http://www.irinnews.org/irin-fp.aspxUpdated everydayen-gbTue, 31 Jan 2012 15:30:37 GMTTue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT]]>TALATA 31 January 2012 (IRIN) - Ernest Rakotoarivony, 45, was teased by some members of the Talata community, a small town 30km north of Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo, after breaking with traditional rice cultivation methods and employing a technique taught to him by a Jesuit priest.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94764TALATA 31 January 2012 (IRIN) - Ernest Rakotoarivony, 45, was teased by some members of the Talata community, a small town 30km north of Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo, after breaking with traditional rice cultivation methods and employing a technique taught to him by a Jesuit priest.]]>Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTALAHA 19 January 2012 (IRIN) - Environmentalists and the international community are trying to find ways of limiting the damage caused by an explosion in the illegal logging of precious hardwoods in Madagascar since a major political crisis began there nearly three years ago.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94682ANTALAHA 19 January 2012 (IRIN) - Environmentalists and the international community are trying to find ways of limiting the damage caused by an explosion in the illegal logging of precious hardwoods in Madagascar since a major political crisis began there nearly three years ago.]]>Thu, 29 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 29 December 2011 (IRIN) - In 2011 the global economic crisis combined with poor governance, financial mismanagement and unpredictable rainfall to push several southern African countries to the point of crisis. Others responded to rising unemployment and increased pressure on national budgets by hardening their attitude towards immigrants and closing their borders to asylum-seekers. IRIN covered developments from all over the region, but the following stories consistently grabbed headlines:http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94564JOHANNESBURG 29 December 2011 (IRIN) - In 2011 the global economic crisis combined with poor governance, financial mismanagement and unpredictable rainfall to push several southern African countries to the point of crisis. Others responded to rising unemployment and increased pressure on national budgets by hardening their attitude towards immigrants and closing their borders to asylum-seekers. IRIN covered developments from all over the region, but the following stories consistently grabbed headlines:]]>Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>MANANJARY 22 December 2011 (IRIN) - Legal aid clinics are playing an important role during Madagascar's current political and economic crisis, especially for poverty-hit rural women who are under-served by the country's ailing judicial system.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94519MANANJARY 22 December 2011 (IRIN) - Legal aid clinics are playing an important role during Madagascar's current political and economic crisis, especially for poverty-hit rural women who are under-served by the country's ailing judicial system.]]>Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 12 December 2011 (IRIN) - At any given time, an estimated 130,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa are engaged in forced labour as a result of trafficking. It is a fraction of the global figure, which the International Labour Organization (ILO) puts at 2.5 million, but this highly lucrative and concealed crime is on the rise in Africa and traffickers usually operate with impunity.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94445JOHANNESBURG 12 December 2011 (IRIN) - At any given time, an estimated 130,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa are engaged in forced labour as a result of trafficking. It is a fraction of the global figure, which the International Labour Organization (ILO) puts at 2.5 million, but this highly lucrative and concealed crime is on the rise in Africa and traffickers usually operate with impunity.]]>Fri, 02 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>KAMPALA 02 December 2011 (IRIN) - Brandishing a plea for developed countries to make good their promises to reduce carbon emissions, 300 farmers, youths and activists took the scenic route to the COP17 conference in Durban, travelling more than 7,000km from Burundi in 17 days, through 10 eastern and southern African countries, aboard a convoy of buses draped in various national flags.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94372KAMPALA 02 December 2011 (IRIN) - Brandishing a plea for developed countries to make good their promises to reduce carbon emissions, 300 farmers, youths and activists took the scenic route to the COP17 conference in Durban, travelling more than 7,000km from Burundi in 17 days, through 10 eastern and southern African countries, aboard a convoy of buses draped in various national flags.]]>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 30 November 2011 (IRIN) - After more than two years of political crisis, Madagascar finally appears to be moving towards the restoration of democracy. A new prime minister has been appointed, and elections are planned for 2012. Donors who suspended aid to the impoverished island nation are watching these developments closely.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94351ANTANANARIVO 30 November 2011 (IRIN) - After more than two years of political crisis, Madagascar finally appears to be moving towards the restoration of democracy. A new prime minister has been appointed, and elections are planned for 2012. Donors who suspended aid to the impoverished island nation are watching these developments closely.]]>Fri, 18 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>LONDON 18 November 2011 (IRIN) - It will take two centuries for sub-Saharan Africa to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, according to NGO WaterAid, which calls on national leaders to commit 3.5 percent of their annual budget to the sector.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94241LONDON 18 November 2011 (IRIN) - It will take two centuries for sub-Saharan Africa to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, according to NGO WaterAid, which calls on national leaders to commit 3.5 percent of their annual budget to the sector.]]>Thu, 03 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>MANANJARY 03 November 2011 (IRIN) - A centuries old practice of putting newborn twins up for adoption is dividing residents in the Madagascan coastal town of Mananjary as surely as the siblings are separated from their parents. It is said that twins bring bad luck and violence to parents and the community.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=94124MANANJARY 03 November 2011 (IRIN) - A centuries old practice of putting newborn twins up for adoption is dividing residents in the Madagascan coastal town of Mananjary as surely as the siblings are separated from their parents. It is said that twins bring bad luck and violence to parents and the community.]]>Tue, 18 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 18 October 2011 (IRIN) - Genetically modified (GM) food aid bound for Africa has long been a bone of contention among governments, scientists, activists, consumers and aid workers.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93991JOHANNESBURG 18 October 2011 (IRIN) - Genetically modified (GM) food aid bound for Africa has long been a bone of contention among governments, scientists, activists, consumers and aid workers.]]>Wed, 12 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTALAHA 12 October 2011 (IRIN) - Daniel Soadava and Samoela Razafindramboho are known as "the mean women" in Antalaha, a small town on the east coast of Madagascar. "Men complain that we are always saying bad things about them," they laugh.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93946ANTALAHA 12 October 2011 (IRIN) - Daniel Soadava and Samoela Razafindramboho are known as "the mean women" in Antalaha, a small town on the east coast of Madagascar. "Men complain that we are always saying bad things about them," they laugh.]]>Mon, 26 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTALAHA 26 September 2011 (IRIN) - Mamysoa realized she had a problem after she stepped too close to the fire. “I burned my foot quite badly, but it hardly hurt at all,” she recalled. The 20-year-old housekeeper recently became one of five new cases of leprosy that Abdoul Zamandrahengo detects every month from his tiny public clinic in Antalaha, a small town on Madagascar’s east coast.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93824ANTALAHA 26 September 2011 (IRIN) - Mamysoa realized she had a problem after she stepped too close to the fire. “I burned my foot quite badly, but it hardly hurt at all,” she recalled. The 20-year-old housekeeper recently became one of five new cases of leprosy that Abdoul Zamandrahengo detects every month from his tiny public clinic in Antalaha, a small town on Madagascar’s east coast.]]>Fri, 09 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 09 September 2011 (IRIN) - Production of Madagascar’s staple, rice, is expected to be down 10 percent on last year and slip by 400,000 tons, according to preliminary findings by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93693JOHANNESBURG 09 September 2011 (IRIN) - Production of Madagascar’s staple, rice, is expected to be down 10 percent on last year and slip by 400,000 tons, according to preliminary findings by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).]]>Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 10 August 2011 (IRIN) - About a third of Madagascar’s 20 million people do not have access to water for washing and most of the rest share unsanitary toilet facilities, according to a July 2011 World Bank Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) report. The threat of diarrhoea and other diseases is particularly acute in some of the poorer suburbs of the capital Antananarivo.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93471ANTANANARIVO 10 August 2011 (IRIN) - About a third of Madagascar’s 20 million people do not have access to water for washing and most of the rest share unsanitary toilet facilities, according to a July 2011 World Bank Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) report. The threat of diarrhoea and other diseases is particularly acute in some of the poorer suburbs of the capital Antananarivo.]]>Mon, 01 Aug 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 01 August 2011 (IRIN) - The ambition of 16-year-old Madagascan schoolgirl Nadine* is to open a clothes boutique after completing a college course in textile design, but in the meantime, along with eight of her friends, she has turned to sex work to pay her tuition fees. Charging up to US$7 a time, she works in the poor Antananarivo suburb of 67 Hectares.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93390ANTANANARIVO 01 August 2011 (IRIN) - The ambition of 16-year-old Madagascan schoolgirl Nadine* is to open a clothes boutique after completing a college course in textile design, but in the meantime, along with eight of her friends, she has turned to sex work to pay her tuition fees. Charging up to US$7 a time, she works in the poor Antananarivo suburb of 67 Hectares.]]>Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 19 July 2011 (IRIN) - The bandage covering Olida Soanirina’s eye does not disguise the ravages of hydrocephalus as the three-month-old recovers from an operation at the Joseph Ravoahangy Andrianavalona Hospital (HJRA) in the capital Antananarivo.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93268ANTANANARIVO 19 July 2011 (IRIN) - The bandage covering Olida Soanirina’s eye does not disguise the ravages of hydrocephalus as the three-month-old recovers from an operation at the Joseph Ravoahangy Andrianavalona Hospital (HJRA) in the capital Antananarivo.]]>Thu, 23 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>AMBOASARY SUD 23 June 2011 (IRIN) - At the Centre for Treatment of Acute Malnutrition with Complications (CRENI) in the town of Amboasary Sud in the Anosy region of southeastern Madagascar, Samina Tahiaritsoa, 20, cradles her son, Lambo, 3, who still weighs less than six kilograms after 10 days at the centre.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93050AMBOASARY SUD 23 June 2011 (IRIN) - At the Centre for Treatment of Acute Malnutrition with Complications (CRENI) in the town of Amboasary Sud in the Anosy region of southeastern Madagascar, Samina Tahiaritsoa, 20, cradles her son, Lambo, 3, who still weighs less than six kilograms after 10 days at the centre.]]>Fri, 17 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANKAVANDRA 17 June 2011 (IRIN) - Ankavandra is a one-car town in western Madagascar, so when the all-terrain 4x4 vehicle arrived recently it did a lap of honour around the sports field, watched by scores of applauding residents.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=93002ANKAVANDRA 17 June 2011 (IRIN) - Ankavandra is a one-car town in western Madagascar, so when the all-terrain 4x4 vehicle arrived recently it did a lap of honour around the sports field, watched by scores of applauding residents.]]>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANKAVANDRA 09 June 2011 (IRIN) - There is a touch of gold fever in the small western Madagascan town of Ankavandra and schoolgirls are being affected.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92938ANKAVANDRA 09 June 2011 (IRIN) - There is a touch of gold fever in the small western Madagascan town of Ankavandra and schoolgirls are being affected.]]>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANKAREIRA 09 June 2011 (IRIN) - Tahiri and her baby daughter have joined a courtyard full of women sheltering their babies from the midday sun at a health centre in Ankareira, near Madagascar's southern tip.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92939ANKAREIRA 09 June 2011 (IRIN) - Tahiri and her baby daughter have joined a courtyard full of women sheltering their babies from the midday sun at a health centre in Ankareira, near Madagascar's southern tip.]]>Mon, 30 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 30 May 2011 (IRIN) - Hospital patients in Madagascar are used to paying for everything from surgeon’s gloves and gauze to drips and syringes, but a protracted political and economic crisis has further weakened the public health sector and put cancer treatment out of reach for all but the lucky few.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92843ANTANANARIVO 30 May 2011 (IRIN) - Hospital patients in Madagascar are used to paying for everything from surgeon’s gloves and gauze to drips and syringes, but a protracted political and economic crisis has further weakened the public health sector and put cancer treatment out of reach for all but the lucky few.]]>Tue, 10 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 10 May 2011 (IRIN) - IRIN Films is pleased to announce the launch of two more chapters of The Gathering Storm, our award-winning series of short films highlighting the human cost of climate change.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92666NAIROBI 10 May 2011 (IRIN) - IRIN Films is pleased to announce the launch of two more chapters of The Gathering Storm, our award-winning series of short films highlighting the human cost of climate change.]]>Thu, 21 Apr 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 21 April 2011 (IRIN) - A group of international academic institutions and an NGO backed by the European Union (EU) have launched Sustainable Nutrition Research for Africa in the Years to come, or SUNRAY, to develop a nutrition agenda for Africa, with specific emphasis on the 34 sub-Saharan countries.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92550JOHANNESBURG 21 April 2011 (IRIN) - A group of international academic institutions and an NGO backed by the European Union (EU) have launched Sustainable Nutrition Research for Africa in the Years to come, or SUNRAY, to develop a nutrition agenda for Africa, with specific emphasis on the 34 sub-Saharan countries.]]>Fri, 08 Apr 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 08 April 2011 (IRIN) - What’s green, controversial, 15km wide, 7,775km long, cuts across 11 African countries and is designed to reduce livestock deaths and boost food security for millions of people? Nothing yet, but the Great Green Wall project, a pipe-dream for decades, was recently endorsed by a swathe of African states stretching from Senegal to Djibouti.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92422NAIROBI 08 April 2011 (IRIN) - What’s green, controversial, 15km wide, 7,775km long, cuts across 11 African countries and is designed to reduce livestock deaths and boost food security for millions of people? Nothing yet, but the Great Green Wall project, a pipe-dream for decades, was recently endorsed by a swathe of African states stretching from Senegal to Djibouti.]]>Fri, 18 Mar 2011 00:00:00 GMT]]>ANTANANARIVO 18 March 2011 (IRIN) - The burden of paying for education in Madagascar has shifted to the poor after donor funding was frozen in the wake of a coup on 17 March 2009.http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92235ANTANANARIVO 18 March 2011 (IRIN) - The burden of paying for education in Madagascar has shifted to the poor after donor funding was frozen in the wake of a coup on 17 March 2009.]]>