BISSAU, 6 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Teachers in the tiny West African state of Guinea-Bissau have suspended a strike over arrears, but students who began the year weeks late due to a cholera epidemic fear the lingering dispute may nullify the academic year.Full report

WINDHOEK, 2 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Another abysmally low final school examination pass rate has sparked calls for Namibia's education sector to be reformed. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 1 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - A recent study and several well-publicised cases of gender violence have raised concern in Malawi, with the president and aid agencies calling for urgent action to address the problem.Full report

ZANZIBAR, STONE TOWN, 1 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Members of the House of Representatives of the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar have endorsed a new education policy intended to make major reforms, including allowing students who fall pregnant to resume their studies after giving birth. Full report

MBABANE, 19 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - Educationists are concerned about the future of the Swazi language as the school examination pass rate in SiSwati as a subject continues to fall.Full report

NDJAMENA, 16 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - State school students and retired civil servants demanding public funds held angry protests in the Chadian capital, N’djamena, on Monday, as government workers moved into the second week of a general strike.Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 13 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - The commotion about last year's dismal matric results has subsided, but experts warn that merely focusing on final year pass rates hides the deeper problems facing South Africa's education system. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 13 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - The UN Millennium Village Project is giving 11 Malawian hamlets the chance to break free from the cycle of poverty. Full report

BULAWAYO, 13 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - The city hall parking area in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second largest urban centre, is usually bustling when schools reopen as boarders wait to be picked up by school shuttles - now it looks deserted, the direct result of a 150 to 500 percent hike in fees in missionary and private schools. Full report

DAKAR, 11 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - Despite international pressure and a flurry of African Union mediation efforts, 2005 saw little progress in ending the crisis that split Cote d’Ivoire in two more than three years ago, with rebels in control of the north and the government holding the south. Full report

COTE D IVOIRE: Year in Brief 2005 - A chronology of key events

MALAWI: Abuse of women and girls a national shame

ZIMBABWE: School fee hike could impact on education delivery

SOUTH AFRICA: Falling final year pass rate sign of a deeper malaise

COTE D IVOIRE: Children’s plight worsened by lingering conflict