South Africa: DPE, China Development Bank sign agreement

PRETORIA, Aug 26 (NNN-SANEWS) — The Department of Public Enterprises has entered into a Collaboration Framework Agreement with the China Development Bank (CBD) which the department says will enhance the sustainability of State Owned Companies (SOCs). The CBD already has funding agreements with Eskom and Transnet for locomotives and the…

PromPeru drives strategies to increase arrival of European tourists

LIMA, Aug 26 (NNN-ANDINA) — Peru remains one of the favorite destinations for European tourists. The Commission for the Promotion of Peru for Export and Tourism (PromPeru) reported that, according to the latest international arrival figures, there were 1,327,666 foreign tourists from January to July. Out of this total, 192,049 were European…

Peru among world’s top ten arabica coffee producers

LIMA, Aug 26 (NNN-ANDINA) — With a total of 216,000 tons in the 2022-2023 season, Peru ranks as the ninth-largest producer of arabica coffee worldwide, as announced by the Commission for the Promotion of Peru for Export and Tourism (PromPeru) on Peruvian Coffee Day —celebrated every fourth Friday of August. This species is…

Drought-hit Panama Canal to restrict access for one year

PANAMA CITY, Aug 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The drought-hit Panama Canal will maintain restrictions on the passage of ships for one year, a measure that has already led to a marine traffic jam as boats line up to enter the waterway linking two oceans. The canal is facing a shortage of…

Indian Ocean Islands Games: Seven children among 13 killed in Madagascar’s stadium stampede, 107 injured

ANTANANARIVO, Aug 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 13 people, including seven children, were killed on Friday in a crowd stampede at a stadium in the Madagascar capital of Antananarivo, according to the Red Cross and a local member of parliament. “So far 13 people have been killed and 107 injured,”…

Death toll in Poland from Legionnaires’ outbreak now at seven; 76 contaminated

WARSAW, Aug 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Seven people in the southeastern Polish city of Rzeszow have died and 76 have been contaminated in an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, the authorities said. “In all, four men and three women have died,” the head of the Polish health inspection service, Krzysztof Saczka, told…

Italy’s Milan records hottest day in 260 years

MILAN, Aug 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Milan has registered the highest average daily temperature for the past 260 years, regional environmental protection agency (ARPA) said, as much of Italy grapples with a heatwave. The Milano Brera weather station recorded an average 33 degrees Celsius (91.4 degrees Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, the highest…

Russia warns of ‘severe’ sentences for arson of state buildings

MOSCOW, Aug 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Moscow’s FSB security services accused Kyiv Friday of manipulating Russians to set fire to government buildings, warning that such “terrorist” acts had seen jail terms of up to 19 years being handedout. Since Russia sent troops to Ukraine last year, there have been frequent reports…

Denmark to ban Koran burnings

COPENHAGEN, Aug 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Denmark on Friday said it plans to ban Koran burnings after a string of desecrations of Islam’s holy book in the Scandinavian nation sparked anger in Muslim countries. The government will present a bill that will “prohibit the inappropriate treatment of objects of significant religious importance to a…

Sudan war ‘threatens to consume the entire country’: UN

GENEVA, Aug 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — War and hunger threaten to “consume” Sudan where hundreds of thousands of malnourished children are at risk of dying, as fighting between rival generals rages on, the United Nations warned Friday. The conflict between the army under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)…