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Anambra First Lady Charge Mothers On Health Values

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Anambra Governor’s wife, Nonye Soludo has asked pregnant and nursing mothers to adopt the right health principles.

Mrs. Soludo, who gave the charge in Awka, explained that proper hygiene check is one of the first steps towards healthy living and expressed concerns about hygiene habits and general living standards of pregnant and nursing women in Anambra State and Nigeria in general.

The governor’s wife, who regretted the alarming number of diseases and deaths resulting from poor hygiene practices among pregnant women and nursing mothers, especially those in the rural areas, noted that apart from self-awareness, women should embrace lifestyle that put their health first.

She noted that, “Apart from choosing the right diets, regular exercise and paying proper attention to the body system, pregnant and nursing mothers should remain conscious of existing and developing health-related changes in their environments.”

The Anambra First Lady, cautioned against indiscriminate food consumption and explained that as a hygiene and healthy living campaigner, she has a responsibility to ensure that the right health patterns are maintained among women and children in Anambra State, noting that she is pained by report of maternal and child mortality in the state, most especially those that could have been avoided.

Mrs. Soludo, who is the Anambra Net Ambassador, also asked pregnant and nursing mothers, as well as all households, to always sleep under the Insecticide Treated Nets that were recently distributed across all homes in the state, in order to avoid mosquitoes and malaria, which is one of killer diseases in Nigeria.

She also said that, her husband’s administration is instituting the right health policies to tackle challenges facing health service delivery in Anambra State, including reforms in Primary Health Care management, recruitment of fresh hands into the state’s health sector, repositioning of Anambra State Health Insurance Agency (ASHIA), among others.

Niger Delta Community Gets Medical Facility

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The Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs (MNDA), has announced a plan to establish medical centres across rural communities in the Niger Delta region so as to give people at the grassroots access to basic but critical modern medical services.

Nigeria’s Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Umana, disclosed this during a medical outreach in Nsit Ubium, Akwa Ibom State, Southern Nigeria.

He said the outreach was an expression of the Ministry’s mandate and aspiration to improve the human development indices of people in the region.

The Minister explained that the ministry is taking positive steps to respond to healthcare needs and other development issues in the region to drive Federal Government’s initiatives that would make lives of the people better in the region.

The Minister further acknowledged challenges facing the outreach programme such as staffing shortages and explained that those limitations were imposed by funding constraint.

Also speaking during the medical outreach, the director, Community Development and Education (CDE) of the Ministry, Mr Adamu Sabo, noted that more than 1000 people have received help for various medical conditions, including surgeries and eye care, since the outreach programme kicked off.

Responding to the gesture, the chairman, Nsit Ubium local government area, Arc. Iniobong Orok, commended the government for the healthcare programme and Promised a land for the building of the planned medical facility.

The medical outreach which was branded, Integrated Medical Outreach 2022, was organized by the ministry for the indigenes of Ikot Edibon, Nsit Ubium LGA in Akwa Ibom state, said the plan for the outreach programme benefited from inputs from Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Health and the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHDA), where the healthcare professionals used for the programme were sourced from.

PCN Seals 342 Outlets, Arrests One In Ogun State

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The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN), has sealed 342 pharmacy and patent medicine outlets and arrested one person in Ogun state.

The Director of Enforcement, Mr. Stephen Esumobi stated on Friday in Abeokuta, that the exercise was part of the council’s effort to sanitise the drug distribution system in the country.

According to him, 646 premises were visited, out of which 342 were sealed for offences ranging from operating without registration or renewal of premises certificate and poor storage conditions among others.

Others are unauthorised sale of the substance of abuse, operating without employing a superintendent pharmacist, poor sanitary conditions, and unauthorised training of apprentices.

Esumobi added that one person was arrested for fraudulently collecting money for premises registration and renewal from stakeholders.

“At the end of the exercise, a total of 646 premises were visited; these comprise 533 patent medicine shops and 113 pharmacies.

“A total of 342 premises were sealed which comprise 316 patent medicine shops, and 26 pharmacies.

“Also, 19 compliance directives were issued while one person was arrested for fraudulently collecting money meant for premises registration,” he stated.

The pharmacist explained that the enforcement was not punitive, “As we don’t want to put people out of business but insisted that recalcitrant individuals would be made to face the law.”

Esumobi said that, the arrested suspect took advantage of unsuspecting stakeholders while collecting money from them and generating fake remittals for them, adding that he would be charged to court on Monday.

He urged the public to source all their drug needs from registered and currently licensed pharmacies and patent medicine shops, saying that enforcement is a continuous exercise.

Europe Prepares For Winter Energy Crisis, Switches Off Lights, Ovens

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As Europe heads into winter in the throes of an energy crisis, offices are getting chillier.

Statues and historic buildings are going dark. Bakers who can’t afford to heat their ovens are talking about giving up, while fruit and vegetable growers face letting greenhouses stand idle.

In poorer eastern Europe, people are stocking up on firewood, while in wealthier Germany, the wait for an energy-saving heat pump can take half a year. And businesses don’t know how much more they can cut back.

“We can’t turn off the lights and make our guests sit in the dark,” said Richard Kovacs, business development manager for Hungarian burger chain Zing Burger.

The restaurants already run the grills no more than necessary and use motion detectors to turn off lights in storage, with some stores facing a 750% increase in electricity bills since the beginning of the year.

With costs high and energy supplies tight, Europe is rolling out relief programs and plans to shake up electricity and natural gas markets as it prepares for rising energy use this winter.

The question is whether it will be enough to avoid government-imposed rationing and rolling blackouts after Russia cut back natural gas needed to heat homes, run factories and generate electricity to a tenth of what it was before invading Ukraine.

Espionage Accusation: Russia Expels Japanese Diplomat

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Russia said Monday it had detained a Japanese diplomat based in the eastern city of Vladivostok for carrying out espionage-related work and declared the official person non grata, news agencies reported.

“A Japanese diplomat was detained red-handed while receiving classified information, in exchange for money, about Russia’s cooperation with another country in the Asia-Pacific region,” the FSB security service said in a statement, carried by Russian news agencies.

The diplomat had also been soliciting information about “the impact of Western sanctions” on the eastern Primorsky region, the FSB said, according to news agencies.

Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement the diplomat was ordered to leave the country within 48 hours.

The FSB distributed a short video it said showed the diplomat acknowledging that he had violated Russian laws.

Russia considers Japan to be a “hostile” country, a designation it shares with all EU countries, the United States and allies including Britain and Australia.

Moscow and Tokyo have traded tit-for-tat sanctions and expulsions of diplomats since February 24 when Vladimir Putin launched what the Kremlin calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Tokyo had complex relations with Moscow before the Ukrainian invasion and the two sides have yet to sign a post-World War II peace treaty.

Attempts to do so have been hampered by a long-running dispute over islands controlled by Russia, which calls them the Kurils.

NYSC In Ebonyi Discourage Residents On Self Medication

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The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Ebonyi State, Southeast Nigeria, has tasked the people of the State living in the rural areas to visit Hospitals for their medications each time they are sick and to avoid self treatment or patronizing the quacks.

This was a major part of the health campaign during the inauguration of NYSC Health Initiative for Rural Dwellers (HIRD) held at Umuguduapu Ngbo in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of the State.

The NYSC State Coordinator, Mercy Bamai said, “HIRD is targeted at bringing free medical care to the door steps of the indigents and vulnerable persons in Ebonyi rural communities.”

She said it is necessary because those group of persons lack access to proper care as at when necessary.

She said the program has impacted positively on the overall healthcare of the good people of the state in particular and Nigeria at large.

“The program was first inaugurated October, 2015 at Abakaliki local government area of the state and since then, it has improved on the general wellbeing of Ebonyi people.”

She urged the rural People of the State to avail themselves to benefit from the NYSC Health Program.

One of the Corps members, Doctor Jegede Adadamola, who gave lectures on gastroenteritis in children, advised the people of Ohaukwu to always use Oral Rehydration Salt (ORS) whenever they are having stomach purging and vomiting to serve as first aid before they get to hospital.

On his part, the traditional rural of Umuguduapu Ngbo Community, Eze Ogba Godwin, thanked NYSC for coming to give the people of his community quality healthcare.

One of beneficiaries of the health Program, Mr Akpu Hyginus expressed his joy over the exercise.

Roman-Era Anchor Found At Windfarm, Displayed In Ipswich

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An “incredibly rare” wrought iron anchor thought to be up 2,000 years old is going on display for one day after being found at an offshore windfarm.

The anchor, believed to be Roman or late Iron Age, was found off the Suffolk coast in 2018 during survey work on the East Anglia One windfarm.

It will be on show for the first time at Ipswich Museum on Tuesday, before being moved for further analysis work.

Experts said it was an “incredibly rare, distinctive” anchor.

It was thought to have come from a 500-600 tonne vessel and was believed to be between 2,000 and 1,600 years old.

“Everything points to this being a Roman anchor of almost 2,000 years old; if this is confirmed it would be hard to overstate its significance,” said Brandon Mason from Maritime Archaeology Ltd.

“We only know about three pre-Viking anchors from northern European waters outside the Mediterranean region, and only two actually survived.

“We believe this find could be the oldest and one of the largest surviving examples, giving us hard evidence of the incredible amount of activity that must have been going on in the waters in Roman times, but that we know relatively little about.”

After its discovery, the anchor was protected by an exclusion zone installed on the seabed during construction work on the wind turbines.

Measuring two metres (6.5ft) long and weighing around 100kg (220lbs), the anchor was recovered from the North Sea in 2021.

Once the analysis and conservations works are complete, the anchor will go on permanent display in conjunction with Colchester and Ipswich Museums.

Although it has yet to be dated more precisely, archaeologists said there were several features that suggested it could come from the Imperial Roman period.

If confirmed, it would provide evidence of ancient Romans seafaring and trading in the southern North Sea, off the coast of the East of England.

The Imperial Roman period lasted from about 27BC to the late 3rd and 4th Century when the empire expanded, especially to the west.

In 54-55BC Julius Caesar tried to invade Britain, but failed, and then in AD43 the Roman army landed in Kent and began to conquer what is now England and Wales.

Scottish Power Renewables, which built the windfarm, said it made other finds during the work including a missing German submarine from World War One and an ancient wild cattle skull, which has been radiocarbon-dated to more than 6,000 years old.

The East Anglia One windfarm is located around 40km (25 miles) off the coast of Suffolk and will have 102 turbines when finished.

Hurricane Ian: Florida Residents Stock Up On Food, Water, Medicine, Fuel

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Authorities in Florida have urged residents to “make their preparations” as Tropical Storm Ian strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane early on Monday.

Ian was forecast to move northwest through the Caribbean, near Cuba and the Cayman Islands, and reach the state’s west coast by Wednesday.

The hurricane’s exact path is uncertain but Governor Ron DeSantis warned of “broad impacts throughout the state”.

Residents have been seen stocking up on food, water, medicine and fuel.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said it expects “rapid strengthening” from Ian over the next 48 hours, with maximum sustained winds of 75mph (121kmph).

An NHC official said Cuba could experience “extreme hurricane force winds, life threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall” later on Monday.

Classes have been cancelled in parts of the island, and evacuations have been planned in a handful of western provinces, including near the country’s tobacco region.

Authorities in the Cayman Islands, a British territory, are working to provide plywood, sandbags and other supplies to local residents,

“We must prepare for the worst and absolutely pray and hope for the best,” Premier Wayne Panton said in a video on Sunday.

Beautiful Nigeria: Mandara Mountains, Adamawa State

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The Mandara Mountains are a volcanic range extending about 190 km along the northern part of the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

Mandara Mountains is the most popular mountain in Adamawa and one of the post popular attraction in the state.

Mandara Mountains which lie in the northeastern part of the state along the Cameroon border is an ideal place for hiking, rock and mountain climbing.

Hiking in the remarkably beautiful landscapes of the Mandara Mountains is one of the most popular activities for exploring tourists.  

The spectacular rock formations and lush valleys and hills are interspersed with traditional villages with round huts, where visitors can experience authentic local culture.

The Mofu ethnic group dominates the region and the hillside villages subsist mainly through terrace farming, with sorghum the principal crop.

The Mandara Mountains were formed millions of years ago when a continental plate of basement rock deep beneath the African continent rose up, fragmenting and splitting as it was pushed to the surface.

The climate was significantly wetter in those times, so enormous amounts of precipitation formed numerous rivers that rushed through these fractures, carving them deeper and wider, resulting in the range’s notably rugged terrain.

Volcanic activity also played a role in the formation of the range. Eruptions of lava formed volcanic cones whose vents were eventually plugged with hardening magma.

These hardened cores are called volcanic plugs. In the case of the Mandara Mountains, the plugs were much more erosion-resistant than the exterior of the cones, which wore away over time.

Eventually, only the plugs remained, forming the stark, needle-like spires such as Kapsiki Peak that the range is known for.

The highest elevation is the summit of Mount Oupay, at 1,494 m (4,900 ft) above sea level (10°53′N 13°47′ECoordinates: 10°53′N 13°47′E).

Exploring Lake Muhazi, Rwanda  

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Lake Muhazi in the Byuma province of Rwanda

Lake Muhazi is an artificial lake that is very long, thin and shallow, located in the eastern part of one of the smallest countries in Africa, the Republic of Rwanda.

The flooded valley has an interesting shape and it is 60 km (37 mi) long, with the maximum length measured to 37 km (23 mi), whereas it is some 5 km (3 mi) wide, and the maximum width measured to be 600 meters (1,969 feet).

The dam that creates this amazing lake is at the west end, and it was constructed in 1999, so that it will be able to replace the earth dam that existed previously.

Used during the colonial era from the Germans and the Belgians, the British too had some use of the lake, which served the purpose of easy and fast access towards the capital Kigali, however, it was the ominous scene of mass killing during the 1994 Rwanda Genocide.

A very important place for boating, fishing, bird watching, and camping, there are three interesting beaches on which the tourist come quite often.

The Seeds of Peace Center, Jambo Beach and Rwesero Beach, which are in the vicinity of the village Gahini are the most important ones, however, there are developers that are trying to make Lake Muhazi even more interesting.

Regarding the fauna of the lake, the most common mammal is the spotted-necked otter which has a population between 200 and 400 individuals, nonetheless, the lake is a perfect spot for the bird watchers, as there are many bird species around the lake.

Some of the bird species that are often visible and not trying to hide are the African fish eagles, malachite kingfishers, pied kingfishers, swamp flycatchers, village weavers, speckled mousebirds, grey crowned cranes and plenty more.

The phytoplankton of the lake is predominantly Microcystis aeruginosa and Ceratium hirundinella, which is one of the major food source for the introduced marbled lungfish and tilapia species to the lake, which were brought to the lake so that the fish import would be somewhat reduced.

Due to the proximity to the capital city, and the importance of the water as a source to the country, Lake Muhazi shall continue to play a major role in the tourism sector of Rwanda, as well as being the entrance towards the eastern part of the small and very beautiful African country.