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Since the hard line extremists Al-Shebab pulled out of Mogadishu two months ago, residents have been able to return to their former streets and homes to rebuild what is left. Schools have started up again and shops opened. But for some there is nothing to come back to, and in a city still gripped by famine, life now is hard as it has ever bee

Partial results from Liberia's second presidential poll since a civil war have put newly-named Nobel Peace laureate Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf in the lead.

Zimbabwe is moving ahead with a new "indigenisation" law, known as the National Community Trust, which will force foreign companies to hand 51 per cent of its shares to black Zimbabweans.

Nigerian Tribune    "There’s a looming diplomatic row  between the maritime regulatory authorities of Ghana and Nigeria as a marine tanker vessel, MT Kemepade, declared missing in Nigeria has been found in Ghana, slated for urgent scrapping." Related articles Missing Nigerian vessel found in Ghanaian shipyard (vanguardngr.com)

Image via Wikipedia The Guardian : "The archbishop of Canterbury has risked angering the Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, ahead of a crucial meeting with him, by attacking the country's lawlessness and comparing it with the "greed of colonialists and imperalists". In a brave and possibly career-defining appearance at Harare's national stadium, Rowan Williams told a crowd of more than 15,000 that it was tragic that so many lived in daily fear of attack if they failed to comply "with what the powerful require of them"."

The Dalai Lama has criticized Chinese government for blocking his travel to South Africa. The Tibetan spiritual leader was scheduled to visit South Africa to celebrate Archbishop Desmond Tutu's 80th birthday. But following the refusal of visa, Dalai Lama had to speak with Tutu via a video link, being unable to honors South Africa's anti-apartheid hero

Wangari Muta Mary Jo Maathai (1 April 1940 -- 25 September 2011) was a Kenyan environmental and political activist. She was educated in the United States at Mount St. Scholastica and the University of Pittsburgh, as well as the University of Nairobi in Kenya.

Hundreds of mourners gathered on Saturday for the funeral of Kenyan environmentalist and Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai, at a park in central Nairobi she fought to save from destruction.

Police shield regime thugs over Chasowa murder – reports | Malawi news, Malawi - NyasaTimes  "After a post-mortem report by local pathologist Dr Charles Dzamalala revealed that Robert Chasowa – the fourth year mechanical engineering Polytechnic student found dead on the campus on September 24 – did not commit suicide as claimed by police, blogger Mabvuto Jobani (Jobani is a pseudo) has written a report on Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) Malawi discussion forum that says law enforces know regime thugs who had a hand in the murder   but are failing to arrest them. The report said the agents of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) were responsible for Chasowa’s murder, citing two undisclosed Blantyre police officers who gave two theories as to why the student activist was murdered. The first theory according to the police source, is that Chasowa refused to listen to their demands to stop publishing and circulating a newsletter which criticised  Pr...

Image via Wikipedia  Daily Trust  "Former president Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday said he never wrote a letter to President Goodluck Jonathan asking him to fire heads of certain Federal agencies as reported, even as copies of the purported letter were being circulated around newsrooms in Abuja. A letter dated September 16, allegedly written by Obasanjo to Jonathan, listed five Federal agencies as performing poorly and suggested that their heads be replaced with people selected by the PDP leadership and recommended to the former president in his capacity as board of trustees chairman." 'via Blog this' Related articles Wikileaks' week of leaking Nigerian leaders (vanguardngr.com) IBB rekindles war with Obasanjo (vanguardngr.com)

Ker Deng, an emancipated Sudanese slave, presents lawmakers with a personal account of the hardships slaves are currently experiencing in South Sudan. Deng, previously blinded by his slave master, is recovering from a cornea transplant in the United States. His recovery is ongoing and his vision continues to improve with each passing day.

NyasaTimes  "Malawi’s pathologist Dr Charles Dzamalala, who carried out a post-mortem on the body of a fourth year University of Malawi engineering student Robert Chasowa whose mysterious death police say, was a case of suicide, told Capital Radio’s Straight Talk programme on Tuesday that his death was not suicide and that his yet-to-be released report will state so. Chasowa was found in a pool of blood at the college campus with a deep cut on the back of his head on September 24, 2011." Related articles Thousands attend Malawi student activist's funeral (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

| Zambian Watchdog : "A week is a long time in politics, so they say. Alas, we have Zambia to show for it. While we were all mesmerised by the gracious withdrawal from state power of Zambian President Rupiah Banda, little did we know that incoming President, Michael Sata, would wait for only one week before he started to unleash his pent-up anger on the MMD. I guess the title “King Cobra” wasn’t given to him for nothing." ' Related articles BBC News - Zambia election: Banda accepts defeat to Michael Sata (worldwright.wordpress.com) Africa salutes humble RB (africa.smallshop.com)