Asia Singapore New cat ownership rules require pet cats to be microchipped and licensed, with limits on the number of cats allowed per household; After a two-year transition period, owners must comply or face penalties, while licences will become chargeable
Africa Zimbabwe A significant exodus of teachers is taking place with about 300 educators leaving the country every month, according to the Zimbabwe Teachers Association, due to Zimbabwe's relatively low salaries compared to those in other southern African countries
Asia Cyprus Secret service agents will be exempt from speed limits under certain conditions, under a law passed by parliament on 19 October
Europe Monaco The National Council referred the draft budget for 2024 back to the government with the request to propose a new bill "that meets the real needs of the Principality"
Europe San Marino An initiative to make San Marino the seat of international trade and investment arbitration has been launched by Industry Secretary Fabio Righi
Asia Maldives Maldivians held a second large demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinians in Rasfannu area in Malé on Friday night 20 October
Africa Seychelles Hilton Seychelles hosted a career fair for secondary school students with the aim of raising awareness of the various career opportunities that exist in the tourism and hospitality industry
Asia Kyrgyzstan 28,4 hectares of agricultural land in Kemin will be transformed for the construction of a solar station, upon instruction of the Council of Ministers
Europe Romania The Romanian competition authority is investigating Apple for a possible abuse of a dominant position, as the company does not allow any app store other than its own, limiting access to user data for advertising purposes
Europe Slovakia US Steel Košice, subsidiary of the United States Steel Corporation, will receive €300 million from the EU Recovery and Resilience Plan to decarbonise its steel production; the company stressed that the whole process is expected to exceed €1 billion
Europe Finland The new high-speed tram line 15 will be fully operative today 21 October; it will offer customers a completely new, comfortable and environmentally friendly transport
Europe Czech Republic Almost 77% of the Czech population do not trust Prime Minister Petr Fiala; by contrast, Czech President Petr Pavel is currently the most trusted politician in the Czech Republic
Africa Nigeria The government burnt nearly four tonnes of pangolin flakes, with a total value of about $1,4 million, that had been seized from smugglers
Africa Democratic Republic of the Congo The UN Security Council has decided to consider the phased withdrawal of the UN force deployed in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the Monusco mission; the Congolese government has repeatedly asked the UN to agree to the withdrawal