COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber addressed the ‘First Meeting of the Board of the Fund for responding to loss and damage’ and urged Parties to “build on progress” and deliver “lasting, positive, socio-economic impact” to help the most vulnerable to climate change.

During his address, Dr. Al Jaber said that while delivering an agreement to operationalize the Fund at COP28 was a “huge breakthrough for climate progress” more needs to be done.

The COP28 President said: “Let’s make sure we build on that progress with a fully functioning fund. A Fund that is endorsed at COP29 in Baku, a Fund that is disbursing funds soon after and a Fund that delivers lasting, positive, socio-economic impact for decades to come.”

Loss and damage was first put on the COP agenda in 1991 and that “while it took over three decades to establish this Fund, climate change has not stood still. Every region of the world is now vulnerable…the impacts of climate change are a clear and present danger to lives and livelihoods everywhere.”

Infinix Mobile, a global leader in mobile technology, proudly announces the successful conclusion of the week-long student talent contest in partnership with the renowned Addis Ababa University (AAU) Culture Center. The event, which showcased the remarkable abilities of young student artists and performers, exemplifying Infinix’s commitment to empowering youth worldwide.

The talent contest, held over the past week, featured students competing in singing, poetry, and theater categories. Participants from diverse backgrounds demonstrated their creativity, passion, and dedication, making it a celebration of artistic expression and cultural diversity. The AAU Culture Center provided an ideal platform for these emerging talents to shine and connect with a wider audience.

The closing event, held at the Addis Ababa University Culture Center auditorium, was attended by esteemed guests, including senior representatives from the university, local influencers, celebrities, and thousands of enthusiastic students.

The winners of each category were awarded the sleek and powerful Infinix HOT 40 Pro smartphones. These cutting-edge devices symbolize not only victory but also the promise of limitless possibilities. Our distinguished guest of honor personally handed over the HOT 40 phones, inspiring the winners to continue pursuing their passions.

A senior U.S. official warned Monday that more than 2 million people in El Fasher, in Sudan’s western Darfur region, are under imminent threat of a “large-scale massacre” from a paramilitary group’s attack and urged the international community to pressure the warring parties to de-escalate. “There are already credible reports that the RSF and its allied militias have razed multiple villages west of El Fasher,” U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters at the United Nations. “And as we speak, the RSF is planning an imminent attack on El Fasher.” The RSF is the Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces, the paramilitary group that is made up of elements of the Janjaweed fighters who carried out a genocide in Darfur in the early 2000s. (VOA)

At least 45 people died when a makeshift dam burst its banks near a southern town in Kenya’s Rift valley in the early hours of Monday, police said, as torrential rains and floods hit the country. The disaster raises the total death toll over the March-May wet season in Kenya to more than 100, as heavier-than-usual rainfall pounds east Africa, compounded by El Niño weather pattern…Residents said the dam burst in the dead of night, sending water gushing down a hill and engulfing everything in its path…The disaster occurred at Old Kijabe dam, a hillside barrier formed naturally over decades after railway construction work by Kenya’s former British colonial rulers. (AFP)