Africa Zambia Rodney Sikumba, Minister of Tourism, has been recognised by Safari Club International as the 2026 International Legislator of the Year, a distinction highlighting his role in promoting sustainable-use conservation and wildlife policy on the global stage
America Cuba Raul Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, grandson of Cuban general Raul Castro, has become a frequent visitor to Panama, using private planes for his travels; it has been confirmed that he has visited the country many times in recent years, at least ten in 2025
Europe France Following the vaccination of a herd of Blonde d'Aquitaine cattle in Haute-Garonne against lump-shaped dermatosis, the Minister of Agriculture defended her strategy in a crisis meeting and called for a "sanitary barrier" to be erected against the disease
Oceania Australia At least 15 people have been killed and 27 are in hospitals after a shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, the country’s worst in 30 years; attackers targeting Jewish Australians were “driven” by extreme ideology, but “weren’t part of a wider cell”
America Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Over 97 farmers and other stakeholder representatives operating in the Richmond area in Agricultural Region 1, participated in a stakeholder consultation on irrigation infrastructure development
Asia Taiwan The Museumbrary opened in Taichung, a 5.000-square-meter library-museum hybrid funded by a US$15 million municipal grant and private donations; targeting a 15% drop in youth readership, it expects 500.000 visitors in the first year with free admission
Europe Sweden The Administrative Court has stopped all planned licensed wolf hunting in 2026 in all five counties where hunting was supposed to begin on January 2; hunters associations oppose the decision and Minister for Rural Affairs doubts about its application
America Panama A 2025–2030 trade facilitation plan with five strategic pillars has been launched to modernize foreign trade, enhance digitalization, and strengthen Panama's position as a competitive regional logistics hub
America Venezuela A Venezuelan-linked oil tanker has been seized by US forces near the Caribbean coast, claiming it supported terrorist networks, prompting Venezuela to denounce the act as piracy and vow to defend its sovereignty internationally
Africa Kenya After Amnesty International made public that Kenyan women working as domestic laborers in Saudi Arabia face extreme exploitation bordering slavery, the New York Times set out to investigate, recently exposing a net of corruption and human trafficking
Africa Ethiopia Copper cables, plastic tubes and metal components have been looted along an under-construction road in Addis Ababa, running from Edna Mall to Haya Hulet; thefts have occurred in full view, according to eyewitnesses
Africa Sierra Leone Africa No Filter awards celebrated African films that challenge stereotypes and reshape how global audiences understand the continent; this year the public was invited to nominate films and 300 submissions came from across the continent and its diaspora
Africa Tanzania Main opposition party Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo, banned from October's elections, is now calling for a transition government as a state of uncertainty spreads across Tanzania
Africa Mauritius The protection of agricultural land is a major focus of the Minister of Agriculture, Food Security, Blue Economy and Fisheries, as agricultural land has been diverted to non-agricultural activities, creating increasing pressure on local food production