Based in the New York office, the Senior Officer for Communications has primary responsibility for ensuring the clarity and excellence of publications, announcements, and other written materials. The Senior Officer develops, oversees and edits all published and internet-based communications, publications, press releases, and announcements as well as relevant internal communications of the Justice Initiative.

The Liberia Democratic Institute in collaboration with other community-based grassroots groups on Saturday, September 10, 2005, on World White Band Day II joined the global community in the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) to pressurize the world richest countries to make their promises authentic and eradicate poverty. The march climaxed the series of activities that started on Tuesday, September 8, 2005. The White Band Day observation, the first of its kind in Liberia was launched not only to call the world riches nations attention to the acute poverty and hardship experienced by poor countries around the world but also to set the stage for positive mass citizen’s movement informed by calls for effective good governance practices in Liberia.

The Zambia Academy of Science, launched on September 16, will promote excellence in research and strengthen the country's capacity for science-led development, says its president. "The academy will also provide advice on specific scientific problems presented to it by the government and its agencies as well as the private sector," added Mwananyanda Lewanika in an interview with SciDev.Net.

Teachers and administrators of Burundi's primary schools faced logistical problems on Monday as hundreds of thousands of primary school students lined up to enroll for the first time for the 2005-2006 school year which the president promised would now be free. "We will not be able to cope with the increases," Donat Hatungimana, a primary school teacher in the capital, Bujumbura, said. The ministry projects that some 2,400 extra teachers and 2,400 new class rooms will be needed.

Six major US foundations have pledged US$200 million to strengthen higher education institutions in seven African countries. The money will be spent over the next five years in Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. Part of the initiative is an effort to dramatically increase access to the Internet in universities there. The commitment signals the re-launch of the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa, set up in 2000 by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Ford, MacArthur, and Rockefeller Foundations.

The Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) invites proposals from researchers for possible inclusion in its new multinational working group (MWG) on the theme of Africa and its Diasporas. The changing composition and geography of Africa's Diasporas, and the shifting re-composition of all aspects of the linkages between these diasporas and the continent, is one of the thematic areas at the core of the current intellectual agenda of the Council. The MWG is the flagship research vehicle employed by CODESRIA for the promotion of multi-country and multidisciplinary reflections on critical questions of concern to the African social research community.

South African entrepreneur, Mark Shuttleworth, established the Shuttleworth Foundation in October 2000 with the belief that education is the key to unlocking the creative and intellectual potential of South African youth, allowing them to live the dream that ‘anything is possible’. The foundation’s main goal is to improve the quality of education in South Africa by investing in projects which offer unique and innovative solutions to educational challenges in an African society with a focus on science, technology, entrepreneurship and maths.

Mango is extending training to several new countries for the first time, including: Pakistan, Ethiopia, Malawi, and Sierra Leone. Each course is designed to meet the needs of different groups of NGO staff - some for financial staff, some for managers. More detailed course outlines for each of our core courses are available on request.

The Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders (MEA) is a unique collaboration among eleven of the world's leading non-governmental human rights organizations to give protection to human rights defenders worldwide. The Martin Ennals Foundation now calls for nominations for the 2006 Award. For more details, see www.martinennalsaward.org, where you can also submit nominations online.

The Monitoring and Evidence Advisor post is an exciting opportunity to individuals committed to promoting the rights of older people through good programming, and evidence gathering. The postholder will make a substantial contribution to the development of HelpAge International’s programme and advocacy work by further developing systems of monitoring, impact assessment and learning across the organisation.

The post-holder will coordinate a 3-year project on enabling minorities in Africa to use international standards and mechanisms, primarily the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. S/he will have project management experience and good English and French.

Student Partnership Worldwide (SPW) is a youth led development charity that empowers young people from the North and South to work together as volunteers in rural areas of Africa and Asia. These peer educators deliver Health Education and Community Resource Peer Education Programmes empowering local youth to take control over their own lives and shape the future of their communities. 85% of SPW peer educators come from programme countries. SPW is offering Opportunity Africa participants the unique opportunity of applying for a bursary to go on their Uganda or India Health Education or Community Resource programmes. The bursary is for young people who are living/ working in London and aged between 18 and 28.

Raised Voices: views from the South Call out for filmmakers to send testimonies from the global South on climate change

We are currently collecting short testimonies from Southern peoples on issues related to climate change for the upcoming UN climate talks in Canada in December 2005. The project seeks to push open political space for the views of those most affected who do not have a voice at the talks. Raised Voices has already collected testimonies on the G8 in 2005 which created a vital space where those affected by G8 policies could express themselves - unmediated and uncensored. The testimonies will be screened in progressive spaces during the talks in Montreal and be available for people to screen locally. The clips will also be on the website http://www.raisedvoices.net where transcript, image and audio are also available.

So if you have access to a camera and can interview people from the South (including Indigenous peoples in the global North and people from Central and Eastern Europe) then please get in touch with Heidi at [email protected]

*We do not have funding for this project but may be able to contribute to costs if necessary.

Raised Voices is coordinated by the Transnational Institute (http://www.tni.org)

Teachers countrywide are poised to hold nationwide demonstrations to protest against Government's failure to implement salary increases and benefits. "We want to register our maximum anger and disappointment and thus put pressure on the Government to implement the Revised Salary Structure for Teachers without any further delay," the Namibia National Teachers' Union (Nantu) said in a statement at the weekend.

The international community and the Ugandan government should take urgent action for an immediate and peaceful resolution of the war in the north in order to stop a "grave humanitarian crisis", an international humanitarian agency announced on Monday. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) reported that as many as 1,000 people in northern Uganda are dying each week from violence and war-related problems.

A local community activist has been selected as one of the 24 women to represent South Africa at a conference aimed at improving standards of women leaders in civil society. Ms Beauty Sekethe of Grange Township in Pietermaritzburg - who has worked tirelessly for her community will participate in the Interaction Programme for a New Generation of African Leaders organised by the British Council. The conference will look at areas of rural development, women empowerment and will sharpen the leadership skills of the delegates through a number of presentations and workshops.

The UN Non Governmental Service has developed a special webpage showcasing civil society statements and position papers commenting on the UN World Summit and its Outcome Document.

African governments have been asked to put in place programmes that promote holistic growth of children, especially the vulnerable. They should give priority to early childhood development (ECD) in all development policies and strategies such as the National Education For All (EFA) and Poverty Reduction Strategy Plans (PRSPs). Similarly, governments need to provide quality basic services, including health and education, that protect children from infections and exploitation and ensure that they lead a happy life.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has applauded Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza’s pledge to provide free primary education for every child as the country emerges from years of civil war. “This is an incredible opportunity for Burundi to be engaged in meeting the Millennium Development Goals – to meet the objective of universal primary education for all children," UNICEF Representative in Burundi Catherine Mbengue said. The primary school enrolment ratio for Burundian children is estimated at 59 per cent for boys and 48 per cent for girls, according to UNICEF estimates.

Universities in developed nations could help offset the 'brain drain' of skilled workers from poorer countries, says a report published on 1 September. It says universities could transfer resources, technology and knowledge to developing nations through exchanges of staff and students, research collaborations, and 'twinning' with institutions there. The report, which focuses on Africa, notes that developing countries see some benefits from the brain drain because migrant workers send money home and might also transfer knowledge back to their countries of origin.