Europe Spain A political and cultural dispute erupted over Basque regional government's formal request to host Pablo Picasso’s anti-war painting Guernica for 9 months; 2027 marks 90th anniversary of the first Basque government and of the bombing of the town Guernica
Europe Albania The country has given preliminary approval to one of Donald Trump's family's two major projects in the country: a luxury resort on Sazan Island; the project can proceed to the next stage, namely the environmental impact assessment
Africa Mali Mali, with Niger and Burkina Faso, will lose its membership status in the Economic Community of West African States on 29 January, following withdrawal from ECOWAS after refusing the bloc's demand to restore democratic rule.
Africa South Sudan Following attacks on businesses and homes owned by people from Sudan, President Salva Kiir has called for calm and urged citizens not to take the law into their own hands; a nationwide night curfew was imposed to try to bring tensions under control
Asia China For months, over 500 self-driving taxis have been roaming the streets of the city of Wuhan, in what is the world's largest experiment with self-driving cars
Africa Ethiopia Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway S.C. achieved profitability in Q4 2024 for the first time since its operational launch; the announcement followed a comprehensive evaluation of the 2024 performance and the result opens to a three-year plan to consolidate profit
America Trinidad and Tobago Following a weekend of violence which took the islands’ murder total to 623 in a year, the Trinidad and Tobago authorities on 13 January extended the nationwide state of emergency for a further three months, with no curfew nor restrictions on gatherings
America Saint Kitts and Nevis As the country registered a 70% reduction of shootings and killings in Q3 2024, PM Dr. Terrance Drew hailed the resilience of the people and the effectiveness of crime prevention strategies, inviting citizens and stakeholders to celebrate the progress
Asia Turkey Additional measures to prevent the sale and consumption of counterfeit alcohol have been announced by the Istanbul governor's office, after dozens of deaths linked to smuggled drinks have been recently reported
Africa Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traoré has banned the wearing of British and French colonial-style wigs by judges, a highly symbolic move that reflects the intention of decolonising Burkina Faos's judicial system
Asia Maldives The Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation announced a major promotional campaign in Germany ahead of the ITB Berlin 2025 tourism fair to be held 4-6 March
Asia Uzbekistan The draft state programme for 2025, published for public input, includes an item proposing to assess the degree of corruption propensity of at least 500 senior civil servants and those in reserve for these positions
Europe North Macedonia Employees of the Ministries of Culture, the Environment, European Affairs, Digital Transformation, Transport and Communications and the Economy staged a protest, demanding a 30% salary increase and the signing of a collective labour agreement
Africa Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau's High Commissioner for the Islamic Pilgrimage to Mecca and Saudi Arabia's Deputy Minister of Hajj and Umrah signed an agreement formalising the participation of 751 Guinean worshippers in the event to be held in May from 26 to 11 June