Europe Norway Following ongoing reduction of sealife in the Oslo Fjord, extensive bans on fishing in three key areas will come into force from January 1. Critics and fishing firms claim farming, development and other sources of pollution should be addressed first
Europe Norway 8 months before the elections, the coalition between the two parties that had governed since 2021 broke apart: Centre Party and Labour Party had been squabbling for weeks over the adoption of 3 European directives on environmental and energy issues
Asia Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had received an invitation to meet the US president at the White House on 4 February; he would be the first international leader to visit Trump in his second term
Africa Uganda The Butabika Psychiatric Hospital is raising the alarm about a deep mental health crisis impacting communities across the country, where young people under the age of 17 are particularly affected, mainly due to drug and alcohol abuse
America Jamaica Before the end of the fiscal year 2024/25,work is scheduled to begin on 100 roads under the Shared Prosperity through Accelerated Improvement to our Road Network programme
Africa Burkina Faso The first passport issued with the logo of the Alliance of Sahel States is the one of the president of Burkina Faso, general Ibrahim Traoré, who is also the youngest head of state in the world
Europe Malta A full year of paid leave - between maternity and parental - has been proposed by the Nationalist Party within a package of 10 work-life balance measures to provide flexibility for families
Europe Belgium In 2024, 411.021 counterfeit articles were seized in Belgium, almost double the previous year's total of 217.053, announced the Ministry of Economic Affairs
Asia Maldives The government of the Maldives commissioned the Thai company Control Data to redesign the system for managing civil registration, vital statistics and identification
Asia Myanmar The UN Secretary-General on Thursday said Myanmar’s military must relinquish power to allow a return to civilian rule through an inclusive democratic transition, as the country marks four years since the junta seized power
Africa Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam spoke on the phone to UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer; the leaders began by reflecting on their first months in office and discussed the relationship between the two countries, which they looked forward to expanding
Asia North Korea North Korean soldiers who were fighting alongside the Russian army on the frontline against Ukraine have been withdrawn after numerous losses, according to US and Ukrainian officials heard by the New York Times
Europe Latvia On 1 and 2 February, Ģertrūdes Street Theatre will host 'Avots' language festival with thematic lectures, discussions and workshops exploring the languages in the context of the relationship between the individual and society, and lesser-used languages
Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina A second programme loan for health sector development policies worth $75 million has been approved by the World Bank Board of Directors to support the implementation of policies to improve the financial stability of healthcare institutions