Mugabe and Tsvangirai to meet face to face

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe's president and his opposition rival agree to immediate talks about sharing power to resolve the country's political crisis.

President Robert Mugabe and the opposition leader are signing an agreement saying they "have an obligation" to establish a framework of "working together in an inclusive government."

The deal — which comes nearly three months after Zimbabwe's disputed March presidential election — also calls for preventing "all forms of political violence." More than 120 people have been killed, thousands injured and tens of thousands forced from their homes since the campaign began, rights groups say.

The agreement calls for talks to conclude within two weeks.

A poem for Africa

A new era is upon you.
One to replenish all of your sins
and it all started,
with your sponsored child sweet little grin.

She/he thanks you now.
For restoring her/his life.
You relieved her/him
from all her/his recent pain suffering, and strife.

Her/his expression will never change.
It will always be a smile no matter what is going on
and all her/his past memories
have faded out of her/his mind and are gone.

She/he looks up to you and
sees you as a hero.
Because you proved to him
that he can be more then just a zero.

She/he says no matter what he does or
how he does it, it will never be enough.
To repay you for showing him that he
can be more than enough.

Sean Wilson

Teaching Math in million percent inflation

Ever wondered what it is like to teach Math in a society that has million percent inflation???

Well... it makes it harder when the text books used to teach Math cannot keep up with the current situations. Consider this. When the ATM only gives out Z$100-billion at a time, enough only for two loaves of bread, students in grade school are learning about things like Z$1, and 20c and so forth. Many Zimbabwean children have never seen that type of money. These are the textbooks that were being used when I was in grade school 12 years ago!!!!! Year on Year inflation today is estimated to be around 12 million percent (no official figures from government). In textbooks, story problems portray a shopping basket to contain Milk for 25 cents, Bread for 50 cents and 2 cokes for 40 cents. I wonder what these children must think of "that" money. They have never seen it, and under these conditions they will probably never see it

ASAP has a program called Bridge the Gap which works in the rural areas to improve education standards. BTG is a program that is helping more and more students stay in school by learning to appreciate what they are learning. Too many students drop out of school after the primary level because they cannot afford to continue. ASAP Africa also equips teachers to educate effectively through holding teaching technique workshops and helping teachers to develop common exams for their area. Through these efforts at easing the transition in math education between primary and secondary school, ASAP Africa hopes to increase the percentage of students who make the jump with success.

A letter from Zimbabwe

Life is so stressful now here in Zim. Everyone thought normalcy would return soon after the elections but it is now apparent that things are getting worse. Only today, the price of a kingsize soft drink went up from Z$15 Billion in the morning to Z$65 Billion by sunset. There is no electricity often times and most people have to rely on candles for lighting that now cost $45 Billion each. For those who use (household) gas for cooking, the price is now Z$3,8 Trillion for a 20 Kg tank (contents only)!!! A quarter chicken and chips for the odd lunch now cost close to Z$450 Billion. When stressed, I find golfing a coping strategy. If I decide to play, I normally choose Wednesday afternoon from about lunch hour and spend two or so hours before returning to the office.

On the lighter side....

Support Zimbabwe

Support Zimbabwe is in the process of trying to convene conferences to bring together Zimbabweans from different parts of the world to play a constructive part in rebuilding the country. Currently, many of us have no collective plan on how we are going to either go back or be a part of the country's revival. The most important thing is to really revive the country and part of that solution requires a political change. But following that we need an economic and social plan. That will be the purpose of this conference.

Follow the link to their official website- http://www.supportzimbabwe.com