Festival del Cinema Africano - Verona

Dal 16 al 24 novembre Verona rilancia il Festival del Cinema Africano. A 27 anni dalla nascita, la kermesse cinematografica torna a essere una manifestazione indipendente, interamente dedicata all'Africa, con una nuova veste e numerose sezioni. Apre Indigènes, candidato all'Oscar come miglior film straniero.
La pellicola, di Rachid Bouchareb, e' inedita in Italia e ha vinto la Palma d'Oro al Miglior Interprete maschile al Festival di Cannes 2007, del premio Ce'sar alla miglior sceneggiatura originale e candidata all'Oscar 2007 come miglior film straniero.

EX CHILD SOLDIER APPOINTED UNICEF AMBASSADOR

On CRC anniversary, Ishmael Beah appointed UNICEF Advocate for Children Affected by War

© UNICEF/HQ07-1714/Berkwitz

Former child soldier Ishmael Beah accepts appointment as UNICEF Advocate for Children Affected by War as Executive Director Ann M. Veneman looks on at UNICEF headquarters in New York.

By Chris Niles

NEW YORK, USA, 20 November 2007 – UNICEF’s first Advocate for Children Affected by War, Ishmael Beah, has pledged to give a voice and hope to children whose lives have been scarred by violence.

UNICEF announced Mr. Beah’s appointment today to mark the 18th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which was also celebrated at events in Geneva, Tokyo and other venues around the world.

The 18-year milestone is considered especially significant because it represents the point at which an entire generation has grown up under the auspices of the CRC, which aims to protect the fundamental rights of every child. UNICEF has launched a special ‘CRC@18’ website to raise awareness about the Convention and involve young people in advocating for their rights.

Dedicated to child protection

“I’m very thankful and humbled,” Mr. Beah said in accepting the UNICEF appointment. “I think for me it’s just a way to give me more strength to continue doing what I’ve already embarked on, what I’ve dedicated my life to doing – which is to make sure that what happened to me doesn’t continue to happen to other children around the world.

“I know the nature of what it is to be forgotten, what it is to lose your humanity, and more importantly, what it is to recover from it and to have another life,” he added.

Mr. Beah was forcibly recruited as a child soldier in Sierra Leone when he was 13. UNICEF helped him to escape the conflict and become rehabilitated. He then moved to the United States to complete his education, began advocating for children’s rights and went on to author the best-selling book, ‘A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier’.

cameroonian born BIKA's eighth-round TKO nets him "contender" title

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If you're still looking for a fight of the year, you probably don't have to look any further.

.In a grueling, non-stop action battle, Sakio Bika outlasted Jaidon Codrington, scoring a TKO at 2:18 of the eighth round to win the third-season finale of "The Contender" and the $750,000 grand prize o­n Tuesday night at TD Banknorth Garden."That was almost something out of a Rocky movie," said promoter Lou DiBella, who handles Codrington along with The Tournament of Contenders. "The kid [Codrington] is hanging his head now but he should be proud. They should both be proud. They proved everything you can prove. Both those guys proved their mettle. It was a Rocky movie. It was sick."While it seems doubtful that either man will emerge as a serious contender, their fight was unforgettable, providing the crowd of about 6,000 with all the action it could have asked for.The fight began in explosive fashion with a round of the year candidate. Both men were down, both men were hurt and both men were in deep trouble in the first round.Bika (25-3-2, 15 KOs) got it started, knocking Codrington sideways and then hitting him while he was down, a move that could have gotten him disqualified had referee Dick Flaherty noticed the blatant infraction.Moments later, Codrington, 23, of New York, responded with a left hook that dropped Bika, a 28-year-old from Cameroon living in Australia.
[More ...]http://www.cameroononline.org/index.php?module=shortnews&func=redir&url_id=8119

Annan-founded alliance for African agriculture names first president

Wed Nov 14, 5:56 AM ET

NAIROBI (AFP) - A foundation set up by former UN secretary general Kofi Annan to aid African farmers named Wednesday its first president, agricultural expert Amos Namanga Ngongi from Cameroon.

The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) brings together farmers, scientists, governments, the private sector and civil society with the aim of boosting the productivity and incomes of millions of small-scale farmers by supporting sustainable, innovative agricultural practices.

"There is no acceptable reason for Africa's farmers to be poor," an AGRA press release quoted Ngongi as saying.

"Working with their many allies, farmers can move beyond mere subsistence farming. With access to the needed tools and technologies and with responsible stewardship of our natural resources, we can bring prosperity to Africa's farmers and their families."

Annan, who founded AGRA in 2006 and chairs its board, described Ngongi as "a man of vision, dedicated to the eradication of hunger and poverty.

"He knows the vital importance of agricultural development, and that ambitious goals inspire the energy and will necessary to achieve them."

Ngongi began his career as an agricultural officer in Cameroon, going on to become deputy head of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and later leading the peace-keeping mission in war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo for the United Nations.

AGRA programmes to date include efforts to develop new varieties of food crops, support for agricultural education, improving seed distribution networks and markets for poor farmers.

Irish Build 200 Homes for S. Africa Poor

Irish Build 200 Homes for S. Africa Poor

ASSOCIATED PRESS/AP ONLINE

CLARE NULLIS

Damian O‚Driscoll poses for a photograph toward the end of a building blitz by nearly 1,400 Irish volunteers Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007. The group completed their mission Friday to build 200 homes in a week in the Freedom Park slum, back left, suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. (AP Photo/Karin Schermbrucker) Picture 1 of 5

FREEDOM PARK, South Africa - For the first time, Mona Miller has a real roof, solid walls and glass windows. Lights come on at the flick of a switch, water flows from the tap and she has the dignity of a toilet.

Miller will move into her first proper home this weekend thanks to a building blitz by nearly 1,400 Irish volunteers, who completed a mission Friday to construct 200 houses in a week in the depressing, dusty - and hopelessly misnamed - Freedom Park slum.

"It's a solid home, not something that people can drive though," said Miller, shuddering at the memory of the drunk driver who rammed into her shack four years ago, injuring her two young children in this sprawling Cape Town slum.

"I look forward to hearing the rain on the roof because I will no longer have to get up and put buckets underneath the holes. I'm going to close my doors and sleep for a week," she said with a grin, gazing proudly as builders put finishing touches on the mustard-colored house.Read more;

Irish Build 200 Homes for S. Africa Poor

REGGAE STAR AND ACTIVIST, LUCKY DUBE IS NO MORE!

Shock at SA reggae star shooting

Lucky Dube pictured on his most recent album, Respect Lucky Dube on music

Fans across the world are mourning the South African reggae star, Lucky Dube, who has been shot dead.

He was dropping his teenage son and daughter off in a Johannesburg suburb when he was attacked by car thieves.

Local radio stations have been flooded with tearful callers expressing outrage at the murder and renewing demands that the authorities act to curtail crime.

South Africa's leader paid tribute to him and called on people to "confront this terrible scourge of crime".

Alongside Bob Marley, Lucky Dube was thought of as one of the great reggae artists - singing about social problems.

He was also one of the apartheid regime's most outspoken critics.

'Freedom fighter'

Correspondents say the killing of the 43-year-old singer has shocked South Africans who are already accustomed to one of the highest murder rates in the world.

HAVE YOUR SAY He will be missed as a great musician and for his love for the children and the suffering people in Africa Abitekaniza Denis, Kampala, Uganda Send us your comments Your tributes Crime fears after shooting

Music producer TK of TS records and a friend of Dube's told the BBC the killing was tragically ironic.

"The whole continent has lost a performer, musician, a guy that fought for freedom in his own way, in his own right, was just shot by some guy who wanted to take his car, you know, which is Mickey Mouse really," he said.

Opposition parties and the youth wing of the ruling African National Congress party have called on the government to take drastic measures against crime.

Callers to radio stations have urged the country's rugby team to show some form of respect when they take to the field in Saturday's World Cup final against England in Paris.

BBC NEWS | Africa | Shock at SA reggae star shooting