20 August 2010, BRAZZAVILLE, Republic of Congo — As the Republic of Congo marked its 50th Anniversary of Independence today, it embarked on unprecedented steps to advance quickly in the areas of reproductive health and gender equity.On the eve of the Congolese Independence Day, President Denis Sassou Nguesso announced that henceforth emergency obstetric care, including Caesarean sections, would be free. He also said he would submit to Parliament a bill calling for equal access for women to political, administrative and elective positions. Both are major step forward in this middle-income country that nevertheless has a high rate of maternal mortality (781 deaths per 100,000 live births, ac...

Liberia, August 12, 2010 - President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has submitted to the National Legislature for ratification, the African Youth Charter. According to an Executive Mansion release, the Charter was submitted on Monday, August 9, 2010. It outlines the rights, duties and responsibilities of African Youth and Member States of the African Union, and establishes a foundation upon which to build policies, programs, and actions for youth development in the Member States.The Youth Charter, among other objectives, aims at preserving basic rights afforded to Youth, which include the right of development, privacy, protection of family and property, freedoms of movement, expression, and associa...

South Africa has delivered on Goal 3 of the Millennium Development Goals calling for the elimination of gender disparity in primary and secondary education by 2015.According to Engendering Statistics, 2009: 2, the primary enrolment rates of girls about doubled in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and North Africa, rising faster than boys' enrolment rates. This substantially reduced large gender gaps in schooling.Reflecting on the country and department's successes during an Inaugural Women's Legacy Dialogue on Friday, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga said research has shown that 98 percent of young people aged 7 to 15 are involved in education programmes."Youth liter...

Afrique, le 12 Août 2010 - La Journée internationale de la jeunesse, célébrée ce jeudi, marque aussi le lancement de l'Année internationale de la jeunesse, dont les thèmes sont le dialogue et la compréhension mutuelle. Pour le Secrétaire général de l'ONU, Ban Ki-moon, dans le contexte actuelle de crise internationale, il est en effet « essentiel que les jeunes apprennent à s'écouter avec attention, à sympathiser, à reconnaître l'existence d'opinions divergentes et à résoudre les conflits ».« Aujourd'hui, la situation sociale et économique difficile justifie amplement que l'on prête une attention spéciale à la jeunesse », a souligné le Secrétaire général dans son...