This is a new and exciting opportunity to lead, develop, manage and have responsibility for development, emergency, advocacy, policy and campaign work for the West Africa region. You would be responsible for the processes of developing, implementing and monitoring Christian Aid policy and strategy for your region. Click on the link for details of this and other jobs with Christian Aid.

Applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates to fill the post of Programme Manager for the Programme on Reinforcement of Pastoral Civil Society in East Africa. The programme is implemented jointly by RECONCILE and the Drylands Programme of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) in collaboration with pastoral civil organisations, NGOs and donor projects in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

The Free Software and Open Source Foundation for Africa (FOSSFA), the African Virtual Open Initiatives and Resources (AVOIR) project at the University of the Western Cape and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) have announced they will be hosting Idlelo, an Open Source conference early next year in Cape Town, South Africa. The conference, to be held from 12 to 16 January 2004, is aimed at addressing the "challenges and opportunities of the creation and use of free and open source software and open content and their development potential for Africa," according to organisers.

The Ministry of Health and Child Welfare has received $257 million from the United Nations Children's Fund for the immunisation against measles programme. The funds will be disbursed to 16 districts that were not fully covered in last year's programme.

The African Development Bank (ADB) Group has funded activities of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to the tune of $10.8 billion as at the end of last year. The facts were made known last Thursday when ADB and the African Development Fund signed an agreement with ECOWAS, which provides a framework for cooperation between the bank and the sub-regional economic grouping.

The Department of Education, together with a non-governmental organisation, SA History Online (SAHO), has launched a Web site as a resource site and teaching aid for pupils and students.

Alpha Konare, former President of Mali and newly elected Chair of the Commission of the African Union, has the right credentials for the job, CREDO for Freedom of Expression & Associated Rights says. Reacting to the election of the new AU Chair, CREDO’s coordinator Rotimi Sankore said: “As the first elected Chair of the Commission of the African Union, the success or failure of the entire African Union project depends largely on how Alpha Konare approaches the job.”

More than 10 years ago, I brought to the attention of editors at The New York Times my expose of cases of journalistic concoctions by reporters and editors during the newspaper’s African news coverage. I was virtually ignored. So you can imagine how I felt when Jayson Blair’s plagiarism and fakery came back to haunt Times editors. Times editors have known for years that reporters and editors committed ugly transgressions in the past. Blair’s only mistake was being caught.

Mindset Network, a multimedia satellite TV network, has been launched in Johannesburg with corporate support valued at R225 million. Mindset Network is a non-profit organisation which will address the education challenges which face South Africa, including schooling, health and entrepreneurship.

Against the backdrop of rampant hunger and famine in Lesotho, especially in the rural villages, youth volunteers have taken it upon themselves to help communities with projects aimed at curbing abject poverty and HIV/Aids. Youth volunteers from the Lesotho Work Camps Association have embarked on work camps to help people in the villages with irrigation schemes during dry seasons, water supply, construction of houses and roads as well as soil and water conservation.

There are too many hands of African children holding guns instead of pencils or books, United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) executive director Carol Bellamy has said. Briefing journalists at the African Union (AU) summit in Maputo on the involvement of children in African conflicts, Bellamy said the situation was intolerable because the future of the continent lies in the hands of its children.

Children's homes in Zimbabwe are failing to cope with the increasing number of children that require care as the current economic meltdown and the Aids pandemic continue to cause social disintegration and impoverishment. An investigation by The Standard has established that most children's homes in Harare are overwhelmed by the number of children that need shelter, food and education as the political, social and economic crisis worsens.

This report is the first in a new series of research publications by The Gilbert Centre. It contains previously unpublished material, including: 59 selected and annotated email related online resources; and "Twelve Ways To Fail at Email", the 12 fundamental Dos and Donts.

Child prostitution in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is “increasing at an alarming rate”, according to a study by Save the Children-Denmark (SCD). The NGO revealed that the lure of work brought many child prostitutes – some as young as 13 - to the city. The report, compiled with government officials and a local child rights organisation, urged immediate action to tackle the magnitude of the problem.

The Human Rights Diploma Programme is an academic programme aimed at strengthening capacity for the promotion, protection and advancement of human rights activities to meet a specific need in human rights advocacy and activism. It builds upon existing theoretical and practical experiences and equips the participants with the capabilities for protecting, enforcing and evaluating the impact of human rights. The Human Rights diploma programme covers a number of substantive fields. These include international human rights law and organisations, where the evolution of international human rights law and practice as well as its current implementations are covered. It also includes domestic instruments for the protection and promotion of human rights which seek to analyse and compare the ways and mechanisms used by various countries to protect human rights. It further analyses the role of state and non-state actors in the enforcement, promotion and protection of human rights, and the use of information and communication technologies in human rights work.

EISA is a not-for-profit section 21 company located in Johannesburg. EISA's mission is to strengthen electoral processes, good governance, human rights and democratic values through research, capacity building, advocacy and other targeted interventions. EISA services governments, electoral commissions, political parties, civil society organisations and other institutions. EISA has a vacancy for local Government Programme Officer. The post requires the following qualifications: A minimum 3 years qualification in Social Science; A postgraduate qualification is an advantage; Familiarity with and experience in local government environment in South Africa including an understanding of relevant legislation; Good computer skills; Willingness to travel; Support and work within EISA vision; Self-motivated and able to work under pressure; and Facilitation and training experience.

ACORD is working in alliance with others to promote social justice and development. With an income of £8 million p.a. it implements long-term development programmes in 18 African countries that unites practical work with advocacy, research and social action. As a result of the relocation to Nairobi and the restructuring of our Head Office, ACORD is looking for an experienced English and French or Portuguese speaking Human Resource Manager to be based in our Nairobi office.

HURIDOCS has announced a new tool for searching human rights information on the Web, http://www.hurisearch.org. HURISEARCH allows searching sites of non-governmental human rights organisations in 58 different languages. HURISEARCH is a pilot project, and at the moment over 600 sites of human rights NGOs are included. Suggestions to include additional sites are welcome. HURISEARCH has been established in cooperation with Human Rights Education Associates.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has signed an agreement with Ehlanzeni Municipality aimed at building the capacity of councillors in the area. Ehlanzeni comprises four municipalities - Mbombela, Nkomazi, Umjindi and Thaba Chweu. The partnership programme will see direct financial assistance, about R4 million from the USAID, flowing into Ehlanzeni, which amongst others, will be used to develop and implement an efficient ward system.

This article looks at Africa's traditional practices of care for infants. It also focuses on children and the elderly, and at how people and policy are struggling to cope with massive change.