Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer. Every weekday, we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

For 16 years, the Darfur region in Western Sudan has been the site of horrific crimes against humanity.

Our correspondent went to see the transition of power now underway as the country is offered a chance for peace.

And we take a look at efforts to help immigrants into the labor market.

Many want to rebuild their lives by starting businesses,

and they find niches that natives overlook.

But to be able to do that, authorities have to let them work. First up, though,

Throughout the autumn, people in France have expressed concern about proposed sweeping changes to the pension system.

Today, they're taking to the streets in a massive rolling general strike.

Well, there is expected to be a very big turnout today with the strikes,

and probably, you know, the biggest that we've seen here, certainly all year in France.

Sophie Petter is the economist's Paris Bureau Chief.

The SNCF, the railways, has already said that one in ten trains will be working,

which means a massive participation rate.

It's not just trains.

Roads, airports, schools, even opera performances are set to be disrupted as the unions flex their muscles.

It's even some lawyers or some teachers taking part, some hospital workers.

The reforms of President Emmanuel Macron aimed to simplify a pension system that's incredibly complicated and expensive.

Average incomes of over 65s are in fact higher than those of under 65s, and in two years' time, the public pension

scheme is expected to be 10 billion euros in the red. Not much is clear about Mr. Macron's

proposed changes, except that they won't tackle those costs. In fact, the details of the reforms

haven't even been published yet. There's something very curious about this strike because it's actually happening ahead of

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