Africa Tanzania A comprehensive voluntary repatriation program has been finalized to bring back Tanzanian citizens living in South Africa, following growing impatience towards African immigrants; in co-operation with local authorities, returnees will undergo verification
Asia Laos A new study on the highly prized Asian rosewood - found mainly in the country, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia - states it is now exposed to several threats to its survival, with 5 main risks like overexploitation, fires and habitat conversion for agriculture
Oceania Fiji Several families in Nabavatu, Dreketi, a village declared unsafe by the Department of Mineral Resources due to the appearance of cracks last year, are still refusing to leave the village and the government says it will respect their choice
Asia Yemen To prevent a major environmental disaster, the UN have launched a campaign to raise $144 million to offload a million barrels of crude oil from a rotting tanker stranded off the coast for years
America Grenada The country, called the Caribbean capital of chocolate for its large production of cocoa beans, celebrates this year with the return of the Grenada Chocolate Fest from 13 to 18 May after being suspended due to the pandemic
Oceania Solomon Islands The winning design for the 2023 Pacific Games in Honiara has been officially unveiled after the Sol2023 Games Organising Committee (GOC) approved the winning design selected from 19 entries received from local artists in the country
Asia South Korea New President Yoon Suk Yeol promised a "bold plan" to strengthen North Korea's economy and improve the lives of its people in exchange for denuclearisation, in his inauguration speech on Tuesday
Europe Poland The country has registered ten times as many Ukrainian refugees since the start of the war in Ukraine as Serbia received from the Middle East at the height of the 2015 refugee crisis - of whom 141.000 on 8 March
Europe Germany Economy and Climate Minister Habeck said the country might be able to cope with a boycott of Russian gas imports as early as next winter, emphasising how everyone can play their part in reducing consumption
Europe Albania The cost per sqm of real estate in Tirana rose by 3,2% since 12/2021; Global Initiative Against Transnational Crime Initiative estimated that €300-700 million of dirty money enters Albania every year, much of it destined for the construction sector
Europe Croatia The EC has approved a positive preliminary assessment of an application for the payment of €700m in grants from the Recovery and Resilience Fund in the areas of healthcare, adult education, anti-corruption and energy efficiency in buildings
Africa Mozambique The IMF has granted a €432 million loan to Mozambique, the first since it withdrew six years ago at the time of the so-called 'hidden debt' scandal involving the government
Asia Cambodia A female stingray, one of South-East Asia's largest and rarest fish species, was accidentally caught last week when she swallowed a smaller fish that had taken a hook; she has now been released into the Mekong River
Africa Ethiopia To better respond to the challenges of domestic and foreign markets, the country should focus on diversifying imports in the opinion of Professor Berhanu Denu, teaching Economics at Addis Ababa University