In Mauritius lies a natural wonder that has captured the imaginations of locals and travelers
Mauritius’ mesmerizing underwater waterfall illusion draws global fascinatio... Read More »
Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal each proudly claim that their version of the dish reigns supreme
The great Jollof debate: West African nations vie for Jollof rice supremacy Read More »
Low-income economies will struggle to fill climate finance gap, according to a report by the US-based global credit rating agency Moody’s. “Vast sums are needed for the world to shift to a low-carbon economy, build resilience, and adapt to the effects of climate change,” said the report released on Thursday. “Investment has risen rapidly since the 2015 Paris Agreement, but it will take a lot more to reach the goal of global net zero emissions by 2050.” The rating agency said wide investment gaps exist for both climate mitigation to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and adaptation in order to adjust to the effects of climate change. The agency estimates nations spending almost $2 trillion on clean energy this year, including low-carbon power, infrastructure, energy efficiency and electrification, adding there will be an estimated annual climate mitigation investment gap of nearly $2.4 trillion by 2030. “Adaptation investment has drawn much less funding, given its more limited commercial potential, and is well below estimated annual needs of about $400 billion, standing around $72 billion in 2022,” said the report. “This adds up to an annual climate investment gap of $2.7 trillion by 2030 – around 1.8% of global GDP – and exposes vulnerable communities to rising risks from climate change, particularly in emerging markets where investment needs are largest,” it added. Climate change also has far-reaching credit implications for economies and businesses through physical effects on livelihoods and infrastructure, or through the changes involved in reducing carbon emissions, according to Moody’s. It advised that early investment in clean energy can prevent big economic losses from climate change. “In addition to lives preserved, rapid climate spending could lead to higher growth and more revenue for governments globally over time,” said the report.
Low-income economies will struggle to fill climate finance gap Read More »
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Fitch upgrades Egypt’s rating to B with stable outlook Read More »
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered the deployment of additional military assets to the Middle East, the Pentagon said Friday. “In keeping with our commitments to the protection of U.S. citizens and forces in the Middle East, the defense of Israel, and de-escalation through deterrence and diplomacy, the Secretary of Defense ordered the deployment of additional ballistic missile defense destroyers, fighter squadron and tanker aircraft, and several U.S. Air Force B-52 long-range strike bombers to the region,” spokesman Pat Ryder said in a statement. The forces will begin to arrive in the coming months as the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group prepares to depart, he added. The statement came amid media reports that claim Iran is preparing to strike Israel from Iraqi territory in the coming days, possibly before the US presidential election on Nov. 5. “These deployments build on the recent decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system to Israel as well as DoD’s sustained Amphibious Ready Group Marine Expeditionary Unit (ARG/MEU) posture in the Eastern Mediterranean,” said Ryder. The US will take “every measure necessary” to defend its people if “Iran, its partners, or its proxies use this moment to target American personnel or interests in the region,” he said. Israeli carried out a strike last week against Iranian assets, reportedly targeting missile production facilities and air defense systems, in response to Tehran’s missile attacks on Oct. 1. Regional tensions have escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 43,200 people, mostly women and children, following a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group, Hamas, last October. As the conflict spread to Lebanon with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country, more than 2,900 people have been killed and over 13,000 injured in Israeli attacks since last year, according to Lebanese authorities.
US to deploy additional military assets to Middle East Read More »
Fitch Ratings said Friday it affirmed Nigeria’s long-term foreign currency issuer default rating at ‘B-‘ with a positive outlook. The rating agency said Nigeria’s rating is supported by the country’s large economy, developed and liquid domestic debt market and large oil and natural gas reserves. Those factors, however, are balanced against weak governance indicators, high hydrocarbon dependence, weak net foreign exchange reserves, high inflation, ongoing security challenges and low non-oil revenue. Fitch expects crude oil production to increase in 2024-2026, averaging 1.4 million barrels per day, from 1.23 million in 2023, due to improved onshore surveillance.
Fitch affirms Nigeria’s ‘B-’ rating with positive outlook Read More »
Patrick Charlier, director of the Interfederal Centre for Equal Opportunities (Unia), highlighted the concerning rise of anti-Muslim sentiment across Europe, noting that in Belgium, nine of 10 people facing discrimination are Muslim, particularly veiled women. A report released last week by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), “Being Muslim in the EU: Experiences of Muslims,” showed a marked increase in racism and discrimination against Muslims since 2016. The survey, conducted with responses from 9,000 respondents across 13 EU member states between October 2021 and October 2022, found that one in two Muslims encounter discriminatory treatment daily. Discrimination against Muslim women, men and children stems not only from their religion but is also due to factors like skin color, ethnic background and immigration history. Young Muslims born in Europe and veiled women are particularly affected. Belgium has emerged as a key area for the issues, with 43% of Muslims in that country reporting housing discrimination. Charlier, who has led the Equal Opportunities Center since 1993, emphasized the severity of the situation, pointing to hostility toward Muslims in education, employment and society. “For Belgium, when we’re speaking of religious and philosophical belief, it’s 90% concerning Muslims. The vast majority, nine cases out of 10, is according to Muslims that are facing discrimination, hate speech, hate crime,” said Charlier. “The last year, the most remarkable cases are in employment, discrimination in employment. It’s a majority of women that are victims of discrimination. When we are speaking of women in employment, that’s mostly cases of headscarves,” he said. Between 2017 and 2023, the center primarily addressed employment discrimination cases, with additional incidents occurring on social media and in schools, noted Charlier. -Anti-immigrant sentiment also fueling anti-Muslim sentiment “I think discrimination, hate speech and hate crime is grave. I don’t want to undermine the reality and the difficulty for Muslims in our country. That’s a reality. It’s not highly rising. It’s stable,” he said. “We are not out with discrimination against Muslims. We are not out on Islamophobia. There is an indirect link also with a form of what we call more xenophobia,” he said. “That’s all the discourse against asylum seekers and migration. It’s not directly focused on Muslims, but we know that this discourse against migrants is often with the idea ‘that’s Muslims that are coming from Syria, from now Palestine, from Afghanistan, and so on.’ But that’s not registered to us as ‘discrimination against Muslims’. It’s more xenophobia,” he added.
Islamophobia is rising in the West Read More »
The World Health Organization announced on Friday that nearly one million doses of mpox vaccines have been allocated to nine African countries. This follows the creation of an Access and Allocation Mechanism (AAM) last month to ensure equitable access to the vaccines. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that over 50,000 individuals have already been vaccinated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, thanks to donations from the U.S. and the European Commission. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported a 500 percent increase in mpox cases compared to last year, now affecting 19 countries. The WHO declared mpox a global health emergency in mid-August after a new strain began spreading from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Dr. Ghebreyesus stated that the allocation of approximately 900,000 doses was based on public health needs, especially in areas with significant transmission. He emphasized that this is the first allocation of nearly six million doses expected to be available by the end of 2024. While vaccination is a critical component, he highlighted the importance of other strategies, including case finding, contact tracing, infection prevention, clinical care, risk communication, and testing, as part of a comprehensive response plan.
WHO Allocates Nearly 1 Million Mpox Vaccine Doses to Africa Read More »
Africa is experiencing a technological and entrepreneurial surge as cities like Lagos, Nairobi, and Cape Town
Africa’s youth drive technology boom with start-up ecosystems Read More »
Meta Platforms’ Threads app, which is a rival to X, formerly known as Twitter, now has reached almost 275 million monthly active users, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. “It has been growing more than 1 million sign-ups per day,” he said on an earnings call late Wednesday after the release of Meta’s financial results. “Engagement is growing too. So, we continue to be on track towards this becoming our next major social app,” he added. Threads had approximately 200 million monthly active users during the April – June period, according to Meta’s financial report released in July. The number of users is up 175% from July – September of 2023 when it had 100 million users. Threads launched in July 2023 as a rival to billionaire Elon Musk’s X, who bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion.
Meta’s Threads app, rival to X, reaches 275M monthly active users Read More »
