Newscast - Africa

The National Information Technology Development Agency issued new regulations for Internet platforms available in Nigeria.
The NITDA spokesperson, Hadiza Umar, says the new code was designed to protect the fundamental human rights of Nigerians and non-Nigerians living in the country as well as define guidelines for interacting in the digital ecosystem.
The code requires Internet platforms to register with the Corporate Affairs Commission and appoint a designated country representative to interface with Nigerian authorities.
NITDA says Internet platforms must provide a comprehensive compliance mechanism to avoid the publication of prohibited content and unethical behaviour on their platform.

QatarEnergy signed a partnership deal with TotalEnergies for the North Field East expansion of the world’s largest liquefied natural gas project and said more partners would be announced in the coming days.
The President of QatarEnergy and also Qatar’s minister of state for energy, Saad al-Kaabi says the selection process for partners has been finalised and subsequent signings could be announced as soon as next week.
He says no company will have a stake higher than TotalEnergies.
France-based TotalEnergies Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne says the company will have 25 per cent of one train – or liquefaction and purification facility – in the project.

Iran’s national currency has hit new all-time lows amid developments that have cast doubts about the complete restoration of the nuclear deal and lifting of the United States sanctions.
The new freefall comes after a resolution censuring Iran’s nuclear programme introduced by the US and its European allies were passed by the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Rafael Grossi, the IAEA director, says Iran will remove 27 cameras and has also begun installing cascades of new centrifuges, in a development that he said if not addressed quickly, could signal a fatal blow to efforts to restore Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

China has vowed to fight to the very end to stop Taiwanese independence and warned that foreign interference in Taiwan is doomed to fail.
Chinese defence minister Wei Fenghe says If anyone dares to secede Taiwan from China, they will fight at all costs and to the very end.
Wei says no one should ever underestimate the resolve and ability of the Chinese armed forces to safeguard its territorial integrity.
Wei says some country keeps playing the Taiwan card against China to interfere in internal affairs.

A bipartisan group of United States senators proposed steps to curb gun violence following devastating mass shootings in Texas and New York, but the limited measures fall far short of the president’s calls for change.
Republican lawmakers, who have repeatedly blocked tougher measures, are still resisting major changes to gun regulations, instead of pointing to mental health issues as the root of the problem.
The reforms include tougher background checks for gun buyers under 21, increasing resources for states to keep weapons out of the hands of people deemed a risk, and adding domestic violence convictions and restraining orders to the national background check database.

The World Trade Organization chief voiced cautious optimism as global trade ministers gathered to tackle food security threatened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, overfishing and equitable access to Covid vaccines.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala says to expect a rocky, bumpy road with a few landmines along the way.
She however told journalists that she was cautiously optimistic that the more than 100 attending ministers would manage to agree on at least one or two of a long line of pressing issues, and that would be a success.

The widespread exploitation of men, women, and children at a refugee camp in Malawi has been uncovered by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime and the Malawian Police Service.
UNODC's Maxwell Matewere says new measures are underway to dismantle the human trafficking networks operating within the Dzaleka Refugee Camp, identify and rescue their victims, and bring those responsible to justice.
UNODC coached and mentored 28 camp officials and law enforcement officers who are now involved in the identification of victims and the investigation of trafficking cases and will train other colleagues at police stations and border crossing posts.

A former Commander of the Special Task Force, Operation Safe Haven, Major General Henry Ayoola, says poor parenting triggers insecurity in the country.
Ayoola charged parents to play their roles in properly grooming their children so as not to constitute a nuisance to society.
He says society now has parents who are not properly raised, with little or nothing to pass to the generation of their children.
The former Chief of Defence Research and Development maintained that the family should be alive to its crucial duty.

The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, says citizens must trust the military and other security agencies for the war on insecurity to be more effective.
He says Nigerians can’t withhold information and expect miracles to happen.
He says trust must exist and trust must be given in all respect so that together they will achieve the state of peace that they so desire.
The General noted that a lot of improvement has been recorded in securing the country in the past year.

The Lagos State Government has begun the construction of a cultural village in Iran, Alimosho Local Government Area of the state.
The Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf, says the project would activate the rich, diverse culture and heritage resources in Alimosho.
Ms Akinbile-Yusuf noted that this would promote the sustainable development of tourism as a viable sector of the economy.
She says that upon completion, the centre will position Lagos as the next tourism destination as it is expected to attract tourists to Lagos and increase the state's Gross Domestic Product.