à ce programme. L’éducation primaire gratuite est un des chevaux de bataille du nouveau gouvernement kényan. Les élèves affluent actuellement en masse dans les écoles publiques. Leur nombre devrait atteindre la barre des 7 millions. (D’après PANA, Sénégal, 11 février 2003)

* Kenya. KANU party HQ seized — 11 February: The Kenyan Government has taken over the building which has been KANU‘s home since 1989. The Tourism and Information Minister, Raphael Tuju, said that KANU had moved into the International Kenyatta Conference Centre, on political grounds, and without making due payments. Members of KANU recently claimed that the party owned the building. A lawyer for KANU, Mutula Kilonzo, said the take-over was illegal and that the party will take the case to court. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 11 February 2003)

* Kenya. World Bank favour — 11 February: The World Bank has told the newly-elected Kenyan government that it is keen to resume lending to help it bridge a big budget short fall. The favourable comments came as the Bank’s vice-president for Africa, Callisto Madavo, visited the capital Nairobi. «We are very keen to see the building of this relationship and for us to provide the new administration with strong support as you begin the long journey to save your people,» Mr Madavo said. But he did not give a date for when lending could resume. Budgetary aid to Kenya was halted in 2001 due to concerns over corruption in the government of former President Daniel arap Moi. The offer comes as new finance minister David Mwiraria said the budget deficit was double that projected by the last government in June. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 11 February 2003)

* Liberia. Rebels agree to talks — 10 February: LURD rebels say they are prepared to hold talks with the Government. This decision was taken after talks in Sierra Leone with West African legislators. The Liberian government responds positively, saying it had been calling for a meeting with the rebels for years. Citizens of Monrovia have cautiously welcomed the rebels decision but are waiting to see whether it can mean peace for the country. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 10 February 2003)

* Liberia. Vers un dialogue? — 7 février. Les troupes gouvernementales libériennes ont repris la ville de Tubmansburg (à 60 km de la capitale Monrovia) et poursuivent les rebelles du LURD (Libériens unis pour la réconciliation et la démocratie) qui font retraite. Le LURD s’était emparé de la ville en début de semaine, créant des mouvements de panique dans la population de Monrovia. Le mardi 4 février, les dirigeants du LURD avaient lancé un ultimatum au président Taylor, mais ce dernier avait réfusé de quitter la ville. — 8 février. Les entretiens inaugurés la veille à Freetown (Sierra Leone) pour mettre fin à quatre années de conflit au Liberia, sont déjà au bord de l’impasse. En effet, les rebelles du LURD demandent la démission du président Taylor et la réorganisation des forces armées libériennes. Toutefois, les négociations devraient reprendre le lendemain. Pendant ce temps, le calme est revenu à Monrovia. — 10 février. Les rebelles du LURD ont accepté d’entamer un dialogue avec le gouvernement de Taylor. Ces pourparlers devraient se dérouler, à une date qui reste à préciser, sous l’égide de la CEDEAO. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 11 février 2003)

* Libye/Erythrée. Relations bilatérales — Le 9 février, le colonel Kadhafi et le président érythréen Issaias Afeworki ont examiné à Asmara les moyens de renforcer et consolider les relations entre leurs deux pays, a-t-on appris de source officielle à Tripoli. Au cours de cet entretien qui a marqué la fin de la visite entamée le 5 février en Erythrée par le dirigeant libyen, les deux hommes ont également discuté des questions africaines et internationales. Libye et Erythrée seraient sur la même longueur d’onde. En Afrique, ils partageraient des intérêts économiques. Il seraient aussi d’accord sur la “façon de combattre le terrorisme en général”. Cette communauté de points de vues les a amenés à signer un protocole d’accord dans différents secteurs. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 février 2003)

* Malawi. Crisis-hit Malawians survive on grass — The food crisis in Malawi is now so severe that some of the worst-hit people are reduced to eating grass. Aid agencies fear that nearly a third of the population — about 3.3 million people — face starvation in the coming months if relief funds dwindle and erratic weather does not bring much-needed rain in time for the harvest. Modesta says her family have nothing to eat except grass, like the kind she holds up in her hand. Demonstrating as she speaks, she says: «We take it from the ground, rub it to take away the husks, then grind the seeds to make flour to cook with.» She says it is the same for everyone in her village and the next one — up to 1,000 people in all. And that is just the people she knows about. «It tastes sour, and everyone is constipated,» she says. «It is not good for the children to eat. Sometimes if we have a little maize we give it to the children. When we have nothing we all eat grass.» Modesta’s village is in Malawi’s southernmost Nsanje district, near the border with Mozambique. It is rainy season right now but that does not mean very much. Every river we crossed for 50 kilometres was completely dry. It means the maize cannot grow. Here, as in other, greener, parts of Malawi, the aim of the aid agencies is to help people to help themselves -by giving them fertiliser for their maize crops or chickens, whose eggs add a little protein to their diets. But now in arid Nsanje the priority is survival. At Tengani 1,000 people wait for up to six hours to collect rations that will keep their family alive for a month. Drawn from eight villages in the area, they have all walked for hours to get here — mothers with babies, the elderly, even one man on crutches. They will have to walk back. It is the same across this district — thousands queue, while thousands more wait at home. The system targets the most needy. You have to be registered to receive — no form, no food. (BBC News, UK, 8 February 2003)

* Mali. Promoting holiness throughout Africa — «In Africa tormented by suffering and death because of war and violence, Africa plunged into total discouragement, in a world ever more hostile and indifferent to Christ and his Gospel, it is urgently necessary to announce the Good News of Jesus Christ.» This was said by Archbishop Robert Sarah, Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, representing the Prefect Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, at the 15th plenary assembly of the French-speaking Bishops’ Conferences of West Africa (CERAO), in Bamako, Mali, 3-9 February. The theme of the assembly was: «Planning and Programming Holiness». In his address, Archbishop Sarah encouraged the Bishops «not to give in to discouragement, and even less to pessimism which is contrary to the Christian experience of which you are guarantors.» (Fides, Vatican City, 8 February 2003)

* Mali. Pour un retour des immigrés — Le 7 février, le ministre français de l’Intérieur, Nicolas Sarkozy, a entamé une visite de trois jours au Mali, qui selon un communiqué officiel, devrait “renforcer les projets de co-développement engagés par la France dans le cadre d’une politique d’immigration positive”. “Je voudrais essayer de créer un partenariat pour permettre un retour (au Mali) dans de bonnes conditions d’une partie des immigrés maliens présents en France”, a déclaré M. Sarkozy. La communauté malienne est estimée en France à quelque 100.000 personnes, dont environ 60.000 en situation irrégulière. Plus de 80% viennent de la région de Kayes, où la tradition autant que la nécessité pousse les jeunes à partir. Les transferts d’épargne des immigrés maliens sont estimés à près de 90 millions d’euros, alors que l’aide publique au développement de la France au Mali s’est élevée à 54,8 millions d’euros en 2001. M. Sarkozy s’est notamment rendu dans la région de Kayes où, après avoir rencontré les élus locaux et la population, il a visité les chantiers engagés par des Maliens de retour de France, avec le soutien du gouvernement français. Il s’est engagé à porter à 7.000 euros (contre 3.400 auparavant) l’aide consentie à chaque immigré malien qui désire rentrer dans son pays. La France va également consentir un appui de 3 millions d’euros pour appuyer les projets de co-développement financés par le gouvernement français pour atténuer le flux de l’immigration. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 février 2003)

* Maroc/Algérie. Rapprochement — Le 6 février à Rabat, le chef de la diplomatie algérienne Abdelaziz Belkhadem a confirmé que le président algérien Bouteflika et le roi Mohammed VI devraient se rencontrer “très prochainement”. Ni le lieu, ni la date n’ont été précisés, mais la rencontre pourrait avoir lieu vers le 15 février. Le ministre algérien a ajouté que la question du Sahara occidental y serait abordée “si les amis marocains l’évoquent”. L’annonce de ce sommet survient au lendemain d’un entretien à Paris entre le président français et son homologue algérien, au cours duquel cette question a été évoquée. Cet interminable conflit, dans lequel Alger soutient le Front Polisario, mine les relations entre les deux pays. (D’après Libération, France, 7 février 2003)

* Mozambique. Thousands starving — 6 February: Tens of thousands of people face severe food shortages in drought-ravaged southern Mozambique and more deaths by starvation are reported in the north. Nine people starved to death in January in the remote northern province of Tete, where floods had driven thousands of people from their homes and hampered food relief efforts. The World Food Program (WFP) and UNICEF also confirmed the deaths after an assessment trip, adding a 10th person had already died in November. According to the victims’ families, the deaths were due to hunger, the agencies said. «On 29 January, three more deaths were reported in Chitete. This could not be verified yet,» the agencies said in a joint statement. Chitete is in Tete province. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 6 February 2003)

* Mozambique. Mozambique poet a national hero — Mozambique’s greatest poet, Jose Craveirinha, has been laid to rest at Maputo’s heroes monument. The Mozambican cabinet declared 10 February a day of national mourning for Craveirinha’s funeral. Craveirinha died of cardio-vascular problems at a South African clinic last week. He was the first Mozambican citizen who did not use a gun to fight for the country’s independence, to be declared a national hero. Mozambique’s greatest painter, Malangatana Valente Nguena, sang in memory of one of the country’s great poets, Jose Craveirinha, as he was being buried at the Maputo monument for national heroes on 10 February. Craveirinha inspired many national and foreign citizens because —according to most of the messages read out on 10 February —of his works of art, his nationalism, his fight against illiteracy, his fight for the country’s development and his passion for sports. In his message, Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano said it would be hard to fill the gap left by Craveirinha. «The gap left by Craveirinha will not be filled easily. All Mozambican families must join efforts to fill it. Through his pen, Craveirinha fought for Mozambique’s independence from colonialism, against illiteracy and for the spread of Mozambican culture,» Mr Chissano said. (BBC News, UK, 10 February 2003)

* Niger. Interconnexion électrique — Les travaux d’interconnexion électrique de certaines localités du Niger à partir de l’énergie en provenance du Nigeria, viennent d’être lancés, rapporte le quotidien Le Sahel. D’un coût de 9,5 milliards de FCFA, dont 3 milliards sur fonds propres de la Société nigérienne d’électricité (Nigelec), le projet consiste dans la connexion de la région de Tahoua (nord) à Maradi (déjà connecté au Nigeria), et la construction d’une autre ligne d’interconnexion dans l’est du pays, reliant Damassak (Nigeria) à Chétimari (Niger). Le programme permettra à la compagnie nigérienne d’arrêter huit centrales diesel et de baisser le prix de production du kwh de 170 à 24 FCFA. Pour son énergie, le Niger est très dépendante de l’extérieur: en 1999, 84,71% de sa consommation électrique provenait du Nigeria. La Nigelec est une des 13 sociétés et entreprises publiques que le gouvernement envisage de privatiser. (D’après PANA, Sénégal, 11 février 2003)

* Nigeria. Arrests follow Lagos explosion — 6 February: Eight people are arrested following the deadly explosion which ripped through Lagos’ business district on 2 February. At least 33 were killed in the blast. The eight arrested include a bank employee. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 6 February 2003)

* Nigeria. Election fees illegal — 6 February: A High Court in Nigeria has ruled that political parties do not have to pay fees to contest April’s general elections. The judge accepted a suit filed on behalf of 24 smaller parties against the Independent National Electoral Commission (Inec). The parties had argued that the fees, ordered by Inec last month, were an attempt to exclude smaller, poorer parties from the poll. Inec has said that it will abide by the court’s ruling. President Olusegun Obasanjo is standing for re-election under the banner of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP), while ex-military ruler Muhammadu Buhari and former foreign affairs minister Ike Nwachukwu are presidential flagbearers respectively of the All Nigeria People’s Party and National Democratic Party. The court ruled that the fee, which Inec had said was for «processing» purposes, was unconstitutional. «Going through the constitution and the 2002 electoral act, I fail to see where Inec was empowered to prescribe and demand such processing fees,» Judge Binta Murtala-Nyako said in her ruling. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 6 February 2003)

* Nigeria. Public hearings on corruption — Nigeria’s national assembly, long seen as one of the main centres of graft in a notoriously corrupt polity, is expected to begin within weeks public hearings on a document that will cause it great embarrassment. A 300-page annual report on government spending submitted last month by Vincent Azie, the country’s auditor-general, reads like an extended charge sheet against parliament, the president’s office, government ministries and the judiciary. The report, which covers the 2001 financial year, amounts to a rare and unusually detailed attempt to anatomise the kind of public-sector corruption that has enriched elites and deprived ordinary people of development in poor countries around the world. Coupled with news last month of investigations into a number of Nigeria’s politically powerful state governors, the audit has raised cautious hopes that a country struggling to entrench civilian rule is facing up to one of its most serious problems. «It’s a step down the road of government accountability,» says one foreign diplomat in Nigeria. The auditor’s report, extracts of which have been seen by the Financial Times, sketches a devastating outline of a system plagued by invented expenses, apparent attempts at influence-buying and the charging of private costs to the public purse. The section on parliament, which runs to more than a dozen pages, includes an attack on the decision to pay a member N3m ($23,400) to «defray burial expenses of his deceased wife». The unnamed man had initially asked for N5.5m. The report draws attention to a series of ethically questionable payments, including N5m by the protocol officer of the deputy Senate president on a «media round table» in December 2001 for journalists from the country’s Muslim north. The expenses for the 500 attenders comprised N1m for accommodation, N1m for dinner, N2m for «gift items» and N1m for an «honorarium» of N2,000 per person. (Financial Times, UK, 7 February 2003)

* Rwanda. Coffee farmers head upmarket — Rwanda has launched itself into the speciality coffee market to reclaim the revenues of what was once its main export earner. A combination of the record low coffee prices and the aftermath of the genocide in 1994 — which claimed the lives of more than 800,000 people — have left the country’s economy devastated. «"It is terrible because some smaller holders have abandoned the plantations because they are not sustainable,» Rwanda’s Commerce Minister Dr Alexandre Lyambabaje has said. «The prices they were receiving were reduced by half last year and are lower than what it costs to produce.» Tea has now overtaken coffee as Rwanda’s main export. The Abahuzamugambi co-operative is pioneering the project to produce speciality coffees — which became popular in the US and Europe in the 1990s — and to sell them through fair trade deals. Last year, Community Coffee of Baton Rouge in the US was its biggest customer and Union Coffee Roasters has now launched the co-operative’s Maraba bourbon coffee variety in Britain. «For the small holder, when he produces a kilo of ordinary coffee he receives 28 US cents a kilo,» Dr Lyambabaje said. «But once he produces specialty coffees he receives almost 80 cents.» In 1990, Rwanda exported 45,000 tonnes of coffee a year, but now only ships only 17,000 tonnes. With competition growing from newcomers such as Vietnam, the market is becoming increasingly difficult. (BBC News, UK, 10 February 2003)

* Rwanda. Elections reportées — Le référendum sur la nouvelle Constitution du Rwanda, initialement prévu pour début mars 2003, ne se tiendra pas avant fin mai, ce qui entraînera également le report des législatives et de la présidentielle qui étaient prévues pour début juillet, a-t-on appris le 12 février de sources proches de la Commission électorale nationale. La date précise pour le référendum reste à préciser par le Conseil du gouvernement. Ce report est essentiellement dû au retard pris par la promulgation du projet de la nouvelle Constitution. L’avant-projet n’a pas encore été adopté par le gouvernement, étape préalable avant sa transmission au Parlement pour examen et adoption avant sa promulgation par le chef de l’Etat. Les dispositions légales stipulent que les législatives et la présidentielle doivent avoir lieu dans les six mois suivant le référendum sur la nouvelle Constitution. (PANA, Sénégal, 13 février 2003)

* Sahara occidental. Prisonniers libérés — Le Front Polisario, qui réclame l’indépendance du Sahara occidental annexé par le Maroc, a décidé de libérer 100 prisonniers de guerre marocains, a rapporté l’agence de presse sahraouie SPS. Ces libérations portent à 1.100 le nombre de prisonniers marocains libérés par le Polisario depuis 1975. (Le Soir, Belgique, 12 février 2003)

* Somalia. Fuel shortage hits Mogadishu — A severe fuel shortage has hit the Somali capital, Mogadishu, over the past two weeks, according to a local businessman. Fuel prices have sky-rocketed, with the price of petrol doubling within a week. The shortage was reportedly affecting not only the transport sector but many of the light industries which had proliferated in the city over the last couple of years, businessman Husayn Haji said on 5 February. He said the shortage was due to the fact that no cargo of petroleum had reached Mogadishu for «at least a month», and some traders were taking advantage to hike the price. The fear of a war in Iraq was also contributing, with «rumours that once war starts, there will be no fuel coming from the Gulf countries», he said. The bulk of fuel for Somalia comes from the United Arab Emirates. Petrol previously costing 8,000 Somali shillings (30 US cents) per litre two weeks ago was by 4 February selling for 16,000 shillings, Husayn said. Also contributing to the shortage was the unwillingness of some the traders to keep large reserve stocks due to fears of the fluctuations affecting the Somali currency. The exchange rate for one US dollar was 20,000 shillings on 5 February, Husayn said. (IRIN, Kenya, 5 February 2003)

* Somalia. Somali peace talks to switch to Nairobi — 10 February: The Somali peace talks, which have been dragging on in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret, are to move to the capital, Nairobi. Since October, the talks have been beset by infighting as well as financial difficulties. Now, the several hundred delegates are to be taken to Nairobi, where they will carry on attempting to hammer out some kind of workable form of government for Somalia. Somalia has not had a central government in 12 years of fighting between rival warlords. The talks are being moved to the capital because they will be more cost effective there, Peter Nyagah, an official of the Kenyan Foreign Ministry, which has been hosting the talks, said. «The aim of the plan... is simply to facilitate the conclusion of the talks, and also to try to reduce the costs, because the costs in Nairobi are relatively cheaper than the ones that have been incurred in Eldoret,» Mr Nyagah said. «In Nairobi, per delegate, it will be about $40 a day, but in Eldoret, the spending has been close to $100 a day.» He said that the talks would take place in government-owned buildings, whereas the talks in Eldoret have been held in private hotels. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 10 February 2003)

* Somalia/Kenya. Bantu refugees being prepared for life in the USA — The first Somali Bantu refugees will probably reach the United States this spring after the US agreed to take them in, according to a report released by the US State Department on 5 February. The 12,000 or so refugees under consideration for admission to the US have been in refugee camps in Kenya for over 10 years. Most of them were moved from the Dadaab camp in northeastern Kenya to Kakuma in the northwest between June and September last year, Sasha Chanoff, a spokesman for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.The refugees have already begun the process that will see them into the US. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 5 February 2003)