Abuja, July 14,2023: Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has declared a state of emergency in response to high inflation threatening food security in Africa’s most populous country, the State House said Thursday.
Dele Alake, a spokesman for the president, revealed this at a press briefing in the capital of Abuja, adding that Tinubu “is not unmindful of the rising cost of food and how it affects the citizens … affordability has been a major issue for many Nigerians in all parts of the country.”
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed the headline inflation rate in Nigeria has remained stubbornly high since January 2021. It jumped to 22.41 percent in May, with food being the biggest driver of inflation.
Alake said that the government would implement several approaches to reverse inflation and guarantee future uninterrupted supplies of affordable foods to ordinary Nigerians. He explained that the president’s declaration of a state of emergency on food security aimed to mobilize all available resources to mitigate the crisis.
According to the official, the government plans to use some of the money saved following the end of fuel subsidies to improve the agricultural sector in the short term. They will also introduce further interventions and solutions in the medium and long term, as is typical in emergencies.
“The government will immediately release fertilizers and grains to farmers and households to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal,” he said. He added that the president also ordered the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Water Resources to closely cooperate to ensure adequate irrigation of farmlands and to guarantee that food is produced all year round.
Nigeria has been grappling with a series of challenges in its agricultural sector, including farmer-herder clashes, climate change effects, limited access to modern farming techniques and the increasing threat of pests and diseases, which have significantly impacted food production and have led to rising food prices.
New Delhi, July 14,2023: The Defence Ministry on Thursday approved the proposal for procurement of 26 Rafale Marine aircraft and three additional Scorpene submarines from France.
The project was cleared by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a two-day visit to France on Thursday.
The Defence Ministry in a statement said it will boost Indian Navy’s operational capabilities.
“The DAC granted Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for procurement of 26 Rafale Marine aircraft along with associated ancillary equipment, weapons, simulator, spares, documentation, crew training and logistic support for the Indian Navy from the French Government based on Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA)” said the Ministry in a Statement.
India has already procured 36 Rafale jets from France for the Indian Air Force.
The DAC’s approval to the projects came around a week after they were cleared by the Defence Procurement Board (DPB).
Over the price and other terms of purchase, the Ministry said, “They will be negotiated with the French Government after taking into account all relevant aspects, including comparative procurement price of similar aircraft by other countries”.
“Further, integration of Indian designed equipment and establishment of Maintenance, Repair & Operations (MRO) Hub for various systems will be incorporated into the contract documents after due negotiations” it said.
The three additional Scorpene submarines under Buy (Indian) category, will be constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL).
The Ministry said it will also help the MDL in further enhancing its capability and expertise in submarine construction.
“The procurement of additional submarines, with higher indigenous content, will not only help in maintaining required force level and operational readiness of the Indian Navy, but also create significant employment opportunities in the domestic sector”, the statement said.
In addition, the DAC approved the proposal to lay down guidelines for achieving the desired indigenous content in all categories of capital acquisition cases.
“It will help in achieving ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in critical manufacturing technologies and life-cycle sustenance of defence platforms/equipment through indigenous manufacturing” the Defence Ministry said.
Seoul,Jul 13,2023 : The United States and South Korea are allegedly planning to discuss the use of nuclear weapons against North Korea during the inaugural meeting of the new Nuclear Consultative Group in Seoul, Pyongyang’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Thursday.
The US prepared the Washington Declaration in April during the meeting between US President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in Washington, which the state media called “a programme for nuclear confrontation” with North Korea. The Nuclear Consultative Group would allegedly be the parent body of a “tripartite nuclear alliance” among South Korea, the US and Japan, which would further drive the regional situation to the brink of an unprecedented nuclear war, the report said.
KCNA also confirmed that Pyongyang test-fired the new-type Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile on Wednesday, which reached the maximum altitude of 6,648.4 kilometers (4,131 miles) and flew a distance of 1,001.2 kilometers for 4,491 seconds. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un personally guided the test launch of the missile, aimed at confirming the technical credibility and operational reliability of the weapon system.
The Yonhap news agency has cited Yoon’s office as saying that the first meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group would be held on July 18 in Seoul.
The White House announced in April that Biden and Yoon agreed to establish the Nuclear Consultative Group “strengthen extended deterrence, discuss nuclear and strategic planning, and manage the threat to the nonproliferation regime” posed by North Korea.
On Wednesday, North Korea launched a ballistic missile, which flew a record 74 minutes and fell 155 miles off Japan’s Okushiri Island, outside the country’s exclusive economic zone. It was North Korea’s first launch since June 15 and the 12th so far this year. Last year, Pyongyang launched 37 ballistic missiles.
July10,2023:The United Nations has warned Sudan is on the brink of a “full-scale civil war”, as Egypt said it would host a summit on July 13 to discuss ways to end a 12-week conflict between rival Sudanese military factions.
The summit in Cairo on Thursday will aim to “develop effective mechanisms” with neighbouring states to settle the conflict peacefully, in coordination with other regional or international efforts, Egypt’s presidency said in a statement on Sunday.
Diplomatic efforts to halt fighting between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary have so far proved ineffective, with competing initiatives creating confusion over how the warring parties might be brought to negotiate.
Neither Egypt, which is seen as the Sudanese army’s most important foreign ally, nor the United Arab Emirates, which has had close ties to the RSF, have so far played a prominent public role.
The two countries were also not involved in talks in Jeddah led by the United States and Saudi Arabia that adjourned last month after failing to secure a lasting ceasefire.
Sudanese delegations, including from civilian parties that shared power with the army and RSF after the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir four years ago, are expected to meet on Monday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa for exploratory talks.
The initiative came amid clashes on Sunday between the army and the RSF in El Obeid, southwest of Khartoum, as well as in the south of the capital, residents said.
Sudan’s health ministry on Saturday said a strike by fighter jets in Omdurman, part of Sudan’s wider capital, left 22 people dead.
Murshidabad (West Bengal) , July 10,2023: Re-polling is underway in 697 booths across five districts of West Bengal on Monday following the violence during the panchayat polls in the state on July 8.
The re-polling will be conducted in 697 booths across five districts: Purulia, Birbhum, Jalpaiguri, Nadia and South 24 Parganas, said West Bengal State Election Commission (SEC).
The SEC, in an official release, said, “The West Bengal State Election Commision in the exercise of the powers conferred on it by sub-section-3 and sub-section-4 of Section-67 of the said Act, hereby fixes 10th day of July 2023, as the date of taking the fresh polls at 7:00 hours to be continued upto 17:00 hours uninterruptedly till completion and direct the District Panchayat Election Officer to fix the polling station at which polls will be taken”.
The Panchayat polls were held on July 8.
Earlier on Sunday, alleging ballot rigging in the West Bengal panchayat polls which is marred by violence, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Khagen Murmu called for re-polling in Bengal, claiming that presiding officers and election staff were engaged in proxy voting in favour of the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state general secretary Jagannath Chattopadhyay also wrote to the State Election Commission and demanded repolling.
A total of 10 people were killed and several injured in violence reported across the state during the Panchayat poll.
The three-tier panchayat elections in 20 out of 30 districts were marked by widespread violence, looting of ballots papers and rigging.
There were reports of booth capturing, damaging of ballot boxes and assault of presiding officers from several districts such as Murshidabad, Cooch Behar, Malda, South 24 Parganas, North Dinajpur and Nadia.