America Belize The Belize Senate unanimously approved an amendment to the Marriage Act raising the legal marriage age to 18, eliminating parental consent for minors, in a move hailed as a transformative human rights milestone to combat child marriage
Africa Tanzania The UN commended Tanzania for continuing to uphold its fundamental principles, including the promotion of peace, human rights and democracy, while accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals
Oceania Tonga Tonga's Department of Statistics team is conducting household surveys to collect data on the lives of women and children; Tonga is the first Pacific island country to conduct such a survey focusing on data on the lives of women and children
Europe Hungary 'Stars of the Polar Night', new exhibition of documentary Word Press Photo Winner Esther Horvath, opened at the Capa Centre; the work focuses on researchers working in Ny-Alesund, the epicentre of global warming in the Norwegian Spitsbergen mountains
America Grenada The government plans to build a shrine at Fort George to honour former Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and others who lost their lives on 19 October 1983 in a power struggle for control of the then ruling New Jewel Movement and the Grenada Revolution
Africa Togo Cotton production could reach 66.000 tonnes in 2024-2025 marketing year, compared to 67.000 tonnes of previous year; cotton operators gathered in Sokodé to discuss the reasons, including climatic challenges like prolonged drought during the sowing phase
Asia Bhutan In Thimphu, five new schools will become 'inclusive', ensuring access to support, resources and tailored education for children with disabilities; the initiative is part of a broader national plan to enhance inclusive education
Oceania New Zealand A major fire is raging through a protected wetland in the Waikato region of the North Island, endangering its fragile ecosystem and the rare species that inhabit it, many of which are found nowhere else on the planet
Asia Tajikistan The Integrated Rural Development Project/TRIGGER recognised the invaluable contribution of rural women to agriculture, food security and community development in workshops with 300 people including women, entrepreneurs, government officials and partners
Africa Central African Republic The country and Chad signed a memorandum of understanding to create a 'mixed border security force'; the two countries share a border of almost 1.200 kilometres
Africa Botswana Air Botswana has announced a new partnership with local dairy company Dream Flavours, as part of its strategic support for the #PushaBW initiative promoting local brands and will thus start to offer local yoghurt products on its flights
Africa Algeria The country is gradually moving towards a digital payments system, with a 71% increase in digital financial transactions in the first quarter of 2024
Asia Kyrgyzstan Construction started on a rehabilitation centre for disabled children in the Toguz-Toro district of the Jalal-Abad region
America Jamaica Jamaica's fire brigade will install smoke detectors in several homes on the island, as part of efforts to use technology to prevent and minimise fire-related deaths and injuries