By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

The Democratic Republic of Congo appears set for the July 30^th presidential elections, the first-ever democratic elections since 1960, when Patrice Lumumba was elected Congo’s first prime minister. Twenty-five million people have registered to vote, and 33 candidates are running for president. One of those is Alafuele Mbuyi Kalala, leader of the Rally for a New Society party. He holds a doctorate of science degree with a specialty in biochemistry and physics. From Washington, Kalala spoke with Voice of America reporter James Butty to explain why he is running for president of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

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By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

The United Nations says government forces in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo are committing an increasing number of serious human rights violations.

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By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

Delegates to the Sixth Africa Governance Forum are meeting for the second day in Kigali, Rwanda. The three-day conference brings together officials from 28 African countries and was organized by the African Union’s Peer Review Panel and the UN Development Program’s Regional Bureau for Africa. Working in collaboration with those two groups are the African Development Bank and the Economic Commission for Africa, the ECA.

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By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

Opposition groups in Chad are rejecting election results that show President Idriss Deby won a third elected five-year term. They say the vote was characterized by fraud and a low turnout.

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By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

Chadian President Idriss Deby was elected to an unprecedented third term in office, following the final tabulation of the votes cast in the May 3^rd presidential election. Chad’s Independent Electoral Commission tallied the results, reporting Deby the winner with 77% of the votes, more than nine times that of his closest opponent, former prime minister Kasire Coumakoye, who earned just 8%.

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By Voice Of America | On May 16, 2006 | In Africa | Rated

It has been three years since Chad became an oil-exporting nation. The promise of petroleum revenues had fueled hope that the central African country, long one of the world's poorest, would embark on the road to prosperity. But there are few, if any, visible signs of improvement. Joe Bavier recently traveled to Chad and filed this report.

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