Ethiopia’s finance ministry signed a $907 million financing agreement with the World Bank on Friday geared towards improving access to financing, the fight against COVID-19 and electricity investment, it said.
Some $700 million was a loan and $207 million a grant, the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said that $200 million will go towards small and medium businesses affected by the pandemic with the aim of easing their financing challenges.
Another $207 million will be for the deployment of COVID-19 vaccines and the remaining $500 million will be invested in efforts to increase access to electricity in the Horn of Africa nation.
Like other countries around the world, Ethiopia’s economy has been hit hard by the pandemic.
In February, the International Monetary Fund said that Ethiopia’s economic growth is projected to be 2% in 2020/21, largely due to the effects of the coronavirus, but it is expected to rebound to 8.7% in 2021/22 in line with a global recovery.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating the death of an Oregon woman and the hospitalization of another in Texas after receiving Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ.N) COVID-19 vaccine, state health officials said.
The incidents come as advisers to the CDC are set to meet on Friday to consider whether it is safe to resume injections of the single-dose vaccine, while senior health officials prepare for a green light.Â
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky had said on Monday the agency was reviewing reports of a handful of potential cases of severe side effects among people who received the shot, in addition to those that led to a pause in its use.
The CDC notified Oregon about the incident on Tuesday and Texas on Wednesday, the two states’ health officials said.
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The Oregon woman, who is in her 50s, received the vaccine before the pause order on its use was issued, the state’s health authority said in a statement.
She developed “a rare but serious blood clot within two weeks following vaccination,” seen in combination with very low platelets, the Oregon Health Authority added.
It warned that blame could not be assigned until its investigation was complete.
Separately, a woman in Texas who received J&J’s vaccine has been hospitalized for symptoms similar to those of six people who recently suffered blood clots after taking the shot in the United States, a Texas health agency spokesman said.
Last week, U.S. health agencies recommended a pause in the use of the vaccine after six rare cases of blood clots.
On Tuesday, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it found a possible link between J&J’s vaccine and rare blood clotting issues in adults who got doses in the United States, but added that the benefits of the shot outweighed the risks.
Russia’s defence ministry said on Friday it had begun returning troops and military units from annexed Crimea to their permanent bases following a huge build-up near Ukraine’s border that had raised concerns in Kyiv and the West about the risk of war.
Russia announced on Thursday it had completed a “snap inspection” of military drills in its south and west after weeks of tensions with the West over its concentration of tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine.Â
Ukraine gave a guarded welcome to the troop drawdown.Â
“If Russia really pulls back from the border with Ukraine the enormous military force it has deployed there, this will already ease tensions,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a statement.
“But we need to remember that this step would put an end neither to the current escalation, nor to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia in general.”
Washington has said it is waiting to see what actions follow Moscow’s announcement.
The youngest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton celebrates his third birthday Friday.
On the eve of his big day, Kensington Palace released a photo of Louis taken by the Duchess of Cambridge at the palace on Wednesday.
The picture shows the little royal perched on a red bike, dressed in his school uniform right before his first day at Willcocks Nursery School in London. He’s sporting a big grin and wearing a backpack, along with a pair of navy and lime green velcro sneakers.
The pictures released last year for Louis’ second birthday were a sweet bright spot during the early stages of the pandemic.
Those photos, which were also taken by Kate at the Cambridges’ Anmer Hall estate, showed the little prince playing with some rainbow paint.
Louis’ siblings, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are 7 and 5, respectively.
Louis shares his birthday week with his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, who celebrated her birthday without her husband for the first time in decades. Prince Philip, whom she was married to for over 70 years, died earlier this month.
NASA and Elon Musk’s commercial rocket company SpaceX launched a new four-astronaut team on a flight to the International Space Station on Friday, the first crew ever propelled into orbit by a rocket booster recycled from a previous spaceflight.
The company’s Crew Dragon capsule, Endeavour, streaked into the darkened pre-dawn sky atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as its nine Merlin engines roared to life at 5:49 a.m. (0949 GMT) from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The blastoff was aired live on NASA TV.
The crew is due to arrive at the space station, which orbits some 250 miles (400 km) above Earth, early on Saturday following a flight of about 23 hours.
Within 10 minutes of launch, the rocket’s second stage had delivered the crew capsule to Earth orbit, traveling at nearly 17,000 miles per hour, according to launch commentators.
The rocket’s first stage, meanwhile, descended back to Earth and touched down safely on a landing platform floating in the Atlantic on a drone ship affectionately named Of Course I Still Love You.
It is also the third crewed flight launched into orbit under NASA’s fledgling public-private partnership with SpaceX, the rocket company founded and owned by Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur who is also CEO of electric carmarker Tesla Inc.
The first was an out-and-back test mission carrying just two astronauts into orbit last May, followed by SpaceX’s first full-fledged four-member crew in November.
Zinedine Zidane says kicking Real Madrid out of Europe would be ‘absurd’
There had been claims Real could be thrown out of the Champions League
It has now been decided that Real can still take part in the tournament
Real president Florentino Perez was named as European Super League chairman
Zinedine Zidane has described the possibility of Real Madrid being kicked out of the Champions League as ‘absurd’ and insisted that his side ‘have the right’ to play in the competition.
There had been suggestions that Real, who have reached the semi-finals, could be eliminated from the Champions League after their president Florentino Perez played a key part in the plans for a European Super League that ultimately didn’t materialise.
Following a UEFA meeting on Friday, it has been decided that none of the clubs involved will receive sporting punishment, with Real to remain in the Champions League.
On Thursday it was claimed that Real’s place in the competition was under threat, which angered Zidane.
As reported by Marca, Zidane said: ‘We have the right to play the Champions League, it is absurd, and we are going to prepare for it.’
There were claims that in addition to being thrown out of this season’s Champions League, Real could also be banned from next season’s tournament, but they will now still be able to participate.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez was named as chairman of the European Super League
Real will now still be able to take on Chelsea in the semi-finals of the Champions League
Real were one of 12 clubs who agreed to be part of the European Super League, with their Champions League semi-final opponents Chelsea also involved.
Perez was also named as the chairman of the Super League and insisted that Real are still involved in the breakaway league, which he says could eventually go ahead in a different format.
In addition to Real and Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus all signed up to the Super League.
However, the plans didn’t go ahead following considerable criticism.
Honda Motor new CEO Toshihiro Mibe attends his inaugural news conference in Tokyo, Japan April 23, 2021. REUTERS/Issei Kato
Honda Motor Co (7267.T) is aiming to increase its ratio of electric vehicles (EVs) and fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) to 100% of all sales by 2040, chief executive Toshihiro Mibe said on Friday.
Speaking at his first news conference since taking the helm of Japan’s second-largest automaker at the beginning of April, Mibe said the company supported the government’s green goals.
“I believe it is the responsibility of an automaker to achieve our carbon-free goal on a ‘tank-to-wheel’ basis,” Mibe said.
The company expects EVs and FCVs to account for 40% of sales by 2030 and 80% by 2035 in all major markets, including North America and China.
Honda’s announcement of its electrification strategy comes after Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga vowed Japan would aim for a 46% cut in emissions by 2030 and look for ways to go even further, nearly doubling from its previous target.
Turkey detained dozens of people in an investigation of a cryptocurrency trading platform and sought its founder’s arrest in Albania, police said on Friday, after Turks filed criminal complaints saying they had been scammed.
The Thodex platform, which had been handling daily cryptocurrency trade worth hundreds of millions of dollars, said on its website on Thursday it would be closed for four to five days due to a sale process.
But users who have not been able to withdraw money or access their accounts voiced concern on Twitter that they may have been defrauded, comments widely picked up by Turkish media.
Police launched raids at 6 a.m. (0300 GMT) across eight provinces on Friday with warrants to arrest 78 suspects, Istanbul police said in a statement. A day earlier they searched the company’s Istanbul offices and seized materials.
Sixty-two people have been detained so far, the state-owned news agency Anadolu reported.
Istanbul police said the company’s founder and CEO, Faruk Fatih Ozer, had flown to the Albanian capital Tirana on Tuesday.
Interpol issued a red notice for Ozer on Friday after a request by Ankara. Turkey’s interior minister and police chief spoke with their Albanian counterparts on Thursday to seek Ozer’s arrest, Turkish police headquarters said.
An Istanbul prosecutor’s office on Thursday said it began an investigation into Thodex amid claims that the platform had led to the “aggrievedness of many citizens”. Turkey’s financial crimes investigation board MASAK blocked the company’s accounts on Wednesday and began an investigation, a MASAK source said.
Thodex said “negative” media reports about it were untrue, and that banks and funds – which it would identify later – wanted to invest in the company and had proposed a partnership.
The 24-hour trading volume on Thodex was $538 million on its last trading day, according to Coinmarketcap.
Last week, Turkey banned the use of crypto assets for payments, adding to factors that sent bitcoin down 14% at the weekend. Turkey’s central bank cited “irreparable” damage and transaction risks as reasons for the ban.
ibya’s Ahly Benghazi guaranteed Group A of CAF Confederation Cup will go to the wire at the final match day, defeating Nigeria’s Enyimba 1-0 on Thursday night.
A win for visitors Enyimba could have settled the group, just like the case in all three other groups. But Ahly’s win meant action will continue in the final matchday next Wednesday.
At Benina Martyrs stadium in Benghazi, Ahly pushed from the first minute, aiming for maximum points that would give them hope of reaching the quarterfinals.
But they had to wait till the 40th minute to take the lead through Mutassim El Taib.
The Libyan right winger received Aboubakr Meeld pass and sent a powerful shot past Enyimba goalkeeper John Noble to give his side a deserved lead.
After the break, Enyimba threw everything in attack looking for the equalizer, but Benghazi’s goalkeeper Murad Alweehi came to his side’s rescue in several occasions.
Enyimba had to finish the game with ten men, with Timothy Danladi received his marching orders after 75 minutes.
Thanks to this victory, Ahly Benghazi rose to Group A second place on 7 points, two less than group leaders Orlando Pirates. Enyimba follows with six points while Algeria’s ES Setif trails the group with five.
With all four sides still hopeful of a place in the quarterfinals draw set for Friday 30 April, the final matchday next Wednesday sees Enyimba taking on Orlando Pirates in Aba, while ES Setif welcomes Ahli Benghazi in Setif.
Akwa Ibom State Government is to recruit 1000 primary School teachers as part of efforts to ensure delivery of quality education.
The state chairman of Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Obong Paul Ekpo, who made this known when he led other board members in an on-the-spot inspection tour to public primary schools in the state, said the process for the teachers’ engagement will soon commence in the state.
Ekpo described the primary education system as the bedrock of other forms of learning and development, adding that basic education will give birth to excellent professionals in different fields of endeavours in future.
He advised teachers to be committed, passionate, dedicated and honest in their duties and insisted that they follow their time table, make their lesson notes up-to-date and sign the time book.
The SUBEB helmsman commended Governor Udom Emmanuel for fencing public schools, thereby ensuring that government schools are secured from encroachment and other forms of distractions.
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