Food price hikes have hit Guinea's capital Conakry harder than many others in West Africa according to the World Food Programme (WFP), while an export ban is preventing rural populations from benefiting from high global market prices, leading to fears that mounting food insecurity could lead to instability.

As the International Crisis Group (ICG) questions the willingness of the Guinean government to hold elections in 2008 as planned, donors and opposition party members say it is not just political will but practical concerns such as a funding shortfall that put elections into doubt.

Unless all civil society actors, heads of political parties and religious leaders unite in their quest for real change, the Conté dictatorship will be restored in Guinea.

The political and economic change Guineans demanded in 2007 at the cost of nearly 200 lives is in jeopardy. Dismissal on 20 May 2008 of Prime Minister Lansana Kouyaté and his replacement by Tidiane Souaré, a close ally of President Lansana Conté, puts reform at risk. Calming talk of inclusion and pursuit of "change" from the new head of government should fool no one.

THE Brave Warrior´s 4-0 drubbing by Guinea at the weekend has caused storm clouds around the head of coach Arie Schans, with some local football pundits calling for his head.

PATHETIC Zimbabwe were left needing to move mountains to keep alive their fading 2010 World Cup and African Cup of Nations qualification hopes after putting on a sterile show in a Group 2 preliminary round qualifier against Kenya at Rufaro yesterday.

The Namibian football team the Brave Warriors suffered one of their worst defeats when the toothless Warriors found themselves at the receiving end of Guinea in their return leg 2010 FIFA World Cup preliminaries and CAF African Nations Cup qualifiers.

Guinean Prime Minister Soaré, who announced his new cabinet on 19 June, has appeased widespread fears that the new government would feature old ministers chased out of power amid the civilian unrest of early 2007. None were appointed.

Soldiers have surrounded a police camp and two policemen have been killed in the second day of police strikes over back-pay in the Guinean capital Conakry.