Reuters—Sudan “cries for peace and justice:” Obama
President Obama named retired Air Force General Scott Gration on Wednesday as his special envoy to Sudan, picking a close adviser with broad experience in the region to lead U.S. efforts on the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Darfur. “Sudan is a priority for this administration, particularly at a time when it cries out for peace and for justice,” Obama said in a statement. “The worsening humanitarian crisis there makes our task all the more urgent.”

The Weekly Observer (Uganda)—Nairobi poverty fuels violence
Crime and violence are sharply on the rise in Nairobi, Kenya, a Kenyan journalist writes, saying that conditions of slums in the city have grown desperate due to the increasing cost of living and growing food shortages.

BBC News—UN Set to Double Kenya Food Aid
Also in Kenya, the World Food Program will give food aid to more than double the number of people it is currently helping in Kenya. The WFP will now feed 3.5 million people hit by drought and high food prices. Many families are struggling to find food for one meal a day, it said. The Kenyan government declared a national disaster in January following the failure of the short rains in south-eastern and coastal areas.

Dow Jones—U.K. Official: Business Wants G20 to Take Steps on Trade
The global business community wants the Group of 20 nations to tackle the economic crisis by concluding the Doha Round of World Trade Organization talks, increasing trade finance and fighting protectionism, U.K. Business Secretary Peter Mandelson said Wednesday. Business leaders said a commitment from G20 leaders to conclude the latest round of WTO talks is the best insurance policy against a retreat into protectionism. “A successful Doha Round alone would insure against protectionist pressures that could cost the global economy as much as $170 billion a year,” they said.

-Steve Wilson