Peace, security, democracy and development
The Great Lakes region of Africa took a firm step toward peace and sustainable development in late November when a summit of 15 African leaders signed a Declaration on Peace, Security, Democracy and Development.

Africa needs better statistics
African governments should give priority to building up statistical data about their countries in order to make their policies more effective, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) said.

First African Interpol president
International police organization, Interpol has elected South African police chief, Jackie Selebi, as its new president.

Water resources, sanitation, hygiene
The Water Resources, Sanitation and Hygiene Fair (WARSH), held in Harare by SADC and partners, focused attention on SADC’s regional integration efforts through the management of water resources.

Global action needed on spam
At a conference called to debate anti-spam measures, the US and UK governments said that closer collaboration is needed to stop spammers as most spam originated overseas so cross-border co-operation is vital to combat this menace.