Africa This Week

News about Africa that caught my eye this week:

• Kenya is facing a terrible drought. In response, the government is evicting 20,000 squatters from Mau Forest, the largest forest in Kenya which serves as a natural "water tower" for western Kenya. The water that runs out of these forests feeds rivers and several lakes, a vital water supply for more than 10 million people and countless animals. The illegal squatters are being held accountable for clearing the forest and therefore damaging this natural reservoir. I found out that forced evictions had already been carried out a few years ago by the Kenyan Government, and according to Amnesty International, many of those evicted were not relocated nor compensated. Some had no choice but to return and rebuild their burned down homesteads. More about Mau forest and the current evictions...

• Guinea is in turmoil, news agencies are reporting over 150 dead from clashes between the army and opposition protesters in this West African nation. Soldiers have been out of control and on a devastating rampage of rape and indiscriminate violence. It's unlikely to stop anytime soon. More on this story ...

• The "Friend-a-gorilla" campaign was launched by the Ugandan Wildlife Authority and Uganda's Ministry of Tourism in a bid to increase funding for its Mountain Gorillas. You can track gorilla families, sponsor individual gorillas and more, with just a click of your mouse. Check out the new site ....

• Colonel Gadaffi took the floor earlier this week at the UN General Assembly, and didn't stop talking for 100 minutes. It was after all his first visit to the US and the first time he has had the floor at the UN. I enjoyed the fact that he apparently spent some time promoting his own web site as well as lambasting the UN and blaming swine-flu on capitalists. Here's a nice summation from the Guardian newspaper in the UK, and the key question posed by Kenyan reporter, Gitau Warigi -- "Is Gaddafi a liability?".

_{Image of Lake Nakuru, Kenya, now fast drying out -- Getty Images/Grant Faint}