An ‘extreme’ solar storm struck Earth raising concerns over its potential to disrupt power and communications. I’m leaving today and knew I could not pass up this opportunity for such a large solar storm. The storm produced northern lights as far south in the US as Ohio and northern lights were also seen in Canada’s Ontario, according to NOAA. The most intense solar storm in recorded history, in 1859, prompted auroras in central America and possibly even Hawaii. An extreme geomagnetic storm in 2003, for example, took out power in Sweden and damaged power transformers in South Africa.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 11, 2024 10:39 UTC
Guests Keynote speaker NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, African Energy Chamber Moderators Carole Nakhle , CEO, Crystol Energy, CEO, Crystol Energy Theophilus Acheampong, Visiting Fellow, Africa Programme, ECFRChaired by Maddalena Procopio, Senior Policy Fellow, Africa Programme, ECFRThe global energy transition has become a battleground for competing interests, with Africa emerging as a pivotal arena. Concurrently, African stakeholders increasingly assert their role in shaping the discourse and outcomes of the energy transition based on their interests and ambitions. While competition can drive innovation, the current landscape of geopolitical rivalry around the energy transition risks hindering progress on the transition for all. Central to this discourse is the understanding that while approaches to the energy transition vary globally, the ultimate objective remains shared: a decarbonized future. We will then dive into unpacking how partnerships can sustain the development of green industries in Africa and partner countries.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 15:41 UTC
Several British MPs have urged their government to recognize Morocco’s full sovereignty over its entire Sahara territory, describing the North African Kingdom as UK’s second oldest ally and a reliable partner. Morocco is also “a reliable strategic partner, which pursues all the attributes of a modern democracy. The British MP sees Morocco as thriving democracy where the rule of law is protected and people can debate and challenge one another without fear of retribution. Between 700,000 and 1 million British tourists visit Morocco every year. “I am one of the MPs who have been to Laayoune and I saw for myself the effects of that economic development on the Sahrawi people”, he said, affirming that more economic development will help ending the Sahara conflict.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 15:38 UTC
Competition for limited resourcesLiving standards in Tunisia are falling, with its own migration statistics testament to a lack of hope. Tunisia has basically become a trap for migrants,” he said. Many are likely sleeping in the fields outside Sfax, or near Zarzis on the Libya border and various other points. Italy and the European Union consistently try to externalise their migration concerns to Tunisia and Libya, urging each to halt the flow of desperate people from their shores. On Thursday, Tunisia’s Interior Minister Kamal Feki met with his counterparts from Libya, Algeria and Italy in Rome to discuss migration.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 15:34 UTC
Angola-based international investment firm ABO Capital has opened the Amity Training Centre, an executive training programme, in Luanda to help foster the next generation of professional talent and continued economic growth. Founded and led by Zandre Campos, ABO Capital is an international investment firm that builds opportunities in emerging markets across Africa, investing in companies that create value and promote economic development. The Amity Training Centre in Luanda is an implementation of Amity University in Dubai, a programme that originated in India. “The Amity Training Centre establishes a pathway for our young professionals to take their skills to the next level and compete in a 21st century economy – in Angola and beyond,” said Campos. “This executive training programme is exactly what our country needs to further build our local talent pool and expand economic opportunity for Angolans.”
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 15:17 UTC
The South Sudanese government and opposition groups are meeting for peace talks in Kenya to put an end to the infighting that plagued the country. Kiir said his government would negotiate in good faith and urged rebel group to work together for peace in the country. We are brothers and sisters, President Kiir, we are brothers and sisters”, said Pagan Amum Okiech, leader of the Real-SPLM group. The talks were also attended by Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera, Zambia’s Hakainde Hichilema, Namibia’s Nangolo Mbumba, and Central African Republic’s Faustin-Archange Touadera. The meeting took place after an African Union agricultural summit hosted by Kenya.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 13:25 UTC
Dublin, May 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Rail Construction Projects (Q1 2024) - Project Insights" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The report provides analysis based on the publisher's construction projects showing total project values and analysis by stage and funding for all regions. The top 20 projects per region are listed giving country, stage, value of projects. The global railway projects pipeline is valued at $6.05 trillion. North-East Asia accounts for the largest share of global value, with a pipeline valued at $2.42 trillion.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 10, 2024 02:29 UTC
Clobetasol propionate ophthalmic suspension, 0.05% (APP13007) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 4, 2024. About Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (6838.TWO) is a clinical stage biotechnology company with primary focus in the areas of ophthalmology and oncology. About TabukEstablished in 1994, Tabuk Pharmaceuticals is a leading Saudi pharmaceutical company with a regional presence in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Tabuk Pharmaceuticals reaches patients in 17 countries across the Middle East and North Africa, with future plans to expand its presence in the region. https://www.tabukpharmaceuticals.comView original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/formosa-pharmaceuticals-announces-licensing-agreement-with-tabuk-pharmaceuticals-for-commercialization-of-clobetasol-propionate-ophthalmic-suspension-for-the-treatment-of-inflammation-and-pain-following-ocular-surgery-302139905.htmlSOURCE Formosa Pharmaceuticals Inc.Company Codes: Gretai:6838
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 14:04 UTC
The researchers examined the remains of a group of people found in a cave near Taforalt in northeastern Morocco. But they also ate wild plants such as beans, oats, pine nuts, pistachios and sweet acorns. The researchers noted the people from that time were dependent on wild plants. They did, however, harvest wild plants in season and store extra amounts to eat later if food was not easily available. But they did find that babies among the group began to eat plants sooner than scientists first thought.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 13:56 UTC
China has launched what it claims to be the largest electric container ship with a 50,000kWh+ battery capacity. Shanghai-headquartered China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO) launched the 120 metres long, 24 metres wide and 10,000 ton Shipping Green Water 01 recently. Last March, the company said: “The 700 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) electric container ship is the world’s first large all-battery container ship for long-distance transport.”A second electric container ship by the company has also been in the works since May 2023. “It is the world’s first electric container ship in terms of overall length, width, number of boxes, dwt (deadweight ton) and battery capacity. Fully electric container ships in Norway, SingaporeWhile the company from China claims it is the biggest fully electric ship, it is not the first vessel of its kind to be launched, nor the first.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 13:46 UTC
SKOPJE, North Macedonia — The head of a center-right 22-party coalition that emerged victorious in North Macedonia’s parliamentary election has fallen just short of gaining a parliamentary majority, leaving it reliant on entering a partnership with another party to form a government. The “Your Macedonia” coalition, led by the head of the VMRO-DPMNE party, Hristijan Mickoski, won just over 43% of the votes in Wednesday’s election, giving it 58 of the country’s 120 parliamentary seats, three fewer than an outright majority, official results showed. Mickoski was expected to begin seeking a governing partner as early as Thursday.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 13:16 UTC
The presidential election, which featured 10 candidates, including one woman, evolved into an unprecedented showdown between the junta leader, General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, and his Prime Minister Succès Masra, a former opposition figure turned ally. The latter’s party, The Transformers, on Wednesday (8 May) condemned violence and threats against 40-year-old economist, who was allegedly under “surveillance” and faced “threats to his safety”. Brussels on Tuesday (7 May) condemned the failure by Chad’s junta-controlled authorities to allow nearly 3,000 civil society members financed by the EU to observe the presidential election. Four civil society associations have slammed Deby-appointed electoral commission for refusing to accredit 2,900 of their representatives as voting observers. “The EU in Chad condemns the non-accreditation of these civil society organizations,” the EU said on Facebook.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 12:33 UTC
The transitional parliament of Burkina Faso has granted its endorsement to a conventional loan deal totaling €45.7 million with the Export-Import Bank of China. This financing will be used for the development of the Donsin solar power plant and its accompanying electricity storage system. The initiative, greenlit by the Council of Ministers on February 9, 2024, under the leadership of President Ibrahim Traoré, entails the establishment of a 25 MWp solar power plant at Donsin airport site in the Loumbila district of central Burkina Faso. As of 2023, the Burkina Faso National Electricity Company (SONABEL) had anticipated importing 300 MW from Ivory Coast and Ghana to meet electricity demands. The completion of the Donsin solar power plant, expected within 15 months, is poised to bolster Burkina Faso’s energy autonomy.
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 11:40 UTC
A mural painted by the ultras for the Wydad AC football club, in the old city of Casablanca (FADEL SENNA)In North Africa, where political speech is often harshly policed, football stadiums have long been an exception. Now, fans are using that small freedom to express solidarity for the Palestinians amid the Gaza war. "The Palestinian question unites everyone" in the region, said Abderrahim Bourkia, a Moroccan sociologist who has studied diehard "ultra" football fans. - 'Let loose' -Banners at stadiums across North Africa have denounced the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. The ultras "want to show that they're doers and not merely a reckless group of football fans -- that they, too, have a viewpoint on society".
Source:The North Africa Journal
May 09, 2024 11:34 UTC