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Police say Uganda Explosion An Act Of Domestic Terror

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Ugandan police says a deadly explosion that killed one person and injured three others at a roadside eatery in the capital Kampala was an “act of domestic terror”.

Police spokesman Fred Enanga said the attackers arrived at the popular grilled pork joint in northern Kampala at around 8:30 pm local time on Saturday carrying a plastic shopping bag that they placed under a table.

Shortly after leaving thirty minutes later, an explosion ripped through the eatery.

Addressing reporters Enanga described the explosive as crude and containing nails and metal fragments and that the suspects detonated the device after they left the scene.

Enanga said the group appeared unsophisticated and investigators believed they could track their whereabouts using evidence found at the scene.

They did not elaborate on the identity or motivation of the suspected attackers.

Masked anti-terrorism police attended the scene on Sunday as forensic officers in white overalls combed for evidence.

The explosion occurred about two hours after the start of a nationwide dusk-to-dawn coronavirus curfew.

Security forces rushed to the scene in Komamboga, a fast-growing suburb about eight kilometres north of Kampala city centre.

Local mayor Emmanuel Sserunjogi said the bombing took place in an area popular with young revellers looking for roasted meat and drinks on a night out.

It is the first such deadly attack in many years in Kampala, a bustling city of two million on the shores of Lake Victoria.

Declare bandits terrorists, 36 speakers tell Buhari

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The 36 House of Assembly speakers has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to declare bandits as terrorists and enemies of the nation. This was their resolution at a Conference of Speakers of State Houses of Assembly in Katsina State yesterday.

The call of the Conference of Speakers is coming a day after Katsina Governor, Aminu Bello Masari, reiterated the earlier call of his Kaduna counterpart, Nasir el-Rufai and the National Assembly for the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on the nation’s security and declare bandits as terrorists.

Chairman of the Conference, who is also Bauchi State Speaker, Abubakar Suleiman, while making the call at the end of their third yearly meeting, said it was part of their five-point communiqué at the end of their eight-hour deliberations.

Banks in defining moment as eNaira kicks off today

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Nigeria makes history today as it becomes the first African country to digitise its currency, an exercise the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has described as “one of the milestones of a long journey.”

But the eNaira take-off is causing unease in the banking sector even as the concept note has admitted the project could unsettle banks as it comes with disintermediation risk.

Amid the anxiety, some experts have warned that eNaira is just one of the disruptive technologies banks will need to accept and adapt to; to avoid being overrun.

The launch will put Nigeria on the global Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) tracking map as the fifth country to launch a centralised national electronic money after the Bahamas first unveiled its version in 2017.

LASU Guarantees 50% Refund of School Fees To Students With 4.5 CGPA

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The Management of Lagos State University (LASU) Ojo has put in place a policy to guarantee 50 percent refund of school fees to students with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.50 in every session.

Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello Vice-Chancellor (VC) LASU gave this assurance on Monday during the matriculation ceremony of the 2020/2021 students.

She said the policy was to promote healthy competition among the students who consistently maintain average of the CGPA

Olatunji-Bello said LASU had over the years remained on the path of academic excellence and distinguished itself in the comity of universities in the country.

The Vc said, “We are committed to excellence and determined to emerge as the best university in the West Africa region.

“Our students’ welfare is top on our priorities as we will ensure that the learning environment remains conducive for learning.

About 6,648 students were matriculated into the academic programmes of the institution.

Olatunji-Bello advised the matriculating students to be regular in attendance at lectures, carry out all assignments shun deviant behaviours and avoid indecent dressing among others.

Acting Dean, Students Affairs Division, Dr Tajudeen Olumoko, said that the cardinal objective of the exercise was to acquaint the students with the fundamental principles, norms and culture of the institution.

Olumoko added that it was expected they abide by all rules and regulations of the university.

Former Saudi Spymaster Seeks U.S. Help For His Jailed Children

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A former top Saudi intelligence official who is living in exile has accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of targeting him, and made an unprecedented public plea to the Biden administration to help obtain the release of his children jailed in Saudi Arabia.

Saad al-Jabri was long an aide to another Saudi royal, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, whom bin Salman, or MbS, ousted as heir to the throne in a 2017 palace coup. MbS is now de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter and a U.S. ally.

In August 2019, Jabri, who now lives in Canada, filed a 107-page lawsuit in a U.S. court alleging that the crown prince “dispatched a “hit squad” to kill him in October 2018 and that Canadian authorities foiled the attempt.

Last year, a Saudi court jailed two of Saad al-Jabri’s adult children for money laundering and conspiracy to escape the kingdom unlawfully, charges they deny.

In his first interview since leaving the kingdom, Jabri said MbS has “no empathy,” and that the 36-year old leader is a threat to the people of Saudi Arabia, Americans and the rest of the world.

The “60 Minutes” Twitter account posted a statement from the Saudi embassy in Washington that said Jabri was a “discredited former government official with a long history of fabricating”.

The crown prince’s lawyers have rejected Jabri’s allegations and said MbS has legal immunity in the United States as a foreign head of state.

Jabri’s allegations come more than three years after Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi-born U.S. resident who wrote opinion columns for the Washington Post critical of MbS, was killed and dismembered by a team of operatives linked to the prince in the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul.

Amnesty To Shut Hong Kong Offices Over Security Law

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Rights group Amnesty International says it will close its Hong Kong offices because a China-imposed security law had now made it “effectively impossible” for rights groups to work freely without the risk of reprisals.

Chair of Amnesty’s international boar, Anjhula Mya Singh Bais, said in a statement that this decision was made with a heavy heart and has been driven by Hong Kong’s national security law, adding that the two offices would close by year-end, noting an intensification of a crackdown that has forced at least 35 groups to disband under the law this year.

Singh Bais said the environment of repression and perpetual uncertainty created by the national security law makes it impossible to know what activities might lead to criminal sanctions.

In the past, Hong Kong had served as one of Asia’s leading NGO hubs, with groups drawn to its robust rule of law and wide-ranging autonomy — guaranteed for Hong Kong when control over the former British colony was returned to Beijing in 1997.

Among the groups to have disbanded this year are several leading trade unions, NGOs and professional groups, while a number of other NGOs including the New School for Democracy have relocated to the democratic island of Taiwan.

Hong Kong and Chinese authorities say the national security law enshrines individual rights, justifying the laws as necessary to restore stability after mass protests in 2019 when millions took to the streets over many months.

Protesters have long called on China’s Communist leaders to abide by its constitutional promise to grant the city broad freedoms and eventual full democracy under a co-called “one country, two systems” arrangement.

Under the broadly-defined security legislation, subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorism can be punished with up to life in jail.

Philippines Group Turns Plastic Waste Into Planks

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A group of recyclers in the Philippines is trying to ease the country’s worsening plastic waste crisis by turning bottles, single-use sachets and snack food wrappers that clog rivers and spoil beaches into building materials.

The Plastic Flamingo (The Plaf), as they’re generally recognized, gather the waste, shred it after which mould it into posts and planks referred to as eco-lumber that can be utilized for fencing, decking and even to make disaster-relief shelters.

The Plaf’s chief working officer, Erica Reyes, “It is 100% upcycled material, 100% made from plastic waste materials, we also include some additives and colorants and it is rot-free, maintenance-free, and splinter-free.”

Having collected over 100 tonnes of plastic waste up to now, the social enterprise is doing its bit to handle an area downside that has world ramifications.

Approximately 80% of worldwide ocean plastic comes from Asian rivers, and the Philippines alone contributes a 3rd of that whole, in response to a 2021 report by Oxford University’s Our World in Data.

The Philippines doesn’t have a transparent technique on tackling its plastics downside and its atmosphere division has mentioned it has been involved with producers to establish methods to handle waste.

The Plaf’s advertising and marketing affiliate, Allison Tan mentioned, “People are unaware of how to dispose of these plastics.

“We give that avenue that instead of putting it in landfills or oceans, you give it to recycling centres like us and we would upcycle them into better products.”

As properly as tackling waste issues, the group says it’s in talks with different non-government organisations to assist rebuild homes destroyed by typhoons utilizing their sustainable constructing supplies.

1967 Six-Day War: Tenders Published For 1,355 Homes In West Bank

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Israel has announced plans to build more residences for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank, drawing immediate condemnation from Palestinians, peace activists and neighbouring Jordan.

The Ministry of Construction and Housing in right-wing, Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett’s government said, “Tenders had been published for 1,355 homes in the West Bank, which was seized by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War.

“Those new homes add to the more than 2,000 residences that defence sources said in August would be authorised for West Bank settlers.”

Housing Minister Zeev Elkin, a member of the right-wing New Hope party, said in a statement that, “Strengthening Jewish presence in the West Bank was essential to the Zionist vision.”

Dr. Elliott Dossou-Yovo Receives 2021 Norman Borlaug Award

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Agriculture and Climate Change Specialist at Africa Rice Centre, Dr. Elliott Dossou-Yovo was conferred the 2021 Norman E. Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application.

Rockefeller Foundation, the supporter of this award recognized Dr. Dossou-Yovo’s effort in spearheading innovative water management systems for resilient rice production in the face of climate change.

Due to his groundbreaking research and close collaboration with smallholder farmers, thousands of rice farmers have been empowered across West Africa through the use of climate-smart cultivation techniques to earn greater incomes, achieve food and nutrition security while enhancing the agroecosystems.

He has a B.sc and M.sc in Natural Resources Management from the University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin and a Ph.D. in soil science from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana.

In 2016, Dr. Dossou-Yovo joined AfricaRice as an International Consultant in Data Analysis and Project Management. He currently researches as an Associate Principal Scientist and Climate Change Specialist.

During his time at AfricaRice, he restored research laboratories and fields abandoned for eleven years due to civil unrest in Côte d’Ivoire. His tenacity produced impressive achievements which led to his promotion as Lead, AfricaRice climate-related research activities.

Poneering a low-cost and participatory approach for land and water development called ‘Smart-Valleys’ in Burkina Faso, there was an improved and efficient use of fertilizer and reduced impact of drought on rice plants.

In addition, he also developed training guides and conducted capacity-building activities to enable farmers, extension agents and technicians to adopt Smart-Valleys.

The Smart-Valleys is now included in Benin’s National Strategy for Irrigation and is proposed for inclusion in the National Rice Development Strategy of Burkina Faso.

In Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso, Dossou-Yovo has led the adaptation of the alternate wetting and drying irrigation method (AWD), which has reduced the use of irrigation water and diminished weed infestations while maintaining the same rice yield as farmers who were continuously flooding the field.

Using digital tools such as modelling and Geographical Information Systems, as well as household surveys, Dossou-Yovo has conducted analytic studies to develop demand-driven technologies not only at the farm level, but at community and regional levels.

He also collaborates with stakeholders such as farmers, extension officers, and partners in National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) to adapt, evaluate and scale agricultural technologies.

Dossou-Yovo now heads several project collaborations with prominent CGIAR centres, the World Bank, universities, development agencies such as Rikolto, private industry and other organizations in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo and Tanzania.

Residents, Motorists In Sango Ota Axis Relieved As Work Commences

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The Ogun state government has announced its plans to commence palliative works on the deplorable Sango-Ota-Joju Road.

The work determined to bring succour to the residents and motorists in Sango Ota axis of Ogun State will begin on Monday.

In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the state governor, Kunle Somorin, engineers have been given instruction to begin work on the road.

The statement added that the discomfort the bad condition of the road had subjected residents and motorists to, had made it extremely important to immediately put in place the palliative measures.

Somorin, however, said that the palliative road work, which would runs concurrently with the ongoing rehabilitation work on the Sango Ota-Idiroko Road, are simply to bring succour and make the road usable pending the completion of its reconstruction by Julius Berger.

“On the instructions of the Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, engineers will on Monday begin palliative work on Sango Ota-Joju Road in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area.

“The development is coming regardless of the ownership of the road by the federal government. The deplorable and unusable condition of the road, which has for some time plagued the axis, residents and road users, makes it extremely important to immediately put in place palliative measures.

“These palliative roadwork, which will run concurrently with what is going on Sango Ota-Idiroko Road, are simply to bring succour and make the road usable pending completion of its reconstruction by Julius Berger,” the statement concluded.