insert_link World Vietnam president handed power as party leader seeks medical care Vietnam's communist party handed the reins of power Thursday to the country's largely ceremonial president, To Lam, as its 80-year-old leader and general secretary temporarily stood down for health reasons. The politburo appointed Lam, 67, to take over as both the party and country's caretaker leader while current General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong focused "on active treatment", the Vietnamese Communist Party said in an online statement. […] todayJuly 18, 2024 13
insert_link APO International United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) Trains South West State Civil Aviation Firefighters Twelve Somalia Civil Aviation Authorities, Airport Fire Rescue personnel from South West State have successfully completed a Airport Fire and Rescue course conducted by the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) Aviation Services to enhance Somalia’s safety aviation sector. The course held in Baidoa - the administrative capital of South West State – is a continuation to a two-month firefighting training held earlier in Mogadishu. It is part of UNSOS’s ongoing […] todayJuly 18, 2024 9
insert_link Africa How militia groups capture states and ruin countries: the case of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces By Federico Manfredi Firmian, Sciences Po The rise of Sudan’s most notorious paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, shows how armed groups can infiltrate state institutions – often with disastrous results for society. Sudan’s central government created the Rapid Support Forces in 2013 as dictator Omar al-Bashir’s private protection detail. The group has now become a predator seeking to gain control of Sudan. Sudan’s war […] todayJuly 18, 2024 6
insert_link Environment The basic care during the winter lambing and kidding season By Erastus Ngaruka,Technical Advisor, Livestock & Rangeland During the winter season, smallstock (goat and sheep) farmers always have a big task at hand of ensuring that the lambing (sheep birth) and kidding (goat birth) season progresses well with fewer or no complications in their kraals to potentially achieve their production targets. Generally, animals’ breeding activities take place during seasons or times most favorable to their […] todayJuly 18, 2024 8
insert_link Environment Wildfires in South Africa are set to increase: how legal action can help the country adapt better to climate change By Tracy-Lynn Field, University of the Witwatersrand As climate change drives temperature increases and lower precipitation in southern Africa, research has found that there is likely to be an increase in the number of wildfires in regions that are already hot, dry and water scarce. Massive wildfires broke out in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province on 12 and 13 July 2024, killing six firefighters who were […] todayJuly 18, 2024 27
insert_link APO International Unite Oil & Gas’s (UOGI) Yachtze Luchin to Deliver Technical Presentation at African Energy Week (AEW) 2024 Amid Geoscience, Field Development Drive in Africa A strong slate of high-impact wells is expected to be drilled in Africa in 2024 and 2025, 70% of which will be in frontier and emerging basins. Africa dominates global high-impact well drilling this year, with 13 of the 36 anticipated wells set to be drilled across the continent. Representing one of the final frontiers for oil and gas exploration, a number of countries are also progressing with seismic data […] todayJuly 18, 2024 12
insert_link Namibia Home Affairs Mass Registration Effort Nears Completion with Over 90,000 Served The Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety, and Security ministry is concluding its annual mass registration outreach this month, having assisted more than 90,000 individuals with essential national documents. The initiative, covering all 121 constituencies from February 5 to July 31, aims to provide birth certificates, identity documents, and duplicates, alongside processing citizenship applications. Deputy Minister, Lucia Witbooi emphasized collaboration with constituency councillors to ensure effective outreach coordination and community awareness of […] todayJuly 18, 2024 21
South Africa City of Tshwane says it will honour its commitment to pay employees a salary increase To South Africa, where the City of Tshwane says it will honour its commitment to pay employees a salary increase. On Monday, the Metro began wage talks with the South African Local Government Association, South African Municipal Workers' Union, and the Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union at the South African Local Government Bargaining Council. City Manager, Johann Mettler, says provision has been made to pay staff a 5.1-percent salary […] todayJuly 18, 2024 195
insert_link World Protesting students announce nationwide shutdown in Bangladesh Protesters in Bangladesh are enforcing a nationwide shutdown on Thursday, saying only hospitals and emergency services will be allowed to run. Six students have been killed in clashes with police and pro-government groups this week. Protesting students want an end to a controversial quota system for families of veterans who fought in Bangladesh's war of independence in 1971, saying jobs should be given on merit. Our South Asia correspondent Neha […] todayJuly 18, 2024 65