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Minister calls for stop of programmes, wants investment in tourism
Hamat Bah, Minister of Tourism and Culture has called for the boycotting of ‘endless planning and programmes’ to shift attention on investment in tourism and the construction industry.
He said investing in these sectors, which are catalysts for job creation, would bode well for the country’s future.
“Too much of lecturing and talking have to end now. Once the construction industry and agriculture are boosted, then there will be development,” he added.
‘Minister Bah was speaking during the Africa Summit 2020-Toolkit virtual meeting. The meeting was attended by several African diplomats under the theme, Covid-19 Pathways to Africa’s Economic Recovery and Growth.’
As said by Minister Bah, government is working on post Covid-19 strategies on the economy in general particularly the tourism sector.
“We believe that with the low number of Covid-19 cases that is recorded, and the strategies put in place, the country should be able to go back to the market. Looking in to the domestic tourism, my ministry is putting in some infrastructural developments across the country which will certainly make a difference because all our tourism arrivals are international, “he said.
He said Covid-19 was a none-expection crisis to everyone because the speed it comes with from China to Gambia is beyond Gambia’s imagination, and those are the lessons the government needs to learn from.
“Gambia has a very bad health infrastructure which everybody knew for the 22 years of dictatorship under Yahya Jammeh, and prior to July 1994 the Gambia had one of the best primary health care systems in the world records. Unfortunately, that did not help within the 22 years of Yahya Jammeh regime, ” Minister Bah noted.
Source___Standard Newspaper
Member of parliament for Brikama South receives prestigious Global Humanitarian Award
The Member of Parliament for Brikama South, Hon. Lamin J. Sanneh on Sunday receivea prestigious Global Humanitarian Award by the World Humanitarian Drive (WHD) for his “selfless contribution to humanity”.
WHD is a worldwide organization that promotes humanity towards peace, understanding and harmony, andinspires people to promote peace through all available positive mediums such as education, sports, arts, trade and media around the world.
At a virtual ceremony Sunday, WHD recognised one hundred people across the world, including Honourable Sanneh dubbed Stars of Covid, for their contributions in the fight against Covid-19.
“STARS OF COVID”, is considered as part of an initiative by WHD founder Dr. Abdul Basit Syed who said the award was to show appreciation and honour courageous selfless contributors to the betterment of humanity, especially during this crisis of Covid-19.
“We decided to appreciate those unsung heroes of humanity and bring them to the limelight. We often forget to say thank you or acknowledge those who have always been contributing to the betterment of humanity especially during this crisis of COVID-19”, he said.
*Since the outbreak of the Covid-19, Honourable Sanneh, a social worker for many years, has been leading the fight against the pandemic in his constituency, using community-based initiatives to sensitize and empower his people against it. This year, WHD received more than 1,600 nominations from all seven continents and 52 countries. The shortlist of the award includes 550 projects with 100 projects from 35 countries.*
Reacting to the award, Honourable Sanneh expressed great pleasure and honour to be among the winners of the Global Humanitarian Awards from World Humanitarian Drive.
“On my own behalf, my entire family, my constituency Brikama South and the Gambia at large, I want to sincerely thank World Humanitarian Drive for the gesture and the initiative, I therefore challenge sister institutions around the world to emulate (WHD). The gesture is encouraging me more and it is also increasing my commitment yawning for more Awards in future”.
Buhari Restates Plans To Save 100 Million Nigerians Out Of Poverty
President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari has restated the plan of his administration to save 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within the next 10 years.
The Nigerian President was speaking on Yesterday, in a video message to a high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly, which featured the launch of the Alliance for Poverty Eradication (APE) an initiative aimed at supporting actions to eradicate poverty.
Buhari make known his administration’s determination to do more, including a massive investment in education, especially of the girl-child.
“Nigeria attaches great importance to poverty eradication. It is for this reason that in May 2019, on my inauguration for 2nd term in office, our government committed itself to starting a new programme of lifting a 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within a 10-year period.
“In Nigeria, as in many other countries, the domestic supply chain and trading corridors have come under enormous strain. This has brought to fore, the health versus economic debate, a subject which has captured the attention of “global leaders and shaped the debate on how best to respond to the global pandemic, while allowing citizens to earn their livelihoods,” he said.
Source___Channels TV
Ondo State Governor in Nigeria, Akeredolu Tests Positive For COVID-19
Ondo State Governor in Nigeria, Rotimi Akeredolu, has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19).
Governor Akeredolu made this known on Tuesday in a Facebook post.
He disclosed that his sample had been collected to test for COVID-19 and the result came back positive earlier before the announcement.
The governor, however, noted that he was asymptomatic and has yet to show any symptoms of the disease.
He also revealed that following the positive test result he received, he has gone into self-isolation while his case would be managed by a team of health officials at the state Infectious Disease Hospital.
Governor Akeredolu said, “Earlier today, I got confirmation of a positive result for Covid-19. I am asymptomatic and not displaying any symptoms.
“I am currently self-isolating and supervised home management will be administered by the wonderful team at our Infectious Disease Hospital. I ask that we all stay safe and be well.”
Source___Channels TV
Nigeria Confirms 561 New COVID-19 Cases As Total Infections Surpass 25,000
Nigeria has confirmed 561 new cases of the novel coronavirus, bringing its total infections to 25, 694.
This was disclosed yesterday night by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in a tweet via its official handle.
Just like the previous day, the new cases were recorded across 18 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Giving a breakdown of the cases, the NCDC noted that the five states with the highest number of infections were Lagos – 200, Edo – 119, Kaduna – 52, Niger – 32 and Ogun 19.
Others included Ondo – 16, Imo – 14, Plateau – 11, Abia and Oyo states each having 8 cases, Bayelsa – 7 and Katsina – 6.
Meanwhile, states with fewer cases include Kano – 5, Bauchi, Osun and Kebbi each having 3 cases, Borno – 2 and Jigawa – 1.
Source___Channels TV
Russia set to vote that may extend their president staying in power till 2036
A constitutional vote that would allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to extend his rule until 2036 is set to wrap up after a week of voting.
The countrywide vote on the change that would reset the clock on Putin’s tenure to zero and enable him to serve two more six-year terms entered its final day on Wednesday.
Their president is all but guaranteed to get the result he wants following a massive campaign to get Russia’s voters to say “yes” to the changes.
The amendments, which also emphasise the priority of Russian law over international norms, outlaw same-sex marriages and mention “a belief in God” as an important value, quickly sailed through the Kremlin-controlled parliament.
Other constitutional changes expand Parliament’s role, but they also strengthen the already-powerful role of the president.
The president will have the right to dissolve Parliament if it refuses to support the candidacy of a minister proposed by the head of state three times in a row.
They will also have a greater say over the work of the Constitutional and Supreme Courts and prosecutors.
Source___Aljazeera
The 16-year-old black tennis star set to rule the tennis world
On 1 July, 2019, a 15-year-old black American stepped out on Court One to face her idol Venus Williams at Wimbledon.
Those who follow the stats might have noticed Gauff had become the youngest player to qualify for the main Wimbledon draw since the Open era began in 1968. Others were asking the press office whether to pronounce her name ‘Gawf’ or ‘Goff’ – it’s the latter – and no matter how they were pronouncing her surname, they were still calling the teenager by her given name, Cori.
She became the hot ticket as she progressed through the rounds, saving two match points against Polona Hercog to reach the last 16. There she lost to eventual champion Simona Halep, leaving to a standing ovation from a crowd who had been well and truly charmed.
Gauff made a lasting impression, not only with the pundits who predicted a trophy-laden future, but also with the public who saw a humble teenager who was “thankful for the experience” and planned to merely buy a new hoodie with her £176,000 prize money.
“I went from probably 30,000 followers [on social media] to 500,000 overnight, and definitely got a lot of recognition from really famous people all around the world,” she tells BBC Sport.
“It’s something I’m still not used to but definitely wasn’t used to then.”
Yet she handled the media spotlight like an old hand, unfazed by her ‘promotion’ to the biggest news conference room, usually reserved for the top names, and not intimidated by her billing on the show courts or the players she faced.
At least that’s what it looked like from outside. She tells it slightly differently.
“I was really nervous – don’t get me wrong – I didn’t look nervous but I was nervous inside,” she says of the victory over Williams.
“My parents always taught me to be calm in those moments and remember that pressure is a privilege. That’s what I remembered during those moments.”
Her poise, eloquence and maturity beyond her years have won many admirers. And you really don’t need to look too far to see where she has got it from.
Credit____BBC
India coronavirus officials says ‘sorry’ after video shows bodies thrown into pit
Officials in the south Indian state of Karnataka have apologised after footage showing officials dumping bodies of Covid -19 victims caused anger.
The videos circulated on social media showed workers in PPE kits dumping bodies wrapped in black garbage bags into deep pits.
Officials in the state’s Bellary district disclosed that the footage was genuine and apologised to families of the victims.
The bodies were of eight people who had died of Covid-19 days earlier.
Karnataka has seen more than 246 deaths due to Covid.
Nonetheless, it has been pick out as one of the states that has been more successful in tracing and containing the disease.
“We have issued a letter of unconditional apology to the families of the dead. We are very hurt by this and we are very sorry. We condemn the way corpses have been treated. They should have been treated more humanely,” senior district official SS Nakula told BBC Hindi’s Imran Qureshi.
“They followed all the protocols. Where they have gone wrong is not the part of the protocol but the mentality that a dead body should be handled with dignity,” he added.
Source___BBC
Clinic Explosion in Iran capital Tehran kills at least 19
Not less than 19 people have been killed in an explosion at a clinic in Iran’s capital Tehran, officials say.
Dozens were injured at the Sina Athar clinic, and there are fears the death toll will rise further.
Iran’s state media quoted senior officials as saying the explosion was due to a gas leak.
Television pictures showed plumes of smoke billowing in the sky. Firefighters extinguished the blaze several hours later.
Most of the victims of yesterday’s blast were women, according to the authorities.
Some of the victims “were in upper floors, in operation rooms – who were either patients being operated on or those with them”, Tehran fire department spokesman Jalal Maleki was quoted as saying by state media.
“They unfortunately lost their lives due to the heat and thick smoke,” he said, adding that firefighters had rescued 20 people.
The clinic, which carries out light surgeries and medical imaging, had 25 employees inside at the time of the explosion, Mr Maleki said.
Source___BBC
“I won’t be holding rallies”-Joe Biden
US Democrat Joe Biden has make known that he will not be holding presidential campaign rallies during the coronavirus pandemic.
“This is the most unusual campaign, I think, in modern history,” Mr Biden said at a press conference in Delaware.
His rival, President Donald Trump, saw lower-than-expected turnout for a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June and his campaign has announced no new rallies.
People’s view on the polls show Mr Biden with an almost double-digit lead over Mr Trump as the 3 November election looms.
On Tuesday, Mr Biden told reporters: “I’m going to follow the doc’s orders – not just for me but for the country – and that means that I am not going to be holding rallies.
The former US vice-president under Barack Obama also said he has not yet been tested for Covid-19, which has killed almost 130,000 people in the US.
Source___BBC
D5 Creation