Focus Merit

Category: International Current Affairs

‘International Day of Education’ celebrated globally

January 24, 2020

24th January is celebrated globally as International Day of Education with the theme ‘Learning for people, planet, prosperity and peace’. The day is dedicated to education. It was celebrated for the first time on 24 January 2019.

On December 3, 2018, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming January 24 as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for bringing global peace and sustainable development.

Decision to declare corona virus outbreak ‘An emergency’

January 23, 2020

The World Health Organization (WHO) is holding a crucial emergency meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the novel coronavirus outbreak in China. The UN body will decide if the outbreak of a new Chinese strain of coronavirus — cousin of the devastating SARS virus — is “a public health emergency of international concern”.

Such a declaration would be significant. It means the WHO thinks immediate and coordinated international action may be needed to contain the infectant, which has caused nine deaths in China and caused hundreds to fall sick across Asia. Cases have been reported in several places outside China, including Japan and the United States. India has already issued a travel warning. Several countries have also started screening travellers from China to detect symptoms of the infection.

Aurobindo Ashram School building inaugurated in Nepal

January 23, 2020

Dr. Ajay Kumar, the Charge d’ Affairs of Embassy of India in Nepal ceremonially inaugurated new building of Aurobindo Ashram School in Thankot, Kathmandu. The programme was attended by Director General, Department of Urban Development and Building Construction of Nepal, Mani Ram Gelal along with political and community leaders.

The three storey building comprises eleven class rooms, three labs, four store rooms, two staff rooms, rooms for – accounts, administration, record, library and principal. It also has examination and multi-purpose hall. The new infrastructure is constructed with the Government of India’s grant assistance of 25 million Nepali rupees.

Brexit divorce law approved by UK Parliament

January 23, 2020

The Brexit divorce deal completed its passage through Parliament on Wednesday evening, ensuring that the U.K. will leave the European Union at the end of the month. After passing the upper and lower parliamentary chambers, the Brexit divorce deal that Prime Minister Boris Johnson negotiated with the EU last year now just needs signoff from the queen to become British law.

On the European side, the EU council and commission presidents are due to sign off on the agreement Friday. The European Parliament needs to vote it through next Wednesday, but that step is considered a formality. The passage of the bill through Parliament ends nearly four years of British political paralysis sparked by the vote to leave the EU in 2016.

Mr. Johnson’s commanding majority in Parliament following his December election victory meant that the Brexit deal went through Parliament un-amended. It paves the way for the U.K. to end its 47-year relationship with the EU on the evening of January 31.

UN report: Global unemployment to rise by 2.5 million in 2020

January 22, 2020

According to UN’s International Labour Organization report – Global unemployment is projected to increase by around 5 million in 2020. Almost half a billion people are working fewer paid hours than they would like or lack adequate access to paid work.

The World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2020 (WESO) report has been released and it states that global unemployment has been roughly stable for the last nine years but slowing global economic growth means that, as the global labour force increases, not enough new jobs are being generated to absorb new entrants to the labour market.

Bangladesh: E-passport distribution to be launched in Dhaka

January 21, 2020

Bangladesh is set to begin the distribution of e-passports. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to launch the e-passport distribution at an event scheduled to be held at the capital’s Bangabandhu International Conference Centre. The President and Prime Minister will receive the e-passports first and anyone can apply for it.

The delivery of e-passports will start in regional offices by the end of 2020. The services will expand in phases, machine-readable passports will remain valid as well. The Department of Immigration and Passports will issue 48-page and 64-page e-passports with the validity of five years and 10 years, respectively.

The decision on introducing digital passport comes less than a decade after Bangladesh switched from manual to the machine-readable passport. The government took the initiative to introduce e-passports in the wake of more than one passport being illegally issued against one person in the absence of database of fingerprints of citizens.   

Iranian Film ‘Castle of Dreams’ gets Best Film Award at DIFF

January 20, 2020

A total of 220 films from 74 countries were shown during the nine-day long Asian Competition section of the 18th Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF) which began on 11th of this month. The theme of this year’s festival was ‘better film, better audience, better society.’ The Iranian film ‘Castle of Dreams’ directed by Reza Mirakarimi won the Best Film Award. The film also won the Best Director Award.

Indian film ‘Finally Love’ directed by Anjan Dutt has won the Best Audience Award in Cinema of the World Category while ‘Children of the Sun’ directed by Sri Lankan director Prasanna Vithanage has won the Special Jury Award in the 18th Dhaka International Film Festival. In Bangladesh Panorama Section, ‘No Dorai’ directed by Taneem Rahman Angshu bagged the Best Film Award.

Best Actress Award went to Arezoo Ariapoor, Ferestha Afshar and Hasiba Ebrahimi for their acting in Afghanistan-Iran-France joint venture film ‘Hava, Maryamk, Ayesha’ while the Best Actor Award went to Lousie Abuel for his acting in the film ‘Edward’. Information Minister of Bangladesh Hasan Mahmud gave away the award carrying prize money of Tk 1 lakh, a citation and crest in the closing ceremony held in Dhaka.

Novel coronavirus grips Wuhan city of China, 2 dead

January 19, 2020

China’s Wuhan city is in grip of a new respiratory virus called Novel coronavirus that has killed two people in China and sickened at least 45 persons including overseas cases with some new cases being detected in the city.

The illness has been identified as a new strain of coronavirus, which is in the same family as the deadly severe acute respiratorysyndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

The illness was first reported in late December in Wuhan, in central China. It is not certain that the virus spreads from person to person. Symptoms of coronaviruses can range from fever and coughing to pneumonia with severe effects.

Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that the health commissions in China have been notifying people of the latest development and China has been actively notifying the WHO and other relevant international organisations and countries of the infection cases.

Qatar signs $470 mn solar deal for its first solar energy plant

January 19, 2020

Gas-rich Qatar signed a $470-million deal to build its first solar energy plant, capable of meeting up to one-tenth of peak national power demand. The capital cost of the venture is 1.7 billion riyals ($470 million), with state firms taking a 60-percent stake and foreign investors 40 percent.

The Al-Kharsaah plant, near the capital, is a 10 square kilometre joint venture with French and Japanese partners due for completion in 2022 ahead of the football World Cup. Eight times the solar power pledged in the World Cup bid will be produced.

Qatar’s ruler, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, vowed at the United Nations last year that the tournament would be carbon neutral, but gave little detail on how this would be achieved. By contrast, Abu Dhabi’s Sweihan plant, one of the world’s largest solar projects, produces 1,177 megawatts.

Microsoft promises to be ‘carbon negative’ by 2030

January 17, 2020

Microsoft announced ambitious new plans to become ‘carbon negative’ by 2030 and then go one step further and remove by 2050 all the carbon it has emitted since the company was founded in 1975. Microsoft has also announced its investment of $1 billion in a “climate innovation fund” for technology for carbon capture and removal.

The focus on taking the enormous step of clearing all the carbon it has contributed in the last 45 years sets the tech giant apart from other companies that have focused on reducing their current and future emissions. Ikea pledged to go carbon negative as well, but it did not commit to removing all the carbon it is responsible for in its history, according to NPR.

Microsoft created a detailed plan to take gradual steps over the next decade to reach net-zero emissions by overhauling its entire supply chain to reduce emissions. The company already asks employees to consider greenhouse gas emissions in all its business decision. Microsoft’s plan includes using 100 percent renewable energy and relying on electric vehicles.