MAKHATHINI FLATS, 7 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Taking a break from spraying his neat, one-hectare plot of young cotton plants with herbicide, Moses Mabika surveys the land that has been supporting his family for 45 years. He may not realise it, but he is standing at the epicenter of a heated debate about growing genetically modified (GM) crops in Africa. Full report

MBABANE, 3 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Marijuana grown in Swaziland could help house South Africa's homeless, according to an NGO working with residents in informal settlements.Full report

LILONGWE, 1 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - The European Union (EU) has helped the Malawian government launch a US $27 million public works programme to alleviate poverty and improve food security in the drought-affected country.Full report

MBABANE, 31 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - The bulldozers are set to move in this week to clear a string of informal urban settlements as the Swazi government and local authorities clamp down on unplanned housing. Full report

WAJID, 30 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - It took eight days for Nuriya Yusuf Ahmed and her family to walk the 115 km from Lahello village to a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) near Wajid town, southern Somalia. Full report

BUJUMBURA, 20 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - At least 120 Burundians have died and thousands of others have fled to neighbouring countries due to food shortages brought on by drought prevailing in northern and eastern parts of the country, local officials have said.Full report

MAHITSIARONGANA, 17 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - President Marc Ravalomanana's government has embarked on an ambitious national effort to protect Madagascar's remaining biodiversity while simultaneously reducing poverty and promoting rural development. Full report

DAKAR, 16 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - The UN World Food Programme aims to feed 10 million West Africans in 2006 but it needs US $237 million from donors to do so, officials said on Monday. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 16 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - Drought-prone northern Namibia, still battling with food shortages as a result of 2005's poor harvest, will receive agricultural inputs from the Red Cross this year.Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 13 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - An outbreak of armyworm threatens Zimbabwe's already fragile agricultural sector and experts warn that a shortage of foreign currency may hamper importation of much-needed pesticides. Full report

SOMALIA: Drought bites southern region

SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE: Mercenaries, corruption and poverty complicate the road to an oil boom

SOUTH AFRICA: GM debate fought on cotton fields of KZN

MADAGASCAR: A plan for moving from slash-and-burn to conservation

NIGERIA: Deserts march fuels tensions

SENEGAL: Frozen chicken imports threaten local farmers livelihoods