Africa Zimbabwe President Mnangagwa signed into law constitutional changes that extend his time in office to 2030; new legislation, approved by Parliament last month, also introduces a provision allowing presidents to be elected by lawmakers instead of direct public vote
Asia Afghanistan USAID announced a contract to sell 600 kg of Afghan saffron to Paris Exposition 2024, worth over $1million; Afghanistan’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce said that saffron cultivation has expanded to 26 provinces following ban on opium poppy cultivation
Africa Benin The country is home to an active judo federation that has 30 clubs and 1.200 judokas; the President of Benin Judo Federation and the Secretary General are committed to finding solutions to increase the number of women in the sport, which still remains low
Oceania New Zealand The Royal New Zealand Air Force has welcomed its 4th C-130J-30 Super Hercules transport aircraft in Whenuapai, continuation of a NZ$1,5 billion (US$899,9 million) programme to replace the service's C-130H fleet, which has been operational since the 1960s
Europe Andorra The school in Andorra will phase out iPads and start introducing Chromebooks that will be acquired by the ministry; authorities say the move should limit distracting elements outside the teaching environment
Oceania Australia Skyscanner's Travel Trends 2025 report shows that the most popular place Australians want to travel next year is Siem Reap in Cambodia, home to the famous Angkor Wat temple, with a +529% interest; up to now, Japan was the most desired country to visit
Africa Kenya The construction of the Rironi-Mau Summit Highway is set to begin with funding from the Chinese government; a controversial news that follows the cancellation of the bid awarded to a French consortium by former President Kenyatta
Africa Nigeria The country is facing one of its worst food crises with more than 30 million people expected to be food insecure next year, an increase of one third compared to this year
Europe Hungary The state of emergency introduced in 2022 due to the war in Ukraine has been extended, leaving wider decision-making powers to the Orbán government and to rule by decree, thus also passing laws with no parliamentary procedure until at least May 2025
Europe Iceland Local goat breeders are trying to pursue the same selective breeding that is saving Icelandic sheep from scrapie, but without success; only about 2.000 Icelandic goats, vulnerable to the disease, are left
Africa Mali Return to school for the 2024-2025 school year took place yesterday, a month later than normal due to the severe floods that hit the country and the state of natural disaster; one week ago, 175 schools were still occupied by hundreds of families
Africa Namibia Coca-Cola Beverages Africa invested $50 million in a new bottling line in Namibia, which will produce 27.000 bottles per hour, increasing production capacity by 30%
Asia Tajikistan Journalist and environmental activist Zulfiya Golubeva launched the #OzmuniSabz2024 environmental campaign, offering citizens the opportunity to help clean up the capital and win valuable prizes with the support of the European Delegation in Tajikistan
Europe Switzerland The UBS CFA indicator, which summarises expectations of financial analysts and economists regarding the economy over the next six months, remains negative for the fifth month in a row, despite a figure slightly better than expected in the October report