Africa Niger Meteorite NWA16788, with 24,7kg the largest Martian rock ever found on Earth, discovered in the Agadez Region in 2023, was auctioned in New York for $4,3m; Niger’s government has launched an investigation into eventual illicit trafficking
Asia Kyrgyzstan Askar Akayev, former president of Kyrgyzstan and now professor at Moscow State University was awarded the title of Honoured Scientist of Russia by Vladimir Putin
Africa Central African Republic A 177.95-carat diamond was found in the municipality of Nzako; one of the largest diamonds ever found in the country, translucent, is still rough and is being evaluated by Becdor, the Diamond and Gold Evaluation and Control Office
Europe United Kingdom Fraudsters who fail to repay their debts of over £1.000 could be stripped of their driving licences and punished with a driving ban of up to two years, under government plans to crack down on fraud
Africa Madagascar The National Days of Reflection on Agricultural Transformation to revolutionise the agricultural sector and ensure food sovereignty have begun at the Ivato International Conference Centre
Europe Luxembourg Laura Thorn will represent Luxembourg at the Eurovision Song Contest and will be the country's second participation in the competition this century
Europe Liechtenstein Faced with a serious shortage of paediatricians, which has worsened in recent months, the country signed a contract with a paediatric practice in Chur, Switzerland
Asia Thailand In Bangkok, public transport will be free for a week to try to counteract the heavy smog enveloping the city these days; pollution has also led the local government to close 352 of the 437 schools in the metropolitan city
Africa Eswatini The new partnership between Eswatini and Google should increase investor confidence and digitise government services, allowing citizens to conveniently access digitally
Africa Djibouti The National Assembly opened its doors to a delegation of students from Holl Holl Primary School, as part of an educational visit organised at the initiative of its president, Dileita Mohamed Dileita
Africa Equatorial Guinea The country will cover 20% of its rice needs by financing the national production of one million kilos of rice per year, laying the foundation for national self-sufficiency in this essential product
Asia Georgia In 2024, the Georgian National Wine Agency registered a record USD 565 million in wine and spirits exports, up 24%from the previous year; the export country showing the largest increase was the United Arab Emirates
Africa Burundi Burundi signed agreements with the World Bank on three grants for a total USD 168,3 million that will finance a climate resilience project and two energy projects
America Grenada The Chinese government agreed to provide Grenada with 100 million yuan in free aid for mutually agreed projects during recent visit to China by PM Dickon Mitchell, who led the delegation, the first Head of Government to visit China for 2025