Johannesburg - The plight of Zimbabwe's growing legions of starving people moved a group of senior public figures in neighbouring South Africa, including Nobel peace laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu, to begin a three-month rolling fast and hunger strike Wednesday.

Around half of Zimbabwe's population, estimated at 11 million, can no longer feed itself, as food production tracks the country's economic collapse. Growing numbers of hunger-related deaths, particularly in rural areas, are being reported.

After making a speedy recovery from last month’s knee surgery, Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds is now looking forward for the next month tour of South Africa.

Commenting over Symonds fitness, team physio, Alex Kountouris said, “I would be disappointed if Andrew wasn't available to go to South Africa.”

“Things are progressing well. At this stage it's hard to say when Andrew will be back but I'd expect it to be somewhere between three to five weeks”, added Kountouris.

Zurich - FIFA has kicked off the two-year-long simultaneous bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

A circular letter was sent out by football's governing body to national associations on Thursday inviting them to express their interest to submit a bid for either or both tournaments.

There are 145 associations eligible to bid for the 2018 event and 198 for 2022. South American countries are excluded from hosting both events as Brazil is due to host the World Cup in 2014, while African nations are prevented from the running for 2018 as South Africa is hosting the 2010 tournament.

Johannesburg - Every day 1,500 women die of avoidable complications in pregnancy in childbirth, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in a report released Thursday.

The overall figure stood at 10 million women since 1990, with women in Africa south of the Sahara and south Asia most at risk, the report titled The State of the World's Children 2009 said.

Women in these regions were 300 times more likely to die in pregnancy and childbirth than in developed countries.

Johannesburg - Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Thursday said he planned to return home for a meeting with regional leaders and President Robert Mugabe on the implementation of a unity government.

Addressing journalists in South Africa, Tsvangirai said he would leave for Zimbabwe on Saturday.

The meeting in Harare was scheduled for next week, but no exact has been set, the South African Press Association (SAPA) reported.

Negotiations for power-sharing under a deal signed in mid- September have stalled, with Tsvangirai and Mugabe unable to agree on the distribution of ministries.

Dubai, Jan. 14 : The South Africa team was fined for the second successive time for maintaining a slow over-rate during its six-wicket defeat against Australia in the second Twenty20 International (T20I) in Brisbane on January 13.

Ranjan Madugalle of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees imposed the fines after Johan Botha's side was ruled to be one over short of its target when time allowances were taken into consideration.