Europe France Cannes, the city on the French Riviera hosting a major film festival, has announced it will introduce quotas on Airbnb rentals in two key areas of the town, making it one of the first French cities to implement restrictions under new legislation
Africa Ghana A new set of words, relating to cooking, dance, music, but also expressions of popular slang, from Ghana and Nigeria have made it into the latest edition of the Oxford Dictionary; one example is 'Ghanaian banku', a paste of fermented maize and cassava
Africa Guinea-Bissau The government urged the Chinese company GMG Internacional SA, which operates the Varela heavy sands mine, to commit to fulfilling its social responsibility by rehabilitating schools and improving the road section serving the premises
Africa Kenya A young Kenyan, Joseph Nguthiru, proposed to turn an invasive plant on Lake Naivasha into biodegradable packaging; his company, HyaPak, works together with fishermen at the lake who are affected by the phenomenon
Africa Rwanda The Plenary Sitting of the Chamber of Deputies called for immediate action to address challenges in Rwanda's agricultural sector, emphasizing the necessity for increased productivity and sustainable market solutions, particularly focusing on rice harvest
Africa Chad An ordinance introducing measures to prevent and suppress violence against women and girls was passed 72 hours after the launch of an online petition, initiated by the Ligue Tchadienne des Droits de la Femme
Europe Iceland The use of tanning beds has steadily decreased: only 5% of people said they had used them in the past 12 months, compared to over 30% in 2004; the number of tanning beds has also decreased, with 86 beds in 2023, compared to 97 in 2020
Europe Slovenia The government initiated a programme of measures to reduce environmental degradation in several municipalities in the northern region of Koroška, where the situation worsened due to the 2023 floods
Africa Tunisia The heart failure unit, electrophysiology unit, anaesthetists and cardiovascular surgeons at Rabta Hospital successfully performed an electroporation ablation procedure for atrial fibrillation, a world first in this field
Asia North Korea North Korean state media first covered US President Donald Trump's election victory and inauguration on Wednesday morning, after Trump broke precedent by calling the DPRK a nuclear power a few hours after his inauguration
Asia Yemen Yemen discussed with neighboring Sultanate of Oman ways to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in the areas of agriculture, fisheries and water resources
Asia United Arab Emirates After large numbers of sea turtles have been stranded on Dubai's beaches in recent days due to high winds and low temperatures, Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project in Jumeirah launched an appeal for help on social media
Europe Vatican City Cardinal Parolin, reaffirming that the presence of Christians in the Middle East is essential, held a meeting in Amman with papal representatives of ME nations, in which he called for a ceasefire “on every front”, and spoke to Lebanon's new president
Asia Bhutan Yak farming in Bhutan faces threats from declining populations, wildlife conflicts and rural depopulation; new Ministry’s Five-Year Plan provides for improved rangelands, breeding programs and support for highlanders to sustain this traditional livelihood