China Safari reviewed in the Washington Times

Here’s a review I wrote of a new book called China Safari in the Washington Times

Better government for Africa?

The World Bank and the Brookings Institution released an encouraging study today that suggested several African nations have made vast recent improvements in how they govern. Botswana, Liberia, Uganda, Angola, Ethiopia, and Congo have each shown progress in at least one area of governance.

It’s an important step forward for several African nations and truly something to build on.

More hunger in Africa

A recent UN report suggests that as many as 1.02 billion people globally will go in 2009, largely thanks to the economic crisis and rising food prices.  It’s a jump of eleven percent over last year. 

According to the report 32% of the people living in sub-Saharan Africa will go hungry in 2009.  That represents the highest rate of any place on earth.

South Africa's rape crisis

Time magazine reports about a horrifying study that is about to be released in South Africa that indicates that one in four South African men admit to having raped somebody.  And nearly half of those rapists admit to having done it multiple times. 

It is an extraordinary statement about how deep and pervasive the culture of violence is in a nation that, for so long, lived on fear.

More about this soon…