Oceania Palau A historic $15 million financing agreement has been signed with Saudi Arabia, marking a shift in how Palua's National Development Bank will now operate, as the loan will be directly invested into building affordable housing
Europe Croatia With 34 and possibly more bat species, Croatia is among the European countries with the greatest biodiversity of bat fauna, but their conservation status is poor or inadequate, said the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition
Asia Taiwan Budget for National Military Museum has been increased adding NT$2,59 billion (US$80,62 million) to project 9 years in making; the defense ministry said the National Military Museum will be completed in August 2025
Europe North Macedonia Turkey's foreign minister, on a visit to North Macedonia, said he expects the country's new government to "give stronger support" to the fight against supporters of exiled preacher Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara accuses of terrorism
Europe Sweden The Swedish Prison and Probation Service is under pressure to recruit 5-6.000 new staff annually to manage the growing number of inmates, yet it must cut daily costs per inmate; the expansion is driven by policies that have increased the prison population
America Saint Lucia Amid concerns over dengue fever, 40 cases have been recorded in Saint Lucia this year, mosquito control measures have been stepped up and include house-to-house inspections to eliminate breeding grounds and treatment of abandoned or open water sources
Europe Slovakia Bratislava's Danube port can become part of the EU's strategic transport routes and can be used for goods and materials for the reconstruction of Ukraine, increasing the chance of obtaining the funds; consequently, its modernisation has now been planned
Africa Djibouti The government expects Ethiopia to accept an offer for exclusive access to one of its ports, a proposal aimed at defusing regional tensions triggered by Addis Ababa's attempt to regain direct access to the sea
Asia Qatar A new study by Smart focuses on public attitudes towards retirement savings in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE; the survey of 1.500 individuals revealed that most respondents considered benefits as a key driver to relocate to Qatar or other Gulf countries
Europe Czech Republic More than 490 schools across the Czech Republic received bomb threats on Thursday, for the third consecutive day; police believe the danger is very low, but many schools chose to close or take classes outside as a precaution
America Guyana An outstanding 49,7% GDP growth in the first half of 2024 has been recorded in Guyana, with the overall economic outlook for the year remaining positive
Africa Cape Verde To veto the status of lecturer, a President's decision, has been considered by the Government a 'severe blow' to the valorisation of professionals, and asked him to reconsider and promulgate Plan to enhance teaching class and improve the education system
Africa Lesotho In 2023, 17.109 people with HIV were cured and 1.483 new infections in children were prevented respectively through anti-retroviral therapy and prevention of mother-to-child transmission, a great success of the country's AIDS campaign
Africa Botswana Elections will be held on 30 October, as announced by President Mokgweetsi Masisi, who also declared 30 and 31 October public holidays to facilitate greater access to the ballot box, urging all citizens to exercise their democratic rights