Asia Vietnam The biotrade project, run by the Swiss agency Helvetas and the Centre for Rural Economic Development, a local NGO, has been helping small businesses in the Mekong for the past eight years and ended with an event at the Swiss Embassy
Asia Uzbekistan The Senate approved the Entrepreneurship Code; today in Uzbekistan there are about 5.000 documents regulating entrepreneurial activity and entrepreneurs have difficulty finding the requirements applicable to their business
Asia Turkmenistan An online meeting was held between Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the UN Deputy Secretary-General, Executive Director of UN Environment Programme, to consolidate efforts to solve global environmental problems
Asia Saudi Arabia The Disabled Children's Association's Khotwa Summer Club programme, an eight-day programme aimed at providing a range of recreational, educational, social and craft activities for children with disabilities, has been completed
Asia Palestine WHO and UNICEF called for a 7-day pause in the fighting in the Gaza Strip to allow the vaccination of 640.000 children against polio, after a case was found in a 10-month-old child after more than 25 years
Asia Iran According to the Russian news agency TASS, the Iranian ambassador to Moscow, Kazem Jalali, stated that the country is ready to transit Russian gas through its territory
Asia Yemen Severe flooding and strong winds have devastated parts of Yemen, killing at least 61 people since the end of last month and displacing thousands, according to the United Nations
Asia Laos Health and labour control centres will be set up to prevent occupational accidents and diseases by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, in cooperation with six hospitals in Vientiane
Asia Japan Around 1.000 women wearing traditional costumes and golden paper lanterns on their heads danced during the Yamaga lantern festival in the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto yesterday 16 August; the festival draws up around 100.000 visitors each year
Asia Philippines The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources stated that a premature lifting of the ban on fishing in Cavite province, affected by the oil spill, could pose a danger to public health
Asia Qatar The National Library of Qatar will launch a digital family archive platform in 2025 to document a range of archival materials, including passports, photographs, stamps and correspondence
Asia Bhutan The Bhutan World Food Forum Chapter, an independent network led by over 100 young people from across the country interested in transforming its agri-food sector, was launched as part of the National Youth Symposium
Asia Palestine The death toll in the Gaza Strip has reached 40.000; authoritative research in recent months has stated that the estimate of health officials is downwards and the number is much higher, possibly reaching 185.000 according to Lancet's study