Full Coverage: Central Africa

31.07.2006 Congo's historic elections began Sunday with much optimism and enthusiasm and a high turnout, though all did not go smoothly everywhere in the massive and beleaguered central African country.

26.07.2006 NEW YORK, Jul 27 (OneWorld) - As millions of Congolese prepare to go to polls this weekend for the first time after four decades of political chaos and undemocratic rule in their country, one of the world's major humanitarian groups says the strife-torn African nation needs humanitarian aid at this historical juncture more than ever before.

25.07.2006 According to a new report released by UNICEF, children have been at the heart of the conflict that has raged in the Democratic Republic of Congo since 1998. Documenting their plight through photos, videos and words, UNICEF portrays "the world's deadliest humanitarian crisis."

21.07.2006 The international community has spent over $400 million to help the Congolese elect a democratic parliament next week, but without continued support the newly formed body will be ineffectual in its role of fighting corruption and stabilizing the country, the International Crisis Group said Friday.

21.07.2006 At the end of July, the first free elections in 40 years are scheduled to take place in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Though hopes are running high, rampant corruption and civil war continue to make life extremely difficult for so many; discover how you can support the Congolese on their path to peace.

18.07.2006 Some of the 8,000 foreign combatants that remain in DR Congo after its devastating civil war represent a menace to civilians but do not seriously threaten a successful outcome for the 30 July elections, according to a UN official.

17.07.2006 Juxtaposed to the estimated $1 billion that left Katanga province alone in 2005 is the unending suffering of the average Congolese, who lives on about $100 a year. But a window of opportunity exists to break the cycle of pillage, says the Friends of the Congo advocacy group.

13.07.2006 As the Rwandan government continues to try to establish national amity in the wake of the genocidal conflict between the country’s two dominant groups, the Hutus and Tutsis, a third community has been forgotten. Preti Taneja reports on the plight of the Batwa people.

13.07.2006 Hundreds of Congolese demonstrators clashed with police in the capital this week, demanding the destruction of millions of spare ballot papers printed for elections later this month as another contingent of European monitors arrived in the city.

12.07.2006 Efforts to assist more than 700,000 Angolans – mostly young children and returning refugees – will come to a halt unless new donations are received by the end of July, the World Food Programme warns.

05.07.2006 The DRC's July 30th elections are shaping up to be little more than a rubber stamp for those in power, which is exactly what Western powers need to help them maintain control over the region's tremendous resources, explains political scientist Georges Nzongola-Ntalaj.

05.07.2006 "There are long stretches of empty roads in the Central African Republic where every village has been deserted. Occasionally we see a bag on the road, dropped suddenly when someone fled into the forest at the sound of a coming vehicle."

03.07.2006 The African Union has decided that former Chadian president Hissene Habre will take the stand in Senegal to face charges of crimes against humanity, and Senegal's president Abdoulaye Wade has promised that the trial will go ahead.