Shipment
Blockchain-based supply chain platform canned by IBM and Maersk
United States technology company IBM and Danish logistics firm Maersk have decided to discontinue their co-developed blockchain-backed supply chain platform, TradeLens, citing a lack of “global industry collaboration” as a key reason behind the decision. Maersk stated on Nov. 29 that it has begun taking immediate action to cease operations on the platform, which should take full effect by Q1 2023: “The TradeLens team is taking action to withdraw the offerings and discontinue the platform […] During this process all parties involved will ensure that customers are attended to without disruptions to their businesses.” While the blockchain-based shipping solution was introduced by the two firms in August 2018 to help industry participants adopt more efficient international supply chain p...
Cocaine worth $8.2m found in Poland banana shipment
Polish police on Friday announced the seizing of 160 kilograms (350 pounds) of cocaine hidden inside several shipments of bananas delivered to a branch of the French retail chain, Carrefour. Carrefour Polska said its employees had found “suspicious packages in a fresh delivery of bananas” on Thursday in central Warsaw. “They immediately notified the police, who quickly secured the consignment and launched an investigation, which is currently ongoing. Our chain is fully cooperating with investigators,” Carrefour Polska was quoted as saying by Poland’s PAP news agency. A police video published on Twitter showed green-coloured packages containing the cocaine hidden in cardboard boxes of bananas. Police, who valued the seizure at more than 6.7 million euros ($8.2 million), did not say where th...
Abia government renames technical colleges
The Abia State Executive Council has approved the renaming of some existing colleges in the state. The institutions renamed are, Boys Technical College, Aba to Government Technical College, Aba and Secondary Technical School, Afara to Government Technical College, Afara. The decision to rename the colleges was taken at a meeting presided by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu held inside the Executive Chambers of Government House Umuahia on Wednesday. This was disclosed in a release signed by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Barrister Chris Ezems and made available to newsmen in Umuahia on Friday. According to the release, the Council approved that all students enrolled in the Technical schools will enjoy free education whilst Abia State Universal Basic Education Board (ASUBEB) should as a...
Guinea receives purchase of 300,000 Sinovac coronavirus vaccines
Guinea received on Sunday a shipment of 300,000 Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines purchased from China and is also set to receive a donation of 200,000 Sinopharm shots, Guinean Foreign Minister Ibrahima Khalil Kaba said. Kaba gave no further details on the Sinopharm donation. Guinea is reporting 93 new coronavirus infections on average each day, 59% of the peak in March. There have been 21,460 infections and 138 coronavirus-related deaths reported in the country since the pandemic began. The West African country has administered at least 109,296 doses of COVID vaccines so far, according to government data compiled by Reuters. Assuming every person needs two doses, that’s enough to have vaccinated about 0.4% of the country’s population. The World Health Organization will decide late this month or i...
NDLEA seizes 200kg of hard drugs at Lagos, Abuja, Kano airports
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) simultaneously seized 200 kilograms of illicit substances at the Lagos, Kano and Abuja airports last week. Its Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi, made this known in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja. He stated that a 41-year-old Adewuyi Olayinka was arrested while trying to export 650 grams of cocaine to the United Kingdom. The drugs were wrapped in two parcels arranged to be taken through the Skyway Aviation Handling Company export shed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. “The drugs were concealed in dry pepper and in herbal concoction. “In the same vein, 107kg of hard drug suspected to be Khat was seized at the cargo shed of the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, while being exported to Canada. “The ...
Reps speaker urges Nigerians not to believe conspiracy theories about coronavirus vaccine
The speaker of the house of representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has advised Nigerians not to believe conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 vaccines. Many Nigerians are wary about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine amid unverified claims that it contains microchips. Faisal Shuaib, chief executive officer of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), had recently dismissed the claims as false. The first shipment of the vaccines– 3.9 million doses– arrived in Nigeria on Tuesday and the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine was administered today. Speaking at the national flag-off ceremony for the COVID-19 vaccination in Abuja, Gbajabiamila urged Nigerians to rally behind the federal government to fight the pandemic. He also cautioned against playing politics with the vaccinati...
Iran’s president warns of coronavirus ‘fourth wave’
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani warned Saturday of a Covid-19 “fourth wave” as cases rise in certain areas of the Middle Eastern country hardest hit by the pandemic. “This is a warning for all of us,” Rouhani said in televised remarks. He said some cities in the southwestern province of Khuzestan were now “red” — the highest on Iran’s colour-coded risk level — after weeks of low alert levels across the country. “This means the beginning of moving towards the fourth wave. We all have to be vigilant to prevent this,” Rouhani added. The country of more than 80 million people has lost close to 59,000 lives out of more than 1.5 million cases of Covid infection. Iran has officially registered less than 7,000 daily infections since late December, but the number has crossed this level since early ...
UNHCR sends emergency aid to Sudan, more expected
The United Nations said Friday it had flown 32 tons of emergency aid to Khartoum, Sudan to quickly assist the thousands of refugees fleeing fighting and violence in Ethiopia. The UN refugee agency, UNHCR said a second shipment is expected to arrive by plane from Dubai on Monday. More than 43,300 refugees have crossed the border to Sudan so far. The number of refugees could reach 200,000 in the next six months according to humanitarian agencies. Visiting Khartoum to oversee operations, UNHCR boss Filipo Grandi expressed his solidarity and gratitude to Sudan for opening its borders to refugees. According to a UNHCR spokesman in Geneva half of them are children. Friday’s flight brought 5,000 blankets, 4,500 solar lamps, 2,900 mosquito nets, 200 tarpaulins and 200 rolls of plastic. Monday’s fl...
