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 Japan A traditional rice-planting dance was performed on 18 February at Kusano shrine in the Ukedo area in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture; the shrine was rebuilt after being swept away by tsunami triggered by the March 2011 earthquake
Africa Tunisia Tunisian opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi began a hunger strike on Monday in solidarity with other anti-government figures who are leading a protest fast
Oceania Palau In a rally echoing his campaign slogan 'Palauans First', President Surangel Whipps Jr. officially launched his re-election bid, becoming the first candidate to declare for the November 2024 general election
Africa Egypt Suez Canal revenues are down 40-50% this year to date due to attacks on shipping by Yemen's Houthi rebels
Europe Switzerland The Graubünden cantonal police have launched an investigation on suspicion of discrimination and incitement to hatred following the decision of equipment rental shops in Davos to stop renting to Jewish people
Europe Slovakia Malnutrition affects almost two-thirds of Slovakian hospitalised patients; despite additional costs of malnutrition entails for healthcare system, interventions remain minimal, according to research by Slovakian Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition
Africa Somalia The Somali authorities banned, for security reasons, the wearing of masks in the capital Mogadishu, as the use of masks would be used to conceal identity and facilitate criminal activities
America Trinidad and Tobago The Northern Division Operations Centre activated the TTPS Coastal and Air Support Unit and the Trinidad and Tobago Fire Service after a family alerted the E999 Command Centre that they were lost on a hike
Africa Sao Tome and Principe The technical coordinator of the Associação Programa Tatô spoke about the state of conservation of sea turtles: "five of the seven species of sea turtles that currently exist in the world are found, four of which lay their eggs on the island of São Tomé"
Africa Namibia In response to a request from the government for technical assistance to support the design and implementation of an index-based agricultural insurance programme for small farmers, a diagnostic report was prepared by the World Bank
Europe Norway The au pair programme is being phased out after years of complaints about exploitation by Norwegians who used it to get cheap domestic help; from 15 March no more applications for au pair work will be accepted from residents of countries outside the EEA
America Suriname 24 nursing assistant students received certificates from the Labor Mobilization and Development Foundation in Suriname after a year-and-a-half training program; they can now enter the national healthcare workforce
Asia Qatar In an effort to address evolving paediatric nutrition concepts related to metabolic diseases, Qatar University will host its second Child Nutrition Conference on 21-22 February at the College of Education building