Giant anti-polio drive threatened by insecurity

FOOD: Rumpus over GM food aid

JOHANNESBURG, 18 October 2011 (IRIN) - Genetically modified (GM) food aid bound for Africa has long been a bone of contention among governments, scientists, activists, consumers and aid workers. full report

GAMBIA: Climate of fear ahead of presidential poll

DAKAR, 31 August 2011 (IRIN) - Human rights advocates watching Gambia are worried that abuses against perceived dissenters will rise as the November presidential election nears, killing any chance of a free and fair poll. Already the official campaign period - the only time opposition parties are given access to the media and allowed to actively campaign - has been shrunk to 11 days from four weeks, sparking concern among political leaders. full report

In Brief: Civil society studies West Africa "counter-terrorism plan"

DAKAR, 9 August 2011 (IRIN) - Journalists and civil society members in West Africa analysed a “counter-terrorism plan” drawn up by the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) at a 4-5 August meeting in the Senegalese capital Dakar. full report

GLOBAL: Stillbirths could be halved

DAKAR, 27 April 2011 (IRIN) - Preventing stillbirths can cost just US$2.32 per mother if governments, the private sector and international institutions adopt a package of 10 health interventions, rather than allowing stillbirths to be an almost invisible problem. full report

FOOD: Home-grown nutrition research for Africa

JOHANNESBURG, 21 April 2011 (IRIN) - A group of international academic institutions and an NGO backed by the European Union (EU) have launched Sustainable Nutrition Research for Africa in the Years to come, or SUNRAY, to develop a nutrition agenda for Africa, with specific emphasis on the 34 sub-Saharan countries. full report

AFRICA: Opposition building to Great Green Wall

NAIROBI, 8 April 2011 (IRIN) - What’s green, controversial, 15km wide, 7,775km long, cuts across 11 African countries and is designed to reduce livestock deaths and boost food security for millions of people? Nothing yet, but the Great Green Wall project, a pipe-dream for decades, was recently endorsed by a swathe of African states stretching from Senegal to Djibouti. full report