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INTERNATIONAL

AFRICA:
IBM to open Kenya research lab to tackle traffic jams
IBM and the Kenyan government are to open a tech research hub in Nairobi, in a joint attempt to help solve local issues such as traffic congestion. The US firm already has 11 research outposts around the world. It plans to have up to 50 researchers in the new centre within five years, attracting potential candidates from across the continent. East Africa - especially Nairobi - has recently become an attractive destination for foreign hi-tech firms. IBM already has operations in more than 20 African countries, but this will be its first research centre on the continent. It is not clear how much the company will invest in the new lab, but globally, it spends about $6.5bn (4.13bn) per year for research and development. Kenya plans to contribute $2m (1,275,000) over five years, with copyrights for resulting works being shared, according to information and communication permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo. The initiative is aimed specifically at helping Kenya increase the use of technology in public sector areas. "The research lab will be dealing with traffic congestion, which is a huge problem, as well as solving the clean water issue, and population density in cities," an IBM spokesman told the BBC. According to IBM's 2011 Commuter Pain survey, roads in Nairobi are the fourth most congested

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in the world. "With a growth rate expected to average 7% annually over the next 20 years, Africa is poised to become a leading source of innovation in a variety of industries," IBM said.

Tunisian women protest to demand equality

Thousands of Tunisians have protested in the capital, Tunis, against moves by the Islamist-led government which they fear will reduce women's rights. The government has unveiled a draft constitution which refers to women as "complementary to men". The mostly women protesters held up placards which read: "Rise up women for your rights." Tunisia was one of the most secular Arab states before the Islamist Ennahda party won elections last year. It took power following the mass uprising which led to the overthrow of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali's regime in January 2011. The 1956 constitution said that women and men were equal, banned polygamy and introduced civil divorce and marriage. 'Open the door' Ennahda member Farida al-Obeidi, who chairs the constitutional assembly's human rights and public freedoms panel, said the wording of the draft constitution was not a backward step for Tunisian women, Reuters reports. Instead, the draft stipulates the "sharing of roles and does not mean that women are worth less than men", she said. But the chairperson of the Democratic Women's Association, Ahlam Belhadj, condemned the clause. "Major retreats usually begin with one step," she said.

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"If we stay silent today, we will open the door to everything else and end up surprised by even more serious decisions." The protests began on Monday evening after the end of the daytime fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Dragons' Den's Doug Richard to help Nigeria business

UK businessman and former reality TV star Doug Richard has launched an initiative in Nigeria to help young entrepreneurs set up businesses. The former judge on the Dragons' Den show said he hoped to help 1,250 people set up businesses in a scheme funded by the Nigerian and UK governments. The West African state is plagued by chronic poverty and unemployment. Mr Richard said his School for Startups would help young entrepreneurs in Nigeria to develop and execute business ideas. "Nigeria has the potential to be Africa's entrepreneurial superpower," he said. Mr Richard said he was looking forward to working in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country with some 160 million people. "It's the single most diverse group of opportunities I shall ever see in my life," he said. "I'm hoping that the vast majority of the 1,250 [people earmarked for training] start up businesses and that business is on the way to some kind of success." He said the Nigerian government had set aside $50m (32m) to help entrepreneurs open businesses.

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DR Congo Olympians 'missing' in London

Four members of the Democratic Republic of Congo's Olympic delegation have gone missing in London, reports say. Cedric Mandembo, who competed in judo, and coaches with the athletics, boxing and judo teams have not been seen since the closing ceremony on Sunday. The DR Congo - represented in London by four athletes - failed to win a single medal. The delegation is due to fly back home later this week. More than a week ago, five Cameroonian boxers deserted their Olympic squad. The boxers told that they wanted to stay in the UK to develop their careers. 'I don't know' Mandembo competed in the +100kg (220lb) category in London, but lost his first match after 49 seconds. The four other missing Congolese officials are reportedly boxing coach Blaise Bekwa, athletics coach Guy Nkita and judo coach Ibula Masengo. Congolese Sports Minister Baudoin said he did not know much about the disappearances. "I don't know. I left London this morning (Monday)," the minister was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency. "Yesterday (Sunday) I was with officials before the closing ceremony. They gave me a report that everything was going well," he added. The DR Congo has been ravaged by decades of war, and remains mired in poverty despite its mineral riches.

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Americas:
Ecuador to decide on Assange plea 'this week'
Rafael Correa, Ecuadors president, has said he expects to respond to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's application for political asylum some time this week. "We expect to have a meeting on Wednesday [with Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino] and I hope to make an announcement before the end of the week," the leftist leader said in an interview with public broadcaster ECTV late on Monday. "We have to review the process in Sweden," Correa said in the interview. "We have to look at the possibility that he may be extradited to the United States, that there may be a secret court there, that he may face the death penalty." Assange, 41, took refuge at Ecuador's embassy in London on June 19 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on sex crime allegations. Neither the US nor Swedish authorities have charged Assange with anything. Swedish prosecutors want to question him about allegations of rape and sexual assault made by two WikiLeaks supporters in 2010. Assange says he had consensual sex with the women. Leaked US cables The WikiLeaks founder fears that from Sweden, he could subsequently be re-extradited to the US to stand trial for espionage, after a trove of leaked US diplomatic cables and military logs were published on his whistleblower website. Correa said that he sympathises with Assange but also feels respect for the British legal system and for international law. He said his government has already gathered enough information to take a responsible decision. Baltasar Garzon, Assange's mother, recently travelled to Ecuador along with a former Spanish judge to argue in favour of granting him asylum.

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Correa has often been at odds with Washington and offered Assange asylum in 2010. He has said the mere possibility that Assange could face capital punishment in the US could be reason enough for his government to grant the activist's asylum request. Even if Ecuador decides to grant Assange political asylum, it remains to be seen if British authorities would allow him to leave the country. In the absence of a safe conduct agreement between Quito and London, he could stay on embassy grounds indefinitely.

Iconic Cosmopolitan editor dies at 90

Helen Gurley Brown, the legendary editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine who helped usher in the sexual revolution, has died at the age of 90. "Helen was one of the world's most recognised magazine editors and book authors, and a true pioneer for women in journalism," Frank Bennack Jr, chief executive of the Hearst Corp., wrote in a memo to staff confirming Gurley Brown's death on Monday. Hearst is the parent company of Cosmopolitan. Gurley Brown put her stamp on Cosmopolitan, editing the magazine for over 30 years, which became famous for its cover lines extolling the virtues of sex. Gurley Brown was at the forefront of changing sexual mores when she wrote "Sex and the Single Girl," published in 1962, about her single life, encouraging women to have sex freely regardless of their martial status. She died at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Centre after a brief hospitalisation, Bennack wrote.

Iran accused of setting up pro-Assad militias

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Iran has been accused By the US administration of setting up pro-government militias in Syria. Leon Panetta, US defence secretary, said on Tuesday that Iran is giving the fighters training and weapons. "It is obvious that Iran has been playing a larger role in Syria in many ways,"he said at a joint press conference in Washington, DC with the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Martin Dempsey. Panetta said Iran's growing presence could only aggravate the situation on the ground. There is now evidence that Iran's Revolutionary Guards are "trying to develop, trying to train a militia within Syria to be able to fight on behalf of the regime", Panetta said. "So we are seeing a growing presence by Iran and that is of deep concern to us. We do not think that Iran ought to play that role at this moment in time, that's dangerous .. it's adding to the killing that's going on in Syria." Violence continued inside Syria on Wednesday, including a bomb explosion near the hotel used by the UN observer mission in central Damascus. Alleged militia Most of the members of the alleged militia are Shia, and some are Alawites like Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Dempsey said, comparing the force to the Mahdi Army of the Iraqi Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr, an outspoken critic of the US invasion of his homeland. "The Syrian army has been fighting now for about 18 months or so. And any army would be taxed with that kind of pace," Dempsey said, noting he expected that the Syrian military was experiencing resupply and morale problems. Dempsey also said it appears that Syrian rebels are able to shoot down a Syrian warplane, but said he has seen no indication that they are armed with heavy weapons or surface-to-air missiles.

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He says the MiG fighter could have been shot down with small-arms fire. Syria has blamed the crash on a technical malfunction. "The Syrian people ought to determine their future, not Iran," Panetta said. Ghanbar Naderi, an Iranian journalist, told with Al Jazeera that this type of allegation from the US and its allies was not new. "It's obvious that armed groups and gangs have been unable to topple Bashar al-Assad after more than a year, and now they are trying to find a scape goat in Iran again," he said in an interview from Tehran. "This is not just about Syria, this is about finding an excuse to attack Iran." The US has itself faced criticism of intervention from Iran, which has criticised Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey of arming the opposition in Syria in collusion with the US and Israel. On August 4, Ahmad Vahidi, Iran's defence minister, said that "the region will face a major crisis if foreign forces, currently [covertly] present in Syria, enter the scene" and intervene militarily. "The losers of such a crisis will be the Westerners and pro-Zionist countries," he predicted in comments report on Iranian television. "It is ugly that countries ... have flooded Syria with arms, equipping terrorist groups. It will have very bad implications in the region." Ban Ki-moon, UN secretary-general, has called the Syrian conflict a "proxy war, with regional and international players arming one side or the other". Valerie Amos, the United Nations humanitarian chief who is currently visiting Syria, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that "the responsibility [for the humanitarian suffering of so many

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civilians] rests with all of those involved with the fighting". Contentious talks Panetta's comments come as an emergency summit of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) got under way in the western Saudi city of Jeddah. The summit opened late on Tuesday with a proposal to suspend Syria, a move strongly opposed by Iran. A draft final statement obtained by AFP said the summit "approves the suspension of Syria's membership", a measure recommended by a preparatory ministerial meeting held on Monday. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose country has openly criticised the push to suspend Syria, is attending the extraordinary meeting and was expected to strongly oppose the move to suspend Syria. Ali Akbar Salehi, the Iranian foreign minister, criticised the move to suspend Syria's membership of the OIC, saying it would not resolve the conflict and was not in line with the group's charter. "We have to look for other ways, means and mechanisms for resolving conflicts and crises," he said on Monday, calling for a "Syrian-Syrian solution" reached through negotiations between the government and the rebels.

Ecuador grants asylum to Julian Assange

The government of Ecuador says it has granted political asylum to Julian Assange, the country's

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foreign minister has announced. Ricardo Patino, foreign minister, made the announcement during a press conference in Quito on Thursday. "The Ecuador government, loyal to its tradition to protect those who seek refuge with us at our diplomatic missions, has decided to grant diplomatic asylum to Mr Assange," Patino said. He said that Ecuador found that Assange faces a real threat of political persecution including the threat of extradition to the United States, where Patino said the Australian would not get a fair trial and could face the death penalty. The UK's foreign office said that the British government remained "committed to a negotiated solution" that would allow UK authorities to extradite Assange to Sweden, where he faces questioning in a sexual assault case. "We are disappointed by the statement from Ecuadors Foreign Minister that Ecuador has offered political asylum to Julian Assange. Under our law, with Mr Assange having exhausted all options of appeal, the British authorities are under a binding obligation to extradite him to Sweden. We shall carry out that obligation," a Foreign Office spokesperson said. UK warning On Wednesday, Britain had issued a warning to Ecuador that it could raid its London embassy if Quito does not handover the WikiLeaks founder, who has been taking refuge at the mission since mid-June. The Ecuadorean government responded by saying that any such action would be considered a violation of its sovereignty a "hostile and intolerable act". "Under British law we can give them a week's notice before entering the premises and the embassy will no longer have diplomatic protection," a Foreign Office spokesperson said on Wednesday "But that decision has not yet been taken. We are not going to do this overnight. We want to

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stress that we want a diplomatically agreeable solution." "We want to be very clear, we're not a British colony. The colonial times are over," Patino said in an angry statement after a meeting with President Rafael Correa held after the FO had issued its warning. "The move announced in the official British statement, if it happens, would be interpreted by Ecuador as an unfriendly, hostile and intolerable act, as well as an attack on our sovereignty, which would force us to respond in the strongest diplomatic way." Ecuador, whose government is part of a left-leaning bloc of nations in South America, also called for meetings of regional foreign ministers and the hemispheric Organisation of American States to rally support in its complaint against Britain. Tight surveillance Assange, an Australian citizen,has been in the embassy for eight weeks since losing a legal battle to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he has been accused of rape and sexual assault by two WikiLeaks supporters. "The UK has a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden to face questioning over allegations of sexual offences and we remain determined to fulfill this obligation," a Foreign Office spokesperson said earlier. Swedish prosecutors have not yet charged Assange, but they have moved forward with their investigations and they believe they have a case to take to trial. Assange fears Sweden could send him on to the US, where he believes authorities want to punish

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him for publishing thousands of secret US diplomatic cables on WikiLeaks in 2010 in a major embarrassment for the US. Even though he has been granted asylum, Assange has little chance of leaving the Ecuadorean embassy in London without being arrested. The embassy building, just outside London's famed Harrods department store, was under tight surveillance late into the night, with three police officers manning the entrance and several others patrolling around the premises of the building. There has been speculation he could travel to an airport in a diplomatic car, be smuggled out in a diplomatic bag, or even be appointed an Ecuadorean diplomat to give him immunity. But lawyers and diplomats see those scenarios as practically unworkable. The Ecuadorean government has said it wants to avoid Assange's extradition to Sweden, but the approval of asylum offers no legal protection in Britain where police will arrest him once they get an opportunity. "The question of asylum is arguably a red herring," Carl Gardner, a former British government lawyer, said. Ecuador's leader Correa is a self-declared enemy of "corrupt" media and US "imperialism", and apparently felt compatible with Assange during a TV interview the Australian did with him in May. Correa joked then with Assange that he had joined "the club of the persecuted". Some, however, find Assange's connection with Ecuador odd, given that Correa is labelled a

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persecutor of the media by journalism freedom groups. Bill Gates invests in solar-powered toilet

US billionaire and philanthropist Bill Gates is investing in a solar-powered toilet for the developing world that will use little or no water. The need for a new type of toilet is an important part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's push to improve health in the developing world, officials familiar with the project said. Last year the foundation, named after the Microsoft co-founder and his wife,gave grants to eight universities around the world to help createa hygienic toilet that is safe and affordable and can transform waste into energy. The project challenged inventors to come up with a toilet that operated without running water, electricity or a septic system. It needed to operate at a cost of no more than five cents a day and would ideally capture energy or other resources. Open defecation leads to sanitation problems that cause 1.5 million children under five to die each year. The eight universities, led by Professor Michael Hoffman, designed a toilet that generated hydrogen gas and electricity. They won a $100,000 prize. Waste to electricity At the Reinvent the Toilet fair, hosted in Seattle this week, designs included a lavatory that used microwave energy to turn human waste into electricity.

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Another turned excrement into charcoal, while a third used urine for flushing. In total 28 designs were shown off at the fair and the winner was a team from the California Institute of Technology. Gates said toilet technology had not fundamentally changed since the invention of the flush toilet in 1775. "Imagine what's possible if we continue to collaborate, stimulate new investment in this sector, and apply our ingenuity in the years ahead," Gates said at his foundation's Seattle headquarters. "Many of these innovations will not only revolutionise sanitation in the developing world, but also help transform our dependence on traditional flush toilets in wealthy nations." Gates'foundation announced $3.4m in new funding on for toilet projects being worked on by various organisations, bringing total investment in its "Reinvent the Toilet Challenge" to about $6.5m. About 2.6 billion people - or 40 per cent of world's population mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia -lack access to safe sanitation and are forced to defecate in the open, according to Gates Japan weighs fate of pro-China activists Japan is weighing what to do with 14 people it arrested after pro-China activists landed on a disputed island,with China angrily demanding their immediate release. Five of the activists, who were arrested on the island on Wednesday, were in the Okinawan capital Naha where they would face questioning, police said on Thursday. The other nine detained at sea were set to arrive later in the day. "They were already taken to Naha city [in Okinawa], and questioning will start today at separate police stations," a local police officer told AFP news agency, referring to those arrested on land.

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A spokesman at the local coast guard said: "The nine arrested yesterday are to arrive at the port of Naha in the evening." Japan arrested the activists on Wednesday from the Action Committee for Defending the Diaoyu Islands group that sailed from Hong Kong, saying that they intended to plant a Chinese flag after landing on an archipelago they know as Diaoyu, but which Japan calls Senkaku. Frayed relations The row over the islands in the East China Sea, which are near potentially vast maritime gas fields, has frayed relations between the two Asian neighbours. The ties have long been plagued by the bitter legacy of Japan's wartime occupation of much of China and contemporary rivalry over resources and regional clout. Japan and China traded protests over the incident, with Tokyo lodging a complaint with the Chinese ambassador and Beijing demanding their unconditional and immediate release. The Chinese government allowed a rare and brief protest in front of the Japanese embassy in Beijing on Wednesday, where a small group of people shouted anti-Japanese slogans before peacefully dispersing. Riot police and plain-clothed security guards surrounded the embassy again on Thursday, as more protests were expected. Possible deportation Against this backdrop, about 30 people protested at the Japanese consulate in Hong Kong on Thursday, chanting slogans and demanding the activists' release. Yoshihiko Noda, Japan's prime minister, on Wednesday said Japan would "deal with the incident strictly in line with the law". Japan's foreign ministry said it had summoned the Chinese ambassador to Tokyo to register its displeasure at the landing. Beijing countered by saying it would lodge a complaint over the arrests.

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Leung Chun-ying, the Hong Kong chief executive, also said he will "closely" monitor the incident and that the city's immigration officials will be in Japan to provide assistance to the activists. The Okinawan prefectural police are expected to either turn the detainees over to immigration authorities for deportation or send the case to prosecutors for further investigation. Popular annoyance The case is a delicate one for Japan, which has to balance popular annoyance at the landing with vehement demands from China for the immediate release of the group. The activists had said the move was aimed at countering a plan by a group of Japanese lawmakers to visit the disputed islands this weekend. "We're very happy, we have tried many times and we declare this trip a big success," Chan Yulam, spokesperson for the Action Committee for Defending the Diaoyu Islands, said in Hong Kong on Wednesday. Local media on Thursday speculated that the authorities would deport the 14 within a few days. Under Japanese law, a foreigner who does not have permission to be in Japan can be turned over to immigration authorities for immediate deportation when the individual is not facing other criminal charges. In 2004, when a group of Chinese activists landed on a disputed island, the then prime minister Junichiro Koizumi ordered their deportation after two days.

Background: The Senkaku Islands, also known as the Diaoyu Islands in mainland China or Diaoyutai Islands in Taiwan, or the Pinnacle Islands, are a group of uninhabited islands controlled by Japan in the East China Sea. They are located roughly due east of mainland China, northeast of Taiwan, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands.

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Since the transfer of administration from United States to Japan in 1971, ownership of the islands by Japan has been disputed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC, also known as Taiwan). The Chinese claim the discovery and control of the islands from the 14th century. Japan controlled the islands from 1895 until its surrender at the end of World War II. The United States administered them as part of the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands from 1945 until 1972, when the islands reverted to Japanese control under the Okinawa Reversion Treaty between the United States and Japan. The islands are an issue in foreign relations between Japan and the PRC and between Japan and the ROC. In-spite the complexity of relations between the PRC and ROC, both governments agree that the islands are part of Taiwan as part of Toucheng Township in Yilan County of their respective divisions. Japan does not officially recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state.

Bangladesh mulls solar-energy options Bangladesh is struggling to generate the electricity needed to meet the demand of its 150 million people. Most Bangladeshis are not even connected to the national grid. Those who are, suffer from long and frequent power outages. Recently several suburbs of in the city of Chittagong went without electricity for four consecutive days. Local residents stormed the power supply building in protest. According to government calculations, the country needs 6,750 megawatts (MW) of electricity to meet the current energy demand but it can only supply 5,500MW. The shortfall means they are looking for alternative solutions. Authorities in Dhaka are now beginning to use solar energy. The panels are set to control traffic lights. Authorities say the system will reduce traffic jams and well-lit streets will protect people from getting mugged.

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But as Al Jazeera's Nicolas Haque reports from the Bangladesh capital, keeping residents safe and happy is expensive: each panel costs $5,000 to install. Plans are underway to expand the project and make 10 per cent of Bangladesh's power supply green and renewable by 2020.

Wen Jiabao warns China's growth is under pressure The uncertain global economic environment has hurt demand for Chinese goods China's Premier Wen Jiabao has warned that the country's economy is under pressure and that it is facing problems that may last for some time. However, he said that Beijing will be able to meet its growth target, despite those issues. He said that easing inflation had given more room to policymakers to introduce measures to spur growth. China has been hurt by slowing global demand for its exports and lacklustre growth in domestic consumption. "We have the conditions and capabilities, and will be sure to fulfil this year's economic and social development targets," Premier Wen was quoted as saying by the Xinhua news agency. Further easing? Premier Wen's comments comes amid worries of a sharp slowdown in China's economy, the world's second-largest. Its gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 7.6% during the April-to-June period. While that may be healthy compared to many developed Western economies, it was the slowest pace of expansion for China in three years. Data released earlier this month showed a sharp decline in export and import growth during July, indicating that both external and internal demand were slowing.

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The economic conditions in the eurozone and the US, two of China's biggest markets, continue to remain weak, adding to fears that China's growth may slow further in the near term. That has triggered calls for easing of monetary policy. China's central bank, the People's Bank of China, has already cut its key interest rates twice since the start of June. It has also cut the reserve ratio requirement, the amount of money the country's banks must keep in reserve, three times in past few months, in a bid to boost lending. Analysts said Mr Wen's comments indicated that Beijing was likely to ease policies further to sustain growth. "We continue to believe that a reserve ratio requirement cut is more likely than a rate cut and expect a move soon," said Dariusz Kowalczyk, a senior economist & strategist, at Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong. Botswana: De Beers moves diamond sorting to Gaborone Botswana wants to directly sell 10% of gem stones manufactured locally The world's leading diamond producer, De Beers, has started the sorting of rough stones in Botswana. It is the first step in the transfer of some of its operations from London to Gaborone, the company said. It would turn Botswana into a major international centre, with about $6bn (3.8bn) worth of diamonds expected to flow through the country, it said. Botswana has long campaigned for its diamonds to be processed, sorted, marketed and sold from the country. 'Milestone'

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De Beers' rough stone sorting or aggregation operations have been based in London for nearly 80 years. De Beers first agreed to the transfer in 2006, but it was repeatedly delayed. Botswana's Vice-President Ponatshego Kedikilwe described the move as a milestone. "From humble beginnings to becoming the leading diamond producing country by value, we now embark on another segment in the journey chain," he said. The Botswana government and De Beers - who are joint owners of Debswana, the country's main mining company - signed a deal in September 2011 to make the move from London to Gaborone. It will open the way for Botswana to directly sell 10% of gem stones manufactured locally, the AFP news agency reports. De Beers will also increase the value of diamonds it makes available to manufacturing companies in the country to $800m a year from the current $550m.

Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan has ordered an overhaul of the sports sector after the country's failure to win a medal at the Olympics. Minister of Information Labaran Maku said the president wanted a "total and comprehensive" overhaul to restore Nigerian sports to its "past glory". Nigeria's performance at London 2012 was the worst in at least 20 years, analysts say. It fared worse than many other African countries, including Gabon. Mr Jonathan had raised the issue at a cabinet meeting in the capital, Abuja, Mr Maku said. "He believes that what this nation needs at the moment is to take a sober look at what has happened and indeed change the scenario... to return the sporting sector to its past glory," Mr Maku added.

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Beaten by Gabon He said Mr Jonathan wanted to increase investment in sport by looking for private and public funding. He also wanted Nigeria to focus on improving in specific sports in the build-up to Rio 2016. Nigeria is Africa's most populous country with 160 million people and sees itself as a superpower on the continent. It spent more than $13m (8m) on the London Olympics. Nigeria had hoped its athletes would win several medals - long-jumper Blessing Okagbare and taekwondo fighter Chika Chukwumerije were expected to do well. Nigeria won four medals at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Its performance at London 2012 was the worst since the 1988 Seoul Games, when it also failed to win a single medal. South Africa won six medals in London, including three golds in swimming and rowing. Gabon, with just 1.5 million people, won its first ever medal when Anthony Obame took silver in taekwondo at the London Games.

Uganda Olympic champion Kiprotich given hero's welcome

Crowds in Uganda have given a hero's welcome to Stephen Kiprotich, the country's first Olympic gold medal winner in 40 years. Kiprotich, a prison warden who won the men's marathon on Sunday, was then presented with a cheque for $80,000 (51,000) by President Yoweri Museveni.

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He was also promoted nine ranks to become an assistant superintendent in the prisons service. Mr Museveni promised that more would be done to invest in athletes in future. people lined the street as Kiprotich waved from an open-top car with the personalised number plate "UG GOLD". At one stage the convoy was forced to stop by the crowds blocking the road on the way to State House, where Kiprotich had breakfast with the president, she says. After Kiprotich was presented with the cheque, he asked the president if he would build a house for his parents in north-eastern Kapchorwa district. Mr Museveni agreed that a three-bedroom house would be constructed. The president also admitted that funding in sports had suffered as the country had concentrated on development projects such as building schools and roads. But he promised that in future all athletes who won international medals would receive a 1m Ugandan shillings (about $400) monthly stipend to help them train. A high-altitude training school would also be built, he promised. Correspondents say the reaction in Uganda to Kiprotich's victory has been euphoric. The state-owned Vision media group set up a fund to raise prize money for the runner after he won on Sunday - and in three hours raised more than $100,000 - it aims to make it to $500,000. Uganda's last Olympic champion was 400m hurdler John Akii-Bua, who won gold at Munich in 1972.

US launches sweeping immigration reform

Undocumented immigrants are applying for the temporary right to live and work openly in the

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US, as a sweeping immigration policy reform takes effect. Up to 1.7 million people could be eligible for the programme, unveiled in June by President Barack Obama amid pressure from Hispanic voters. Republicans say Mr Obama has passed over Congress - and unemployed US citizens - with the programme. The Latino vote could be important in November's presidential election. Most of the estimated 11.5 million undocumented immigrants in the US are from Latin America.

There is both excitement and concern among young undocumented immigrants. There are worries over the $465 cost of the application. There are also the added costs of legal representation and requests for documents from countries of origin. There are also risks involved, particularly for those whose applications are denied. This will leave the door open for authorities to start a removal process against them. There is also the question of the information that they must provide about themselves and other members of their families. This will permanently be in the hands of officials and could be used against undocumented immigrants if this programme is ever rescinded. Such measures may be unlikely. The immigration issue has become so hot politically that immigrants feel it is their moment and whoever ends up in the White House will have to deal with them in a just and fair way.

Brazil announces $60bn stimulus package

Brazil's government has unveiled the first phase of a major economic stimulus package designed to boost growth in the flagging economy.

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More than $60bn (38bn) will be invested in the country's roads and railways over the next 25 years, with more than half in the next five years. This includes 8,000 kilometres of new roads and 8,000kms of railways. Further announcements involving investment in ports and airports are expected in the coming weeks. Growth in Brazil is predicted to be less than 2% this year, the weakest annual performance since 2009 and a sharp slowdown from an impressive 7.5% rise in 2010. The government's recent measures, such as the recent devaluation of the currency, the real, and the progressive reduction in interest rates, have so far failed to stimulate growth. "The measures unveiled by the Brazilian government this afternoon are good news insofar as they will help tackle some of the supply-side problems that are holding the economy back," said Neil Shearing at Capital Economics. But he said the benefits would not be felt fully for a number of years. Changing tack Brazil's growth over the past few years has been based on the expansion of credit and on consumer spending. But while this strategy seemed to work, it also exposed serious weaknesses in the country's infrastructure. The government has now made a conscious decision to encourage more private sector investment. The business community in Brazil has praised the government's decision to boost investment in infrastructure, but says the action is long overdue. In addition to the announcements made on Wednesday, President Dilma Rousseff is preparing to lower the price of energy for industry with the abolition of some federal taxes, which could cut the price by 10%. Brazil is also hoping for an economic boost from hosting the Olympic Games in 2016.

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Former Argentine president de la Rua in corruption trial The trial has begun in Argentina of former president Fernando de la Rua, accused of bribing senators to approve a labour reform bill in 2000. Prosecutors say Mr de la Rua paid some $5m (3m) to secure the votes of a group of senators in favour of legislation scrapping workers' rights. He denies the charges and says the accusations are politically motivated. Mr de la Rua resigned in 2001 amid riots triggered by one of Argentina's most serious economic crises. Twelve years after the legislation was approved - and nearly a decade after it was revoked - the 74-year-old former president appeared in court in Buenos Aires to hear the charges. Helicopter escape More than 300 witnesses are due to be questioned, including President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, his political rival. President Fernandez, who was a senator at the time, voted against the bill and is not accused of taking a bribe. Dramatic exit: the president leaves the Casa Rosada as the economy collapses A verdict is not expected till next year. Among the witnesses is a former parliamentary secretary, Mario Pontaquarto, who says Mr de la Rua gave him instructions to hand out the bribes. The employment reform law, which made it easier for companies to sack staff, had the backing of the International Monetary Fund. The IMF was demanding public-sector cuts and pro-business reforms in order to approve new loans to Argentina's troubled economy.

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Eventually, the IMF refused to extend more loans. Mr de la Rua's unpopular austerity measures led to riots in Buenos Aires. In December 2001, after days of clashes in the city centre, the president resigned and famously left the presidential palace in a helicopter.

India court seeks information on missing children India's Supreme Court has ordered the federal and state governments to provide information on 55,000 missing children in the country. The court is hearing a petition filed by a lawyer which claims the government has "failed to trace" the children. The petition said children were being bought and sold for "illegal acts and sexual exploitation". Child rights organisations claim that thousands of children disappear in India every year. The petition blames the states for failing to solve the kidnapping and trafficking of these children by organised gangs. A recent report by the child rights organisation Bachpan Bachao Andolan, said nearly 11 children go missing in India every hour and at least four of them are never found. Based on the findings, the group estimates that the total number of children who go missing every year in India could be as high as 96,000.

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