Africa Cape Verde Cape Verde has entered the world's Top 30 in governance indices: the latest World Economics assessment for 2026 gave it an A rating and a score of 74, being the only African country with this distinction, thus sitting in first place on the continent
Asia Nepal Young leaders discussed democracy, climate change, social justice and digital activism in the global youth Kantipur Conclave in Kathmandu; Speakers highlighted youth-led movements as key drivers of political accountability and inclusive change worldwide
America Belize Savings from Belize's 2021 Blue Bond debt swap have been redirected into community-led projects through a conservation fund, which has supported sustainable fisheries, tourism, and local entrepreneurship
Africa Angola Angola would be pursuing a 20%-30% stake in Anglo American's diamond unit De Beers: the proposal is part of a wider round of discussion with other diamond-producing African nations
Europe Austria Skiers Ariane Rädler and Katharina Huber won the alpine team combination, the first Olympic victory for the ÖSV women in over ten years; the first gold at Milano-Cortina Winter Games came with snowboarder Benjamin Karl in the men's parallel giant slalom
Asia Philippines A Senate resolution condemns Chinese diplomats urging a firm response toward China over incidents in the South China Sea, where China allegedly harassed and intimidated Filipino fishermen, resupply missions and officials
America Argentina Special conservation campaigns have been launched to recover firefly populations, which have been declining in Argentina due to habitat loss, artificial light, and pesticide use
Asia Maldives Customers have been reporting delays in receiving gas from state‑owned Maldive Gas, company says the issue is beyond their control and caused by delays in supply; Gas is being delivered through Villa Gas, private supplier with large reserves in Thilafushi
Asia Myanmar The US extended sanctions against the military junta in Myanmar as well as financial and trade restrictions, citing the crisis following the 2021 coup still threatening regional stability, democracy and human rights
Africa Botswana New rate for personal income tax will be debated in the upcoming sitting of Parliament; proposed changes will impact corporate tax and International Financial Services Centre companies and increase top tax rate for individuals from 25% to 27,5%
Asia Malaysia In George Town, Penang, residents and members of the local Chinese community mobilised collectively to restore the 600-year-old Swee Nyet Keung clan house ahead of Chinese New Year; fundraising, cleanup drives, repairs revive the historic Hokkien landmark
Europe Lithuania 88% of Lithuanians oppose raising the retirement age, latest survey shows; Minister of Social Security and Labour underlines there are no plans to make people retire later and the currently existing retirement age for women and men, 65 years, is optimal
Europe Bulgaria Public attention in Bulgaria has been focused on an opaque criminal case, made more disturbing by lack of official information: in a week six people were found dead in Western Stara Planina, all linked to NGO National Agency for Control of Protected Areas
Africa Cameroon The Port of Douala, strategic gateway for trade in Central Africa, is gripped by a tug-of-war centered on the management of the non-intrusive cargo scanning: two rival operators have been claiming the right to inspect containers, paralyzing cargo flow