Africa Cameroon In an unprecedented disruption to academic calendar, the Ministry ordered the immediate rescheduling of all remaining papers for the ongoing 2026 examination session after a severe security breach compromised confidential materials across digital networks
Europe Switzerland Around one million counterfeit Swiss watches were confiscated worldwide in 2023, says the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry despite a constant monitoring for fake "Swiss Made" on websites or socials and training for customs officers in many countries
Africa Malawi Temwa Chawinga has been named the best female goalscorer of 2023 by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics: she is the first non-European to achieve this goal and the third winner of the award since it was established for women
Africa Zambia Health authorities recorded 4.162 cases of cholera with a peak of 257 new cases in just 24 hours, with 8 people dying; the total number of deaths is 124 since the outbreak of the disease in January 2023
Asia Nepal An agreement was signed with India to export 10.000 MW of energy over 10 years; other agreements were also signed on earthquake reconstruction, satellite launching and renewable energy
America Costa Rica As of January 1, 2024, Costa Rica has revised minimum wages, witnessing nearly a 2% increase for the private sector
Asia Jordan In response to growing environmental concerns, the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority has declared a four months comprehensive suspension of both professional and recreational fishing, ending 30 April, to safeguard reproduction and egg-laying period
Europe Ireland More than 20 primary schools who reported to be in financial difficulty due to rising costs sought contingency funding from the Department of Education last year; just one school was successful in securing additional funding
Europe Malta Pledges for property sales in Malta increased by 9% in 2023 reaching €4,6 billion according to the Malta Development Association, which called 2023 'the second best year ever' for the domestic property market
Africa Kenya A recent survey found that pollution and poor air quality could worsen the condition of menstruating women; around 65% of women in the country cannot afford the basic necessities to manage their menstrual cycle
Africa Somalia Somalia declared null and void the agreement just signed between Somaliland and Ethiopia to grant the latter access to ports
Africa Egypt Egypt officially joined the Brics, a group of countries with emerging economies, namely 'emerging national economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa'; President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi welcomed 'the confidence of the Brics member states'
America Argentina Argentina has resumed the export of seven previously prohibited beef cuts, including popular choices like asado and vacío, as the decree restricting their international trade, Decree 911/21, expired
Europe Ukraine Russia reportedly launched 500 missiles and drones at Ukraine in three days; two of the biggest cities have been hit in a wave of heavy air strikes and at least five civilians have been killed