Africa Follow

"Seeming to care about Africa was last year’s business, this year we don’t have to pretend and we’re getting back to our usual concerns." If the G8 leaders were honest, that would be their assessment of this year’s agenda.

On 16 June 1976 South African school students took to the streets of Soweto to protest at being forced to learn Afrikaans, which they saw as the language of their white oppressors.

In the days leading up to the 30th anniversary of the Soweto uprising, young people have been urged by the government to take part in nationwide commemorations.

A year ago many of us were gearing up for the protests at the G8 summit at Gleneagles, Scotland. We were doing so in a climate of great optimism that the summit would achieve real improvements for the poor of the world, especially in Africa.

A general strike over the lack of jobs won wide support in South Africa on Thursday of last week. It was best supported in the mines, car plants, the metal industry and schools.

Africa is normally seen negatively, particularly from the West, which often sees itself as the saviour of a dark continent marred by problems. Hunger, war, disease, refugees and debt are the issues that typically dominate the news stories in the Western media. Lately talk of bad governance has been added to the list.

Over 70 years ago the British government was rocked by what the historian AJP Taylor described as "the greatest explosion over foreign affairs for many years". This was caused when the Tory "national" government, led by Stanley Baldwin, was caught out lying about its stance towards fascist Italy’s war against the independent East African state of Abyssinia (now Ethiopia).

Anna Zalik and Michael Watts explain why being "oil rich" has become a curse on the poor of Nigeria and Angola.

"Eyes of the Wizard", Ojos de Brujo in Spanish, are a group of friends who jammed together and turned into a band. They have become known for a sound rooted in flamenco, but mixed with everything – North African rai, rap, Cuban and Indian music.

WOW Film Festivalon tour www.wowfilmfestival.org This is a small touring programme of films from Africa, Asia, and Latin America that are rarely shown in Britain.

The Operation Khanyisa (Light-Up) movement won a council seat in the Johannesburg region in the recent South African municipal elections. The related Displaced Ratepayers’ Association won three seats in Ekurhuleni – the former East Rand.

This is a film about a young gang leader named Tsotsi who lives on the dangerous and crime-ridden streets of Johannesburg, South Africa.