The influx of Chinese citizens, goods and money to Africa has been greeted with a lot of consternation and suspicion in most African countries. Cameroon has not been an exception. This article is based on a recent survey conducted in 10 Cameroonian cities concerning the flow of Chinese citizens and their goods into this peaceful West African country and the implication of this state of affairs on the country’s economy and the living standards of her people.

The populations of the rural areas where telecentres exist are not sensitised enough on the importance of such technology. The multipurpose community telecentres is an infrastructure which offers telecommunication services, computer science, audiovisual and Internet services from a terminal or terminals given to a community to enable them communicate at a cheaper rate. The telecentres are associated with proximity community services. However, the existence of the multipurpose community telecentres still remains a farce for many Cameroonians, argues Kelvin Chibomba.

A total of 103 petitions have been filed to Cameroon's highest court to annul results of this month's legislative elections that handed President Paul Biya's governing party a landslide victory, a court official said on Monday. A number of the 45 parties figuring on the election lists on July 22 had filed petitions, but most of the appeals came from the main opposition parties, especially the Social Democratic Front (SDF), the supreme court official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Cameroon's ruling party has won a landslide victory in last Sunday's elections, according to provisional results released late Monday. But opposition parties allege "massive fraud" in the parliamentary and municipal polls. The opposition also say they will challenge the results in court.

Cameroon’s ministry of health has declared that antiretroviral drugs have been made free to anyone eligible as part of a national distribution programme. The decision, made public by health minister Urbain Olanguena Awono in the capital Yaoundé during a press conference, is part of the 2006-2010 national strategic plan to combat AIDS.

Two weeks ago the High Court in Yaounde, Cameroon, ordered the immediate release of Alexandre D. who was detained for more than two years without charge or trial on allegations of homosexuality. The ruling was received with relief by the Cameroonian gay and lesbian community, represented by Alternatives-Cameroun, Inter-LGBT in Paris and the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) in New York.

For Merline Momo Azeufac, a teacher at Balefock village in western Cameroon, the days of fearing nightfall while correcting pupils' work are over. She is no longer hostage to the poor light provided by kerosene lamps. As IPS reports, the advent of solar power has made the village part of a trend towards alternative energy use in Cameroon that has gained momentum amidst difficulties with giving all homes access to the national electricity grid.

This summit, organised by Maya Initiatives, Cameroon and Youths for Human Rights, Liberia, is aimed at creating a central system (an African network) where young African activists can share information and learn more about the activities of one another. YAAS 2007 will provide a forum for the sharing of resources (human and financial) that should strengthen and consolidate the activities of young African activists.

Due to the drastic change in climate, most people suffer from certain air borne diseases such as catarrh and cough. For close to two months, inhabitants of the capital city have been observing drastic climatic changes. After passing through cold weather conditions, the weather in Yaounde now is extremely hot. Due to the drastic change in climate, most people suffer from certain air borne diseases such as catarrh, cough, etc.

IGLHRC and Alternatives-Cameroun are pleased to announce the release of Nicholas Njocky and Patrick Yousseu, two gay men who have been detained in the West African nation of Cameroon for one year under Article 347 of the Cameroonian penal code, which makes sex between people of the same sex illegal. IGLHRC remains concerned about the continued detention of Alexandre Demanou, held without charge or trial since 2002.

President Hu Jintao became the first Chinese head of state to visit Cameroon on Wednesday (31 January), kicking off his latest tour of an African continent which increasingly supplies oil and raw materials to his country. Hu, who also toured Africa last year, met Cameroonian President Paul Biya to discuss social aid programmes to provide drinking water and cheap housing, as well as a greater role for China in the local oil industry and other resource sectors.

More that 50 prison officers, on strike for one week, have been detained by the Cameroonian army and taken to an unknown location, according to human rights groups. Reports indicate that the striking warders have not been given anything to eat or drink and that several have been tortured.

The Reinforcement of African Peace keeping capacities (RECAMP) is once more in the limelight. Already in its fifth edition as from next Monday, the training programme prepares African countries for peace-keeping operations at the behest of the United Nations. Dubbed "SAWA 2006", this year's event involves eleven countries drawn principally from the Central African Economic Community. The genesis of RECAMP stretches to 1994 when it took the colourings of the French defence and security policy in Africa. Today, it has evolved to a partnership and cooperation between the African Union and the European Union.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, an organ of the African Union will be organising a 'Regional Sensitisation Seminar on the Rights of Indigenous Populations and Communities in Africa'. The Seminar is the first in a series of Regional Seminars earmarked by the African Commission’s Working Group on Indigenous Populations and Communities in Africa

Crumbling campuses, inadequate equipment, a lack of bursaries: the problems facing Cameroonian students are numerous -- and they're not only compromising the education that students receive. These difficulties have also laid the ground for sects and religious groups to flourish on campuses.

This paper explores Cameroon's family planning policy and questions whether the policy affects gender relations vis-a-vis peace building; the case of Njindom married men. The overarching question is: do Njindom men as patriarchs exclude their wives from reproductive decision-making process?

Recently, Cameroon's female legislators could be found under a tree in the garden of the country's parliament, listening to Hannah Kwenti: 17, the mother of a five-month-old baby girl -- and a victim of female genital mutilation (FGM).

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) confirms with great sorrow the death of Alim Mongoche from AIDS-related complications. Alim was 30 years old and worked as a clothing designer. Alim was one of the 11 Cameroonian men who spent more than a year in prison awaiting trial under Article 347 of the Cameroonian penal code, which punishes sex between men.

Cameroon could lose all of its 3,000 practising doctors within three years if the government does not act quickly to stem a brain drain in the health sector, the national doctors' association has said. "Between now and 2009 if nothing is done to stop this mass exodus our hospitals will be empty and the government may be forced to undertake a massive recruitment of young doctors".

Close to four million girls suffer needless cruelty in a practice intended to stop them from developing breasts that would attract the attention of men. Mothers and other female relatives use implements such as heated grinding stones, pestles, ladles and spatulas to massage the chests of the girls. This practice, referred to as "breast ironing", occurs extensively in the 10 provinces of Cameroon.