Development Aid: Does it work?
“My voice cannot compete with an electric guitar”, said one specialist on development aid for Africa. Commentary on aid to Africa has, in the main, been the preserve of aging…
Kites Courting
A lone black kite appeared around Geneva two weeks ago. In many parts of the world (Asia, Africa, Australia), these kites are common, but in this part of Europe they…
Essential Economics Reading
Lucid commentary on economics is rare. In this time of economic crisis media commentary on economic matters has increased and public interest in such commentary has prompted greater coverage and…
How much water is enough ?
Saturday morning tends to be a little less stressful than the rest of the week. I get to stay in bed a little longer. Promptly at 7.00am my radio tunes…
Thabani Dube, Zimbabwe Trader
Stories from Zimbabwe abound. We have heard the cholera stories, the state violence stories, the hyper-inflation stories and many, many more. All of them are dispiriting. All of them attest…
Zambia Bishops Speak Out
Zambia remains one of the better governed countries in Africa. At least its institutions of governance work by and large. However, corruption remains an issue despite some gains. Zambia’s courts…
Equinox – our point of balance
Both hemispheres have just passed through equinox. The north is sailing into spring, the south rolling into autumn. Major religious feasts follow this point – Passover for Jews, Easter for…
Excommunications Dangereuses
You may remember the film Liaisons Dangereuses. Well, it seems that another equally dangerous territory is that of papal and episcopal excommunications. Relationships, breakups, liaisons, are by definition and experience…
Witch Doctors let loose in the Gambia
According to a UN report (IRIN) and Amnesty International, people are living in fear of their lives in The Gambia. I visited The Gambia on a few occasions. It always…
About Hope and History
Yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day. Except, here in Geneva, it did not feel like St. Patrick’s Day. There were some token efforts in the Irish pubs. But no parades down…