● PM ATTENDS FRANCE-AFRICA SUMMIT. The Prime Minister, Navin Ramgoolam, left last night for Cannes, France, to attend the France-Africa summit scheduled from 15 to 17 February in Cannes, France. The main theme of this conference attended by most African heads of states and governments and chaired by French president, Jacques Chirac, is ?Africa and world balance?. The other topics are ?Raw materials in Africa?, ?The place and weight of Africa in the world? and ?Africa and the information society?. These topics will be dealt with, through panel discussions. A first panel discussion will tackle the issue of natural resources in Africa, their production and marketing. The second will deal with the future of Africa, its potential with its extraordinary youth: the youth of the world today is the youth of Africa; and the youth of Africa is the youth of the world. Finally the third will deal with the information society not only in Africa but also the way in which the Western world sees information in Africa.The first such France-Africa summit was held in Paris in November 1973. Afterwards, the summits evolved in their composition and organisation.

● BATTLE FOR LEADERSHIP OF PRIMARY TEACHERS? UNION. The Government Teachers? Union (GTU) outgoing president, Vinod Seegum, and the coalition of Challenger (Ashit Junglee) and Rallying of Democrats (Jugdish Lollbeeharry) are already honing their strategies in view of the general elections of the union?s executive committee due on 3rd March. The main concern of Vinod Seegum, the outgoing president, is the request to the ministry of Education for Bachelor in Education courses which will enhance the status of primary school teachers. He is confident that he will be re-elected in spite of the coalition. The latter has united its forces to plead for the alignment of its salary on that of secondary school teachers, automatic promotion to the grade of deputy head teacher after 25 years of service and other issues linked to teachers? welfare.