In a large market in Juba, the regional capital of Southern Sudan, young women spend long afternoons lounging on beds in sweltering iron sheet rooms, waiting for men. One girl, no more than 17, wearing a tight tee-shirt with the words "I love beer" emblazoned on it, points us in the direction of a different set of rooms, with the really young girls.

The current football fervour resulting from the Africa Cup of Nations is just a small sample of what is to come when South Africa hosts the World Cup this coming June. Young footballers across the continent are watching and cheering on their local heroes. Some of the regions’ young women players are among the fans, even though they are often left out on the pitch.

From the opinion pages of the world's most influential newspapers to the hallways of high schools in Oregon and beyond, globally people are taking a fresh look at an old problem - the persistent and pervasive discrimination faced by the world's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) population.

Mozambique is continuing to see a steady stream of changes when it come to upping the gender mix in the country's political landscape. The most recent victory was the unanimous election of Veronica Macamo, a member of the ruling Frelimo party, who made history when she became the first woman speaker of parliament at a swearing in ceremony in the capital Maputo on 12 January.

This is compilation by the Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights & Constitutional Law of recent articles, opinions and press statements related to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill currently before Uganda's Parliament.

The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) with support from United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has launched a book titled: Freedom of Information and Women’s Rights in Africa. The book is compilation of five case studies from five African countries namely; Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Zambia, will help women’s organisations as they organise around freedom of information in their respective countries.

More than two-thirds of African countries have laws criminalizing homosexual acts, and despite accounting for a significant percentage of new infections in many countries, men who have sex with men tend to be left out of the HIV response.

Feminist Practice of Technology is a growing idea that gives perspectives on technology. It poses questions and defines issues relating to technology from feminist perspectives, taking into account various women's realities, women's relationships with technologies, women's participation in technology development and policy-making, power dynamics in technologies and feminist analysis of the social effects of technologies.

Human rights campaigners who have been struggling for years to eliminate female genital mutilation (FGM) in West Africa got a boost this week as news emerged that a group of Muslim clerics and scholars in Mauritania had declared a fatwa, or religious decree, against the practice.

While lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) groups are up in arms against the alleged appointment of controversial columnist John Qwelane as South African ambassador to Uganda, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s remains ambiguous about his appointment.

Non-medical abortions are frequent in Ghana, where abortion is illegal. Yet, as more people witness the suffering and deaths of women who've attempted unsafe abortions, more international organisations are trying to provide birth control, or to exploit legal loopholes to carry out abortions.

Charity Mwansa, a former minister and member of parliament, knows just exactly what being one of the very few female politicians in Zambia means. When she left politics it had nothing to with not being able to do the work and instead had everything to do with the mad world of male-dominated politics.

A Ugandan preacher said on Friday he planned a “million-man” march to support an anti-gay draft law which the United Nations top human rights official called “blatantly discriminatory”.

A Ugandan MP who proposed introducing the death penalty for some gay people has told a newspaper he is willing to change his draft legislation. In an interview with the Daily Monitor, David Bahati said he had talked to the cabinet about the bill and was willing to "amend some clauses".

WWSF invites nominations for its 2010 Prize for women's creativity in rural life. The aim of the prize is to draw international attention to women's contributions to sustainable development, household food security and peace, as well gain recognition and support for their community work.

Gender Links, a dynamic Southern African NGO based in Johannesburg that promotes gender equality in and through the media seeks to fill the post of Gender and Media Programme Manager on an initial two year contract basis. Deadline ofr applications is Friday 5 February 2009.

One six-month fellowship is available for a female social scientist from a developing nation, either pre- or post-doctoral, whose work addresses women’s economic and social empowerment in that nation. The goal of the program is twofold: to advance the scholarly careers of women social scientists from the developing world, and to support research that identifies causes of gender inequity in the developing world and that proposes practical solutions for promoting women’s economic and social empowerment.

The 2010 Gender Institute selected the theme of Gender and Sports in Africa’s Development: Towards Gender Equality in Sports in Africa. This builds on the debates on the same theme held during the 2009 edition of the Annual Gender Symposium held in Cairo in November 2009. The papers presented at this symposium revealed a marked gender disparity within the African sports space.

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) has accused the media and the public of ‘trying and convicting’ Thulani Rudd, accused of murdering the woman she was engaged to, before the investigation has even been completed.

A harmonised draft constitution has now been handed over to Kenya's Parliamentary Select Committee. Influential Christian leaders are warning that the question of abortion could derail the constitutional review process.