IN THIS ISSUE

EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES
ICT
Access to Information Workshop in Sudan

NEWS
CULTURE
The Afro-Arab Cultural Institute
ECONOMY & TRADE
Arab League talks on aid for Palestinians fail in wake of economic sanctions
Danish businesses feel the pain of Muslim boycotts
MENA Countries Set to Benefit from New Investment Thanks to Planned Policy Reforms
FOREIGN AID
Donors pledge $10.5 billion to Afghanistan
EU aid to continue if Hamas commits to seeking peace
… and it is not alone in Palestinian aid dilemma
Jerusalem Fund urges continued U.S. aid to Palestinians
Rice seeks $75 million to spur democracy drive in Iran
Qatar to donate $25 million to restore Lebanese National Library
GENDER
Discrimination against children of foreign fathers remains serious problem
Gender and ICTs for Development: A Global Sourcebook
Kuwaiti woman in landmark run for municipal seat
UNICEF Hails Progress toward Ending Female Genital Mutilation
HEALTH
Abortion is Middle East reality, despite religious and legal restrictions
After 5,000 years, Egypt declared free of polio
Health program makes headway in cutting treatment costs
Muslim doctors call for fatwa against smoking
NSSF faces collapse due to budget deficit
ICT
Middle East and North Africa Community Empowerment Network
Support of Information Technology for Iraq Development Program!
INTERNATIONAL NGOs
Amnesty International
POLITICS
Corrupt officials stole $700 million from Palestinian Authority
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Egypt makes tackling unemployment a priority
Iraq Foundtion: Iraq Constitution Assistance Project
Kuwait MPs propose fund for cash handouts to citizens
Program finds employment for disabled
The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR)

REPORTS & BOOKS & ARTICLES
CHILDREN
Dealing with alleged child collaborators in the Occupied Palestinian Territory in the spirit of the convention on the rights of the child
GENDER
Breaking the Silence and Saving Lives: Young People’s Sexual and Reproductive Health in the Arab States and Iran
BRIDGE cutting edge pack on gender and trade
BRIDGE publications and website on CD-ROM
Developing capacity to achieve gender equality in education
Equal participation of women and men in decision-making processes, with particular emphasis on political participation and leadership
Inside the home, outside the law: abuse of child domestic workers in Morocco
MENA Gender Agenda 2006 - Friederich Ebert Stiftung
Women in an insecure world: facts, figures and analysis
Women: Taking Control of Their Own Destiny
GLOBALIZATION & TRADE
Civil society concerned about slow delivery on democratisation and political liberalisation in Jordan
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Iraq, Past, Present and Future: A Thoroughly Modern Mandate?
"Iraq Rebuilding Badly Hobbled, U.S. Report Finds"
"Rebuilding Iraq"
No Small Change of Soldiering: The Commander’s Emergency Response Program (CERP) in
Iraq and Afghanistan
The International Advisory and Monitoring Board -- Iraq

RESOURCES
CAPACITY BUILDING
Toolkit for researchers and practitioners who wish to communicate to policymakers
Monitoring and Evaluation Resources for Program Managers
DONORS PROFILE
International Development Research Centre (IDRC)
The EU's Relations with Iraq-Before and After Saddam..
FREEDOM
Operation Iraqi Freedom and Its Aftermath