World News

More investments in innovations and knowledge are urgently needed to increase the ability of rural people to adapt to climate change and shocks, said Jyotsna Puri, a long-time advocate for climate change adaptation and evidence-based policy and big data, who today takes up the position of Associate Vice President of the Strategy and Knowledge Department at the UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Justin Kareem Hawley was recently appointed as the first Ambassador of St Kitts and Nevis (SKN) to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

In a meeting that took place between Hawley and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, credentials were presented and Hawley was officially welcomed.

The Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland called for urgent action to ensure improved climate resilience of small states and promised to amplify the concerns of small and other vulnerable states around climate change at the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow this November.

Interns completing the 2021 Caribbean Institute for Sustainable Island Living (CISIL) Summer Internship say they are grateful for the quality learning and hands on experiences now inspiring them for the future.

The young people began the programme at the Jessamine Eden Farms on July 12 focusing on plant science, soil science and apiculture.

Exposure to high levels of air pollution can make children obese and put them at greater risk of asthma, a new study has found. The study said obese children had a 79% greater chance of having asthma.

This association was highest seen in Delhi, which experiences hazardous air quality every year. And while there could be many causes for obesity in children, "ambient air pollution could be an important contributing factor", it said.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) and Web Summit announced that RISE, "one of the world's most influential tech events", will return to Hong Kong in March 2022, as an in-person event. This highlights Hong Kong's thriving start-up economy, leading position in innovation and technology, as well as its status as The World's Meeting Place for business events to tap tremendous opportunities in the region.

RISE was launched in Hong Kong in 2015 and has already hosted five successful events, becoming Asia's largest tech event, according to CNBC.

As the Jamaican government requires vaccinations for students 12 and over in order to resume face-to-face classes and more adults get inoculated amid an unprecedented surge in coronavirus cases, it was confirmed that the country doesn’t have a compensation programme should someone get injured from the vaccine. The confirmation came as the overseer of the vaccination program for the Ministry of Health & Wellness Dr Melody Ennis said that, as of August 24, there were 303 notifications of adverse events related to the vaccine, up from 249 at the time of her last report on July 29.

“It is an honour to be able to speak to you, leaders from across the world, men and women who in the past year have been part of the fight against our common enemy the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Many of you will have spent sleepless nights and long hours struggling to ensure the safety and future of your people. You will have spent restless days working to hold back the tide of infection and striving to find a way to keep your people, your country, indeed your very society safe. You have shown leadership and I thank you for that.

If we do not invest more in protecting biodiversity, development cannot be sustainable and we will not eradicate hunger or achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, said the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) ahead of his participation in the IUCN World Conservation Congress, in Marseille.

“Biodiversity is a cornerstone of healthy and sustainable food systems,” said Gilbert F. Houngbo, President of IFAD.

Over 3,000 buyers have so far registered to attend IMEX America from across the planner community – event agencies, associations, corporate planners and independents – all with business to place and many at a senior level (defined as C-level, directors, owners/partners).

Agencies currently account for 47 per cent of the total, corporate buyers 22 per cent while association buyers make up 9 per cent and independent buyers 18 per cent (other – 4 per cent).

The mayor of New Orleans has called on residents to evacuate unprotected city neighbourhoods as Hurricane Ida bears down on the Louisiana coastline. "What I am told is that this storm will not be weakening," Mayor LaToya Cantrell said.

Hurricane Ida has intensified over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico ahead of its expected arrival on the southern US coast. It has already brought heavy rain and high winds to western Cuba.

Ghana’s chief Imam Sheikh Osman Sharubutu has donated more than $8,000 (£5,800) to support the construction of a controversial national cathedral.

The African country has a history of inter-religious harmony, although the donation is regarded as unusual. The 102-year-old cleric said the gesture was to strengthen peaceful co-existence between Christians and Muslims.

The US intelligence community has been unable to determine the origins of Covid-19, and is split on whether it leaked from a lab or developed in nature, according to a new report. The report issued by the office that oversees the nation's 18 spy agencies did conclusively determine that it was not developed as a biological weapon.

Experts warn that time is running out to gather evidence of its beginnings.

The Saint Lucia Tourism Authority has introduced a new option to the extended-stay ‘Live it’ program, in response to travel trends and customer demand.

Visitors can now embrace island life in Saint Lucia with a multiple entry visa for up to one year. Through both options of the program, Saint Lucia is inspiring travellers to immerse themselves in local culture, while exploring the destination’s natural beauty on an extended stay vacation or working remotely with ease.

French-American entertainer and World War II resistance fighter Josephine Baker will be interred in France’s Pantheon Mausoleum after a successful petition. France will bestow one its highest honours on famed Black French-American entertainer, Josephine Baker. 

A request to have her remains interred in the Pantheon Mausoleum has been approved. An aide to Emmanuel Macron confirmed to AFP that the ceremony would take place on November 30.

Private jets filled the runway of the airport in the northern Nigerian city of Kano as members of Nigeria's elite and West African dignitaries flew in for the wedding of the president's son and the daughter of a prominent religious and traditional leader.

The marriage of Yusuf Buhari to Zahra Nasir Bayero is one of Nigeria's biggest celebrity events of the year. Thousands attended the event at the palace of the Emir of Bichi, a town in Kano state.