Author: THE CONNECTING NEWSPAPER

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) engaged Member States and diverse group of maritime sector stakeholders to assess the financial, economic, and implementation options of the Praia-Dakar maritime transport project. This consultation is a key milestone towards the completion of the technical studies for the project which is aimed at advancing the larger Praia-Dakar-Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Transport Project, which strives to improve regional connectivity and promote economic integration within West Africa. The engagement meeting, which took place in Praia, brought together experts and stakeholders who considered alternatives for the establishment of maritime services, either as a Container liner or…

Read More

L-Tido Calls For An End To The “South Africans Are Xenophobic” Narrative. L-Tido has taken to social media to challenge the pervasive narrative that paints South Africans as inherently xenophobic. L-Tido Calls For An End To The “South Africans Are Xenophobic” Narrative In a candid post, the artist urged people to reconsider this stereotype, emphasizing the country’s diverse and inclusive nature. “Stop with the ‘South Africans are xenophobic’ narrative,” L-Tido wrote. “We have so many brothers and sisters from all across the continent that make a living here. This is a rainbow nation, so we automatically thrive on diversity.” Stop…

Read More

Some have openly wondered throughout the summer if Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones could view quarterback Trey Lance as a future replacement for starter Dak Prescott as Prescott remains on track to reach free agency after the 2024 season.According to Todd Archer of ESPN, Lance is still beneath career backup Cooper Rush on the Dallas depth chart.”Rush is still in the lead to be Prescott’s backup,” Archer wrote on Sunday night, “but Lance is guaranteed $5.3 million this season in the final year of his rookie contract.” Lance hasn’t played in a meaningful game since he suffered…

Read More

International humanitarian law violations should not be normalised, ICRC warns, noting 120 global conflicts as it marks Geneva Conventions’ 75th anniversary.The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has called on the world to respect the Geneva Conventions as the international treaties setting out the rules of war mark their 75th anniversary. The rule book for the conduct of war is under strain and often disregarded, ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric said on Monday. Conduct in conflicts such as in Gaza, Ukraine, Syria and Myanmar illustrate that the conventions are being largely ignored and a new commitment to international humanitarian law…

Read More

Embracing imperfection As the saying goes, good things take time, and building a lifelong bond with a new furry friend is no different.  Pet parents are often consumed with the initial excitement of bringing a new pet home, but that excitement can fade as a pet experiences the normal challenges of adjusting to a new environment, sometimes leading adopters to return pets to the shelter.However, the Hill’s Pet Nutrition 2024 State of Shelter Pet Adoption Report showed that 2 out of 3 people who did surrender a pet said intervention, like shelter support or pet food pantries, could have prevented…

Read More

Five years ago, Esther Omagwa was one of only two nurses at the Railways Health Centre in Kisumu County, western Kenya. The immense workload often exhausted her, forcing her to turn away clients. Today, the scene at the community health centre is remarkably different. With the nursing staff now expanded to a team of four, Omagwa and her colleagues are better equipped to deal with the load. The health centre’s overall staff has tripled to 30 and this includes specialists for services such as maternal and child health, cardiology, orthopaedics and mental health. “Since we have been able to incorporate…

Read More

J Molley Dumbs Hip Hop For Gospel Music As He Announces New Stage Name. In a surprising turn of events, South African rapper J Molley has announced a dramatic shift in his musical direction, abandoning his established hip-hop career in favour of gospel music. J Molley Dumbs Hip Hop For Gospel Music As He Announces New Stage Name The renowned rapper, who has faced numerous struggles with mental health, committed his life to Jesus Christ a few months ago. Now, he has taken another courageous step by continuing to walk in faith. In a statement, J Molley announced that he…

Read More

The Met Office has forecast “very warm, locally hot weather” for the capital in the coming days. Tuesday could be the hottest day of the year so far, as temperatures could reach 32C.The forecaster has predicted continuous sunshine until Friday evening, with temperatures remaining in the high 20s throughout the week.The warm surge is due to a wave of high pressure across the country and warm air rising from the south, creating dry, fine and sunny conditions and bringing temperatures up.Simon Partridge, a forecaster at the Met Office, said: “There is certainly potential that it could become an actual official…

Read More

From Regan Smith, Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky and Torri Huske, the women of Team USA were the showstoppers at the 2024 Paris Olympics.Of the 40 gold medals won by Team USA, 26 were clinched by the women — an unprecedented feat in Olympic history. In comparison, Team USA’s women captured 23 of the country’s 39 gold medals three years ago in Tokyo, which marked their fourth-highest total and second-highest share (59 percent).   The 6 percent uptick in gold-medal share isn’t surprising by any means. Since the 2008 Beijing Games, Team USA’s women have out-medaled their male counterparts with 308…

Read More

Kyiv, Ukraine – For Oleksandr Antybysh, peace negotiations with Russia should be based on several conditions. “A return to Ukraine’s internationally recognised borders, a ban for Russia to conduct military drills no closer than 300km [186 miles] from Ukraine’s borders”, the bearded serviceman said as he counted out the conditions on his fingers. Antybysh, who co-heads a volunteer group that makes gadgets for speedy gun loading in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, also told Al Jazeera he wants to see the “full reparation of all losses, material and moral, that have to be calculated by an international commission”. But…

Read More