“Raising societal awareness about manuscripts is essential: Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi IGNCA Launches Essential Book on the Preservation and Interpretation of India’s Manuscript Heritage
Posted On: 25 APR 2025 9:00PM by PIB Delhi
The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), through its Kalānidhi Division, organised the release and discussion of the significant book ‘ Pandulipi evam Samikshit Patha- Sampadan’ (Abhinav Paramarsh ke Sath)” authored by Prof. Vasantkumar M. Bhatt. The event was presided over by Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA, with Prof. Ramesh Chandra Bhardwaj, former Vice Chancellor of Maharshi Valmiki Sanskrit University, as the Chief Guest.
Alongside the author, the programme featured remarks from Prof. Ramesh Chandra Gaur, Head of the Kalānidhi Division and Dean (Administration); Dr. Kirtikant Sharma, co-editor of the volume; and Prof. Shiv Shankar Mishra, Head of the Research Department at Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri National Sanskrit University. This publication offers a significant study of India’s manuscript tradition, diverse methodologies of textual editing, and the contemporary relevance of critically edited texts. The panel discussion held alongside the release reflected deeply on the need to preserve, study, and reinterpret India’s knowledge systems. The event saw enthusiastic participation from research scholars, academicians, Sanskrit experts, and distinguished figures from the fields of art and culture.
Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, while speaking at the occasion, emphasised the need to bring manuscriptology into wider discourse beyond academic circles and described the published volume as a much-needed and pertinent contribution to the field. He noted that manuscripts are not merely archival records but living repositories of civilisational knowledge that must be actively studied, interpreted, and shared. He informed the audience about the ‘Gyan Bharatam’ initiative of the Government of India, under which efforts are being made to integrate traditional knowledge systems-particularly manuscripts-into contemporary educational and cultural frameworks. Since its inception, IGNCA has been a key institution in manuscriptology, undertaking wide-ranging and major works that extend beyond national borders. Dr. Joshi highlighted that IGNCA has led efforts in preserving manuscripts from India, Thailand, Vietnam, Mongolia and others. He underlined that such vast undertakings cannot be sustained by a single institution alone and called for collaborative engagement from scholars, technologists, and cultural practitioners. Subsequently, he highlighted the need for greater societal awareness about manuscripts, stressing that the responsibility extends beyond one institution.
He also mentioned IGNCA’s manuscript reading courses, aimed at building capacity and sparking interest among students and researchers.“These texts must not remain with conservators alone; their meaning must be accessible to all,” he stated. Through these courses, the Centre seeks to both conserve and cultivate a community engaged with these rich traditions.
Praising the book, Prof. Ramesh Chandra Bhardwaj said, “This book is so important that it will shape the future of the country, as millions of manuscripts lie in India, and it is the youth who will carry forward the task of preserving them. This is the book that will provide the youth with vision, and they will do much work in this field going forward. Therefore, we must dedicate this book to society and the nation as an exemplary work.” He further emphasised that this book serves as a foundational text in the field, bridging the gap in both Sanskrit scholarship and the broader study of manuscripts. On this occasion, Prof. Vasantkumar M. Bhatt, while discussing the book, elaborated on the process of textual editing of manuscripts in India. He mentioned that earlier, before writing a commentary on any text, our commentators would gather manuscripts from different regions. He emphasised that the foundational text should be edited with thoughtful deliberations, ensuring it is placed in the right context, thereby facilitating a deeper understanding and meaningful engagement with its content. Dr. Kirtikant Sharma and Professor Shiv Shankar Mishra also shared their views on the occasion.
Earlier, Prof. Ramesh Chandra Gaur delivered the welcome address, setting the tone for the event. He expressed his gratitude to all attendees and highlighted the significance of the book launch in the context of manuscript studies.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
As summer vacation approaches, have parents started purchasing textbooks for their children for the new school year? The Education Bureau (EDB) has prepared three practical strategies to give parents a better understanding of the information and other key points to note with regard to the purchase of textbooks, enabling them to joyfully prepare their children for the new school year.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Education Bureau (EDB) will be organising four parents’ talks on Primary One Admission (POA) in September 2024. The talks will be conducted in Cantonese and are free of charge. Parents are welcome to join.
Each talk will be divided into two parts. In the first part, guest speakers will share with the audience how parents can help children grow up healthily and happily through Home-School Co-operation. In the second part, representatives from the EDB School Places Allocation Section will explain the mechanism and procedure of the POA 2025. The details of each talks are as follows:EDB Parents’ Talk webpageOnline Application(Chinese version only)
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
ALMATY, April 26 — China and Central Asian countries have agreed to boost cooperation in various fields, said a press release from the Sixth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held here Saturday.
Murat Nurtleu, deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of Kazakhstan, Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jeenbek Kulubaev, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan, Sirojiddin Muhriddin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan, Bakhtiyor Saidov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan, and Parahat Durdyev, Turkmenistan’s Ambassador to China attended the meeting.
The parties will continue to maintain close communication and coordination through diplomatic channels to ensure the complete success and fruitful outcomes of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, said the press release.
All sides reaffirmed their firm support for each other on core interests such as sovereignty, independence, security and territorial integrity, and opposed external forces interfering in the internal affairs of countries participating in the mechanism, it said.
The Central Asian countries highly valued and expressed their willingness to actively implement the Global Security Initiative proposed by China, it said.
The parties reaffirmed their support for multilateralism and international trade rules, and expressed opposition to unilateral protectionist practices, it said.
All sides expressed willingness to deepen high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and implement mutually beneficial projects in infrastructure construction, digital connectivity and the green economy, according to the press release.
The parties will continue efforts to enhance Central Asia’s role in ensuring international energy and food security, developing international transport and logistics routes, and ensuring the smooth supply of key goods, it said.
All parties reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening regional and international security, and jointly combating the “three evil forces” of terrorism, extremism and separatism as well as transnational crime, it said.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, poses for a group photo during the Sixth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, April 26, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
ALMATY, April 26 — The sixth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held here on Saturday laid the comprehensive political groundwork for the upcoming second China-Central Asia Summit later this year and facilitated in-depth discussions on advancing China-Central Asia cooperation in all aspects.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that the United States, acting unilaterally, has imposed arbitrary tariffs on more than 180 countries, infringing upon their legitimate rights and interests. China has stepped forward and taken necessary countermeasures, not only to defend its own legitimate rights and interests, but also to safeguard international rules and order as well as international fairness and justice.
As the world’s second-largest economy and a responsible major country, China will unswervingly advance high-level opening-up, seek common development with neighboring countries, share opportunities with the world, shoulder its due international responsibilities and fulfill its international obligations.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, put forward five proposals from the Chinese side for deepening China-Central Asia cooperation.
First, be firm in upholding good faith and fostering harmony. Second, stick to mutually beneficial cooperation. Third, continue to advance institutional development. Fourth, adhere to fairness and justice. Fifth, be firm in friendship for generations.
The attending foreign ministers from Central Asian countries said that each country is ready to strengthen the synergy between their national development strategies and the Belt and Road Initiative, jointly combat the “three evil forces” of terrorism, extremism and separatism, and transnational crime, so as to maintain regional peace and stability.
All sides agreed that China serves as a stabilizing force in a turbulent world, and has demonstrated leadership in supporting multilateralism. They also expressed support for international trade rules and their rejection of unilateral protectionist practices.
The Sixth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting is held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, April 26, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
When the US Embassy knocked on my door in late 2024, I was both pleased and more than a little suspicious.
I’d worked with them before, but the organisation where I did that work, Tohatoha, had closed its doors. My new project, Dark Times Academy, was specifically an attempt to pull myself out of the grant cycle, to explore ways of funding the work of counter-disinformation education without dependence on unreliable governments and philanthropic funders more concerned with their own objectives than the work I believed then — and still believe — is crucial to the future of human freedom.
But despite my efforts to turn them away, they kept knocking, and Dark Times Academy certainly needed the money. I’m warning you all now: There is a sense in which everything I have to say about counter-disinformation comes down to conversations about how to fund the work.
DARK TIMES ACADEMY
There is nothing I would like more than to talk about literally anything other than funding this work. I don’t love money, but I do like eating, having a home, and being able to give my kids cash.
I have also repeatedly found myself in roles where other people look to me for their livelihoods; a responsibility that I carry heavily and with more than a little clumsiness and reluctance.
But if we are to talk about President Donald Trump and disinformation, we have to talk about money. As it is said, the love of money is the root of all evil. And the lack of it is the manifestation of that evil.
Trump and his attack on all of us — on truth, on peace, on human freedom and dignity — is, at its core, an attack that uses money as a weapon. It is an attack rooted in greed and in avarice.
In his world, money is power But in that greed lies his weakness. In his world, money is power. He and those who serve him and his fascist agenda cannot see beyond the world that money built. Their power comes in the form of control over that world and the people forced to live in it.
Of course, money is just paper. It is digital bits in a database sitting on a server in a data centre relying on electricity and water taken from our earth. The ephemeral nature of their money speaks volumes about their lack of strength and their vulnerability to more powerful forces.
They know this. Trump and all men like him know their weaknesses — and that’s why they use their money to gather power and control. When you have more money than you and your whānau can spend in several generations, you suddenly have a different kind of relationship to money.
It’s one where money itself — and the structures that allow money to be used for control of people and the material world — becomes your biggest vulnerability. If your power and identity are built entirely on the power of money, your commitment to preserving the power of money in the world becomes an all-consuming drive.
Capitalism rests on many “logics” — commodification, individualism, eternal growth, the alienation of labour. Marx and others have tried this ground well already.
In a sense, we are past the time when more analysis is useful to us. Rather, we have reached a point where action is becoming a practical necessity. After all, Trump isn’t going to stop with the media or with counter-disinformation organisations. He is ultimately coming for us all.
What form that action must take is a complicated matter. But, first we must think about money and about how money works, because only through lessening the power of money can we hope to lessen the power of those who wield it as their primary weapon.
Beliefs about poor people If you have been so unfortunate to be subject to engagement with anti-poverty programmes during the neoliberal era either as a client or a worker, you will know that one of the motivations used for denying direct cash aid to those in need of money is a belief on the part of government and policy experts that poor people will use their money in unwise ways, be it drugs or alcohol, or status purchases like sneakers or manicures.
But over and over again, there’s another concern raised: cash benefits will be spent on others in the community, but outside of those targeted with the cash aid.
You see this less now that ideas like a universal basic income (UBI) and direct cash transfers have taken hold of the policy and donor classes, but it is one of those rightwing concerns that turned out to be empirically accurate.
Poor people are more generous with their money and all of their other resources as well. The stereotype of the stingy Scrooge is one based on a pretty solid mountain of evidence.
The poor turn out to understand far better than the rich how to defeat the power that money gives those who hoard it — and that is community. The logic of money and capital can most effectively be defeated through the creation and strengthening of our community ties.
Donald Trump and those who follow him revel in creating a world of atomised individuals focused on themselves; the kind of world where, rather than relying on each other, people depend on the market and the dollar to meet their material needs — dollars. of course, being the source of control and power for their class.
Our ability to fund our work, feed our families, and keep a roof over our heads has not always been subject to the whims of capitalists and those with money to pay us. Around the world, the grand multicentury project known as colonialism has impoverished us all and created our dependency.
Colonial projects and ‘enclosures’ I cannot speak as a direct victim of the colonial project. Those are not my stories to tell. There are so many of you in this room who can speak to that with far more eloquence and direct experience than I. But the colonial project wasn’t only an overseas project for my ancestors.
Enclosure is one of the core colonial logics. Enclosure takes resources (land in particular) that were held in common and managed collectively using traditional customs and hands them over to private control to be used for private rather than communal benefit. This process, repeated over and over around the globe, created the world we live in today — the world built on money.
As we lose control over our access to what we need to live as the land that holds our communities together, that binds us to one another, is co-opted or stolen from us, we lose our power of self-determination. Self-governance, freedom, liberty — these are what colonisation and enclosure take from us when they steal our livelihoods.
As part of my work, I keep a close eye on the approaches to counter-disinformation that those whose relationship to power is smoother than my own take. Also, in this the year of our Lord 2025, it is mandatory to devote at least some portion of each public talk to AI.
I am also profoundly sorry to have to report that as far as I can tell, the only work on counter-disinformation still getting funding is work that claims to be able to use AI to detect and counter disinformation. It will not surprise you that I am extremely dubious about these claims.
AI has been created through what has been called “data colonialism”, in that it relies on stolen data, just as traditional forms of colonialism rely on stolen land.
Risks and dangers of AI AI itself — and I am speaking here specifically of generative AI — is being used as a tool of oppression. Other forms of AI have their own risks and dangers, but in this context, generative AI is quite simply a tool of power consolidation, of hollowing out of human skill and care, and of profanity, in the sense of being the opposite of sacred.
Words, art, conversation, companionship — these are fiercely human things. For a machine to mimic these things is to transgress against all of our communities — all the more so when the machine is being wielded by people who speak openly of genocide and white supremacy.
However, just as capitalism can be fought through community, colonialism can and has been fought through our own commitment to living our lives in freedom. It is fought by refusing their demands and denying their power, whether through the traditional tools of street protest and nonviolent resistance, or through simply walking away from the structures of violence and control that they have implemented.
In the current moment, that particularly includes the technological tools that are being used to destroy our communities and create the data being used to enact their oppression. Each of us is free to deny them access to our lives, our hopes, and dreams.
This version of colonisation has a unique weakness, in that the cyber dystopia they have created can be unplugged and turned off. And yet, we can still retain the parts of it that serve us well by building our own technological infrastructure and helping people use that instead of the kind owned and controlled by oligarchs.
By living our lives with the freedom we all possess as human beings, we can deny these systems the symbolic power they rely on to continue.
That said, this has limitations. This process of theft that underlies both traditional colonialism and contemporary data colonialism, rather than that of land or data, destroys our material base of support — ie. places to grow food, the education of our children, control over our intellectual property.
Power consolidated upwards The outcome is to create ever more dependence on systems outside of our control that serve to consolidate power upwards and create classes of disposable people through the logic of dehumanisation.
Disposable people have been a feature across many human societies. We see it in slaves, in cultures that use banishment and exile, and in places where imprisonment is used to enforce laws.
Right now we see it in the United States being directed at scale towards those from Central and Latin America and around the world. The men being sent to the El Salvadorian gulag, the toddlers sent to immigration court without a lawyer, the federal workers tossed from their jobs — these are disposable people to Trump.
The logic of colonialism relies on the process of dehumanisation; of denying the moral relevance of people’s identity and position within their communities and families. When they take a father from his family, they are dehumanising him and his family. They are denying the moral relevance of his role as a father and of his children and wife.
When they require a child to appear alone before an immigration judge, they are dehumanising her by denying her the right to be recognised as a child with moral claims on the adults around her. When they say they want to transition federal workers from unproductive government jobs to the private sector, they are denying those workers their life’s work and identity as labourers whose work supports the common good.
There was a time when I would point out that we all know where this leads, but we are there now. It has led there, although given the US incarceration rate for Black men, it isn’t unreasonable to argue that in fact for some people, the US has always been there. Fascism is not an aberration, it is a continuation. But the quickening is here. The expansion of dehumanisation and hate have escalated under Trump.
Dehumanisaton always starts with words and language. And Trump is genuinely — and terribly — gifted with language. His speeches are compelling, glittering, and persuasive to his audiences. With his words and gestures, he creates an alternate reality. When Trump says, “They’re eating the cats! They’re eating the dogs!”, he is using language to dehumanise Haitian immigrants.
An alternate reality for migrants When he calls immigrants “aliens” he is creating an alternate reality where migrants are no longer human, no longer part of our communities, but rather outside of them, not fully human.
When he tells lies and spews bullshit into our shared information system, those lies are virtually always aimed at creating a permission structure to deny some group of people their full humanity. Outrageous lie after outrageous lie told over and over again crumbles society in ways that we have seen over and over again throughout history.
In Europe, the claims that women were consorting with the devil led to the witch trials and the burning of thousands of women across central and northern Europe. In Myanmar, claims that Rohinga Muslims were commiting rape, led to mass slaughter.
Just as we fight the logics of capitalism with community and colonialism with a fierce commitment to our freedom, the power to resist dehumanisation is also ours. Through empathy and care — which is simply the material manifestation of empathy — we can defeat attempts to dehumanise.
Empathy and care are inherent to all functioning societies — and they are tools we all have available to us. By refusing to be drawn into their hateful premises, by putting morality and compassion first, we can draw attention to the ridiculousness of their ideas and help support those targeted.
Disinformation is the tool used to dehumanise. It always has been. During the COVID-19 pandemic when disinformation as a concept gained popularity over the rather older concept of propaganda, there was a real moment where there was a drive to focus on misinformation, or people who were genuinely wrong about usually public health facts. This is a way to talk about misinformation that elides the truth about it.
There is an empirical reality underlying the tsunami of COVID disinformation and it is that the information was spread intentionally by bad actors with the goal of destroying the social bonds that hold us all together. State actors, including the United States under the first Trump administration, spread lies about COVID intentionally for their own benefit and at the cost of thousands if not millions of lives.
Lies and disinformation at scale This tactic was not new then. Those seeking political power or to destroy communities for their own financial gain have always used lies and disinformation. But what is different this time, what has created unique risks, is the scale.
Networked disinformation — the power to spread bullshit and lies across the globe within seconds and within a context where traditional media and sources of both moral and factual authority have been systematically weakened over decades of neoliberal attack — has created a situation where disinformation has more power and those who wield it can do so with precision.
But just as we have the means to fight capitalism, colonialism, and dehumanisation, so too do we — you and I — have the tools to fight disinformation: truth, and accurate and timely reporting from trustworthy sources of information shared with the communities impacted in their own language and from their own people.
If words and images are the chosen tools of dehumanisation and disinformation, then we are lucky because they are fighting with swords that we forged and that we know how to wield. You, the media, are the front lines right now. Trump will take all of our money and all of our resources, but our work must continue.
Times like this call for fearlessness and courage. But more than that, they call on us to use all of the tools in our toolboxes — community, self-determination, care, and truth. Fighting disinformation isn’t something we can do in a vacuum. It isn’t something that we can depersonalise and mechanise. It requires us to work together to build a very human movement.
I can’t deny that Trump’s attacks have exhausted me and left me depressed. I’m a librarian by training. I love sharing stories with people, not telling them myself. I love building communities of learning and of sharing, not taking to the streets in protest.
More than anything else, I just want a nice cup of tea and a novel. But we are here in what I’ve seen others call “a coyote moment”. Like Wile E. Coyote, we are over the cliff with our legs spinning in the air.
We can use this time to focus on what really matters and figure out how we will keep going and keep working. We can look at the blue sky above us and revel in what beauty and joy we can.
Building community, exercising our self-determination, caring for each other, and telling the truth fearlessly and as though our very lives depend on it will leave us all the stronger and ready to fight Trump and his tidal wave of disinformation.
Mandy Henk, co-founder of Dark Times Academy, has been teaching and learning on the margins of the academy for her whole career. As an academic librarian, she has worked closely with academics, students, and university administrations for decades. She taught her own courses, led her own research work, and fought for a vision of the liberal arts that supports learning and teaching as the things that actually matter. This article was originally presented as an invited address at the annual general meeting of the Asia Pacific Media Network on 24 April 2025.
ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on April 27, 2025.
Election Diary: Albanese promises around-the-clock health line, with leaders to hold rallies Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will launch another push on health on Sunday, announcing a re-elected Labor government would set up a free around-the-clock 1800MEDICARE advice line and afterhours GP telehealth service. The service would be launched from January 1 and
Election Diary: Albanese promises around-the-clock health line, with leaders to hold rallies in Victoria Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will launch another push on health on Sunday, announcing a re-elected Labor government would set up a free around-the-clock 1800MEDICARE advice line and afterhours GP telehealth service. The service would be launched from January 1 and
Homage paid to Pope Francis at NZ street theatre rally for Palestine Asia Pacific Report Activists for Palestine paid homage to Pope Francis in Aotearoa New Zealand today for his humility, care for marginalised in the world, and his courageous solidarity with the besieged people of Gaza at a street theatre rally just hours before his funeral in Rome. He was remembered and thanked for his daily
Site safety has always been a priority in the construction industry. For welders, there can be significant health risks from enduring intense light, high temperatures and harmful gases for extended periods.
One local engineering equipment firm recently acquired a welding robot, primarily for connecting foundation piles. Project Manager Ken Lai highlighted that the robot not only enhances worker safety but also accelerates construction times.
Significant benefits
“Traditional welders must work close to the workpieces, exposing them to harmful light and gases,” Mr Lai explained. “By using welding robots, operators can control them from a safe distance, effectively reducing health risks.”
He added: “With programmed operations, we can ensure each procedure is performed under stable conditions, improving efficiency and significantly enhancing the final product’s quality.”
In the current context of labour shortages, Mr Lai believes construction robots can address this issue effectively. “Our operators can control at least two robots simultaneously, significantly enhancing construction efficiency. This allows us to maintain high productivity levels even with a reduced workforce.”
Besides its welding robot, the company has acquired a painting robot, a transportation robot and a cutting robot. For these four purchases, it has been granted funding in excess of $3.3 million via the Construction Innovation & Technology Fund (CITF).
“Our robots have received up to 80% funding assistance from the CITF, which encourages us to explore more applications for construction robots and drive innovation in the industry.”
Extensiveprogramme
The CITF, established in 2018, has channelled $2.2 billion in government funding towards promoting innovative construction methods and technologies. Its objectives include enhancing productivity, improving construction quality, increasing site safety and boosting environmental performance. The Construction Industry Council advises the Government on the fund’s operations and participates in funding approvals.
As of March of this year, the fund had approved applications totalling approximately $1.68 billion, benefitting around 1,330 companies. About 60% of these firms have been small or medium-sized enterprises.
The council’s Executive Director Albert Cheng revealed: “The most popular categories are building information modelling and advanced construction technologies, with over 60% of applications falling into these areas.”
Full menu
In recent years, the fund has run a special programme to support the implementation of the Smart Site Safety System. This programme provides a “package” of options to help the industry select and apply the most suitable innovative technologies to enhance construction site safety across various environments.
“Some contractors lack clarity on the best safety devices to adopt under different conditions and stages,” said Mr Cheng. “The Construction Industry Council aims to assist these stakeholders by creating standard lists of devices.
“We also provide information on the market providers for each device and their pricing, enabling stakeholders to quickly understand the costs and types of devices they need to adopt.”
Emeryville, California, April 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NSFWLover is excited to redefine digital creativity and immersive conversations with its state-of-the-artNSFW AI Image Generator. Built on cutting-edge AI technology, this tool empowers users to effortlessly generate breathtaking, personalized images from text descriptions, merging innovative artistry with seamless usability. Designed to complement NSFWLover’s NSFW AI Chat, the generator puts limitless creative potential at your fingertips, enhancing not only visual experiences but also interactive storytelling and conversations.
Whether you’re spinning a fantasy tale with your custom AI Girlfriends, designing unique personas, or exploring artistic possibilities, NSFWLover makes it easy for anyone to create custom NSFW AI characters—unlocking creativity without the need for design expertise. This seamless integration with NSFWLover’s NSFW AI Chat ensures users enjoy an unmatched creative experience.
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The NSFW AI Image Generator provides users with an easy and intuitive way to turn ideas into captivating artwork. The process is simple—describe your concept in text form, choose a visual style, and let the AI bring your thoughts to life in just seconds. A wide range of artistic styles ensures the generator caters to every user’s creative vision, no matter the theme or context. These styles include:
Anime: Vibrant, high-energy visuals for fans of Japanese animation.
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From creating majestic fantasy creatures to lifelike characters or playful NSFW AI characters, users can experiment freely. Whether you’re enhancing visual storytelling or designing unique personas for interactive experiences, the integration with NSFW AI Chat makes creating characters even more enjoyable.
With rapid rendering and advanced AI support, this tool consistently delivers high-quality results while enabling endless exploration.
Streamlined Creativity for Every User Level
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Two Creation Modes for Ultimate Control
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Advanced Mode particularly shines when used to craft highly specialized visuals, including:
Customizable poses and expressions to make characters feel lifelike or story-relevant.
Detailed refinements for texture, lighting, and intricate design elements.
Transforming simple ideas into one-of-a-kind creations that reflect your vision exactly.
The versatility of this tool is enhanced when paired with NSFW AI Chat, where users can build immersive backstory dialogues or interactive scenarios for their NSFW AI characters, elevating creativity to unprecedented levels.
Endless Possibilities for Creative Expression
The NSFW AI Image Generator isn’t just a tool—it’s a creative platform with applications that span personal enjoyment, professional projects, and innovative storytelling. Its versatility makes it perfect for:
Bringing Stories to Life: Enhance your written narratives by adding vivid illustrations of characters, settings, or climactic moments in your story.
Designing Unique Characters: Create AI-based companions, fictional personas, or avatars tailored to your creative or interactive needs. Use NSFW AI Chat to add depth and character interactions.
Crafting Social Media Content: Engaging visuals can elevate your social media posts, whether for personal branding, promotions, or viral campaigns.
The combination of easy character design with NSFW AI characters and immersive conversational tools like NSFW AI Chat makes it easier than ever to create dynamic, personalized experiences.
The best part? No expensive software or advanced technical skills are necessary. NSFWLover’s tool dramatically lowers the barrier to entry, making it possible for anyone to realize their creative ideas with ease.
A Complete Suite of AI Tools at Your Fingertips
The NSFW AI Image Generator is part of NSFWLover’s robust ecosystem of AI-driven tools, designed to provide users with a comprehensive creative and interactive experience. These include:
NSFW AI Chat: Fully customizable and unrestricted conversational experiences with highly intelligent AI companions.
Sexy AI Voice Chat: Powered by ElevenLabs, this feature uses lifelike, seductive voices to enrich your interactions with digital companions.
Custom AI Girlfriends: Personalize every detail of your digital partner, from their personality to their outfits, ensuring your companion aligns with your imagination.
NSFWLover’s combination of AI-powered visuals, voice interactivity, and conversational depth ensures users can unleash their creativity and engage with their digital companions in truly innovative ways.
To explore the full potential of NSFWLover’s NSFW AI Image Generator and more, visit NSFWLover’s official website today.
Activists for Palestine paid homage to Pope Francis in Aotearoa New Zealand today for his humility, care for marginalised in the world, and his courageous solidarity with the besieged people of Gaza at a street theatre rally just hours before his funeral in Rome.
He was remembered and thanked for his daily calls of concern to Gaza and his final public blessing last Sunday — the day before he died — calling for a ceasefire in Israel’s genocidal war on the Palestinian enclave.
Several speakers thanked the late Pope for his humanitarian concerns and spiritual leadership at the vigil in Auckland’s “Palestinian Corner” in Te Komititanga Square, beside the Britomart transport hub, as other rallies were held across New Zealand over the weekend.
“Last November, Pope Francis said that what is happening in Gaza was not a war. It was cruelty,” said Catholic deacon Chris Sullivan. “Because Israel is always claiming it is a war. But it isn’t a war, it’s just cruelty.”
During the last 18 months of his life, Pope Francis had a daily ritual — he called Gaza’s only Catholic church to see how people were coping with the “cruel” onslaught.
Deacon Sullivan said the people of the church in Gaza “have been attacked by Israeli rockets, Israeli shells, and Israeli snipers, and a number of people have been killed as a result of that.”
In his Easter message before dying, Pope Francis said: “I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace.”
‘We lost the best man’ Also speaking at today’s rally, Dr Abdallah Gouda said: “We lost the best man. He was talking about Palestine and he was working to stop this genocide.
“Pope Francis; as a Palestinian, as a Palestinian from Gaza, and as a Moslem, thank you Pope Francis. Thank you. And we will never, never forget you.
“As we will always talk about you, the man who called every night to talk to the Palestinians, and he asked, ‘what do you eat’. And he talked to leaders around the world to stop this genocide.”
Pope Francis called Gaza’s Catholic parish every night. Video: AJ+
In Rome, the coffin of Pope Francis made its way through the city from the Vatican after the funeral to reach Santa Maria Maggiore basilica for a private burial ceremony.
It arrived at the basilica after an imposing funeral ceremony at St Peter’s Square.
The Vatican said that more than 250,000 people attended the open-air service that was held under clear blue skies
Dozens of foreign dignitaries, including heads of state, were also in attendance.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re eulogised Pope Francis as a pontiff who knew how to communicate to the “least among us” and urged people to build bridges and not walls.
In Auckland at the “guerrilla theatre” event, several highly publicised examples of recent human rights violations and war crimes in Gaza were recreated in several skits with “actors” taking part from the crowd.
Palestinian Dr Faiez Idais role played the kidnapping of courageous Kamal Adwan Hospital medical director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya by the Israeli military last December and his detention and torture in captivity since.
Palestinian Dr Faiez Idais (hooded) during his role play for courageous Kamal Adwan Hospital medical director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya held prisoner by Israeli forces since December 2024. Image: APR
Khalil was seized by ICE agents from his university apartment without a warrant and abducted to a remote immigration prison in Louisiana but the courts have blocked his deportation in a high profile case.
He is one of at least 300 students who have been captured ICE agents for criticising Israel and its genocide.
A one-and-a-half-year-old child holds a “peace for all children” in Gaza placard at today’s rally. Image: APR
The skits included a condemnation of the US corporation Starbucks, the world’s leading coffee roaster and retailer, with mock blood being kicked over fake bodies on the plaza.
The backlash against the brand has caused heavy losses and 100 outlets in Malaysia have been forced to shut down.
Singers and musicians Hone Fowler, who was also MC, Brenda Liddiard and Mark Laurent — including their dedicated “Make Peace Today” inspired by Jesus’ “Blessed are the peacemakers” — also lifted the spirits of the crowd.
Protesters call for an end to the genocide in Palestine, both in Gaza and the West Bank. Image: APR
Source: People’s Republic of China – Ministry of National Defense
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
JIUQUAN, April 24 (Xinhua) — China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission.
The spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.
About 10 minutes after the launch, the spaceship separated from the rocket and entered its designated orbit. The astronauts are in good condition, and the launch of the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship is a complete success, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
The spaceship will then perform a fast, automated rendezvous and docking with the Tiangong space station complex, and the Shenzhou-20 crew will conduct an in-orbit handover with the Shenzhou-19 crew.
The space station complex has entered the docking orbit, with good working conditions that meet the requirements for the rendezvous and docking with the spaceship and the entry of the astronauts, the CMSA said.
The Shenzhou-20 crew, consisting of mission commander Chen Dong, and astronauts Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie, will undertake a range of tasks, including space science experiments, application tests, extravehicular activities, and cargo handling.
Their mission also involves installing protective devices against space debris, and deploying and retrieving extravehicular payloads and equipment. They will also participate in science education, public outreach, and other onboard experimental activities.
LIFE SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS
The new life science experiments to be carried out by the trio will involve zebra fish, planarians and streptomyces.
Notably, the Shenzhou-20 mission marks China’s first space-based investigation into the regeneration of planarians, an organism known for their extraordinary ability to regrow organs, said Lin Xiqiang, spokesperson for the CMSA, at a pre-launch press conference on Wednesday.
“This project will enhance our understanding of fundamental mechanisms of regeneration at the individual level and could provide insights into human health issues related to space-induced injuries,” said Lin.
He added that the Shenzhou-20 mission will further zebra fish experiment based on the zebra fish-hornwort co-cultivation ecosystem established during the Shenzhou-18 mission, and seeks to clarify how protein homeostasis regulates bone mass decrease and cardiovascular dysfunction caused by microgravity.
As for streptomyces, which can serve as critical players in soil health and plant resilience, the related experiment will study the expression patterns of microbial active substances and enzymes in space environments to lay the foundation for developing microbial technologies and products utilizing space resources, he added.
In addition to the three biological experiments, the crew will also conduct 59 space science experiments and technology tests, covering fields such as space life science, microgravity physical science, and new space technologies. Breakthroughs are expected in areas like the cultivation of vascularized brain organoid chips, and the study of preparing high-temperature superconducting material in space.
China’s space station has now hosted over 200 scientific projects, with nearly 2 tonnes of scientific materials and applied equipment sent to orbit and nearly 100 experimental samples returned to Earth.
“Currently, we are conducting space science experiments according to plan, with all projects progressing smoothly,” said Lin.
ASTRONAUT TRAINING
Lin told the press that the country’s fourth group of astronauts are being trained in fundamental spaceflight theory and a range of exercises, including psychological training and training on adapting to the space environment, along with specialized training sessions.
Among this group, astronauts from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions selected as payload specialists are expected to make their first spaceflight as early as 2026.
According to Lin, China will select and train two Pakistani astronauts for space missions, and one of them will serve as a payload specialist on a future Chinese space station flight.
China is also discussing with other nations regarding potential foreign astronauts participating in the country’s future space station missions.
Shenzhou-20 is the 35th flight mission of China’s manned space program and the fifth manned mission during the application and development stage of China’s space station.
It also marks the 571st flight mission of the Long March carrier rocket series and the 20th flight mission of the Shenzhou spaceship.
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Bei He)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Bei He)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Lian Zhen)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Lian Zhen)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Ma Jinrui)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Bei He)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Lian Zhen)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Ma Jinrui)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Lian Zhen)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Photo by Han Qiyang/Xinhua)
The Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, April 24, 2025. China successfully launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
Headline: Governor Josh Stein Extends State of Emergency for Western North Carolina Wildfires
Governor Josh Stein Extends State of Emergency for Western North Carolina Wildfires lsaito
Raleigh, NC
Governor Josh Stein has extended the State of Emergency for the western North Carolina wildfires in 34 counties. The State of Emergency extension will last for a period of 30 days.
“I appreciate all of the first responders, emergency managers, state forest rangers, and state and local officials working hard to protect North Carolinians from wildfires,” said Governor Josh Stein. “I am extending this State of Emergency to ensure the State Emergency Response Team has every resource available to continue to respond to wildfires to protect people and property.”
“I remain incredibly proud of our state’s local emergency managers and public safety personnel, and they have done a tremendous job with managing these wildfires since March” said North Carolina Emergency Management Director Will Ray. “From issuing evacuation orders, to opening shelters for those displaced, to working closely with state and federal forest service personnel to support the response, they remain a critical part of public safety here in North Carolina.”
“The spring wildfire season is off to a very busy start, which has kept the N.C. Forest Service, first responders and emergency management staff on their toes. Already in March and April, we have responded to 2,348 wildfire incidents involving over 23,000 acres,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “I appreciate the Governor extending the State of Emergency and making resources available, especially with the elevated risk of wildfires in Western NC. I also urge people to use extreme caution when doing any burning.”
As many communities continue to see dry conditions and the recurrence of wildfire activity, the State Emergency Response Team continues to maintain regular communication with the North Carolina Forest Service and with county emergency management offices to ensure that first responders, state forest firefighters, and state forest rangers have the tools needed to keep people safe.
Since March, the State Emergency Response Team has been assisting counties with resource and personnel needs. North Carolina Emergency Management remains in close coordination with counties and has worked with the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal and the North Carolina Forest Service to deploy firefighters, logistical supplies, and equipment to communities needing assistance. Additionally, the State Emergency Operations Center’s 24-Hour Watch Center has assisted counties with issuing evacuation orders through the Wireless Emergency Alert Network and through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System to inform residents that are potentially in the path of a wildfire.
The State of Emergency includes the following counties: Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Iredell, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Mitchell, Polk, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Swain, Transylvania, Union, Watauga, Wilkes, Yancey, as well as the tribal lands of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
At 10.00 this morning, on the parvis of the Patriarchal Vatican Basilica, the Exequial Holy Mass for the late Roman Pontiff Francis took place.
The Exequial Liturgy was concelebrated by the Cardinals and the Patriarchs of the Eastern Churches. The Dean of the College of Cardinals, His Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, presided over the Concelebration.
At the end of the solemn Eucharistic Celebration, the Ultima Commendatio (last recommendation) and the Valedictio (farewell) took place. The Cardinal Vicar for the diocese of Rome led the supplication of the Church of Rome. The Patriarchs, Major Archbishops and Metropolitans of the “sui iuris” Eastern Churches then proceeded in front of the coffin for the supplication of the Eastern Churches. The Cardinal Dean then sprinkled the coffin of the late Pontiff with holy water and incensed it.
The coffin of the Holy Father Francis was transferred to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major for interment.
The following is homily delivered by His Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re:
Homily of His Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re
In this majestic Saint Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past twelve years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains. Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb, but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.
On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the Heads of State, Heads of Government and Official Delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration and esteem for our late Holy Father.
The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.
The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of Saint Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this Square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top Popemobile.
With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved Pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.
We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel, in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the Apostles: “Peter, do you love me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.” This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).
Despite his frailty and suffering towards the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them. And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by twenty-one years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as Auxiliary, then as Coadjutor and, above all, as Archbishop.
The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.
He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalised, the least among us. He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was also a Pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.
With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”
He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.
Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time of globalisation. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.
His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner of behaviour in keeping with today’s sensitivities, touched hearts and sought to reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.
Evangelisation was the guiding principle of his pontificate. With a clear missionary vision, he spread the joy of the Gospel, which was the title of his first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium. It is a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.
The guiding thread of his mission was also the conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open. He often used the image of the Church as a “field hospital” after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.
His gestures and exhortations in favour of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.
It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolises the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea. In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.
Of his 47 arduous Apostolic Journeys, the one to Iraq in 2021, defying every risk, will remain particularly memorable. That difficult Apostolic Journey was a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS. It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work. With his 2024 Apostolic Journey to four countries in Asia-Oceania, the Pope reached “the most peripheral periphery of the world.”
Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the centre, repeatedly emphasising that God never tires of forgiving us. He always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path.
He called for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in order to highlight that mercy is “the heart of the Gospel.”
Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.
In contrast to what he called “the culture of waste,” he spoke of the culture of encounter and solidarity. The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones. In his Encyclical Letter Fratelli tutti, he wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.
In 2019, during his trip to the United Arab Emirates, Pope Francis signed A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, recalling the common fatherhood of God.
Addressing men and women throughout the world, in his Encyclical Letter Laudato si’ he drew attention to our duties and shared responsibility for our common home, stating, “No one is saved alone.”
Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone.
“Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times, and his service of faith as Successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions.
Spiritually united with all of Christianity, we are here in large numbers to pray for Pope Francis, that God may welcome him into the immensity of his love.
Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, “Do not forget to pray for me.”
Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this Basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.
Secretary for Culture, Sports & Tourism Rosanna Law will depart tomorrow for a visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia to strengthen co-operation between Hong Kong and the Middle East in culture, sports and tourism.
Miss Law will attend the Arabian Travel Market 2025 in the UAE and meet government officials, trade representatives, and cultural and tourism organisations there before proceeding to Saudi Arabia.
She will return to Hong Kong on May 1. During her absence, Under Secretary for Culture, Sports & Tourism Raistlin Lau will be Acting Secretary.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Wang Yi (L), member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, holds the second China-Kazakhstan Foreign Ministers’ strategic dialogue with Murat Nurtleu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on April 25, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
ALMATY, April 25 — Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, held the second China-Kazakhstan Foreign Ministers’ strategic dialogue here with Murat Nurtleu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan.
Wang stated that China and Kazakhstan are inseparable cooperative partners and genuine friends with an unbreakable bond. The traditional friendship between the two nations is deeply rooted and time-tested. Under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping and President Tokayev, the permanent comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Kazakhstan has grown more substantial and enriched in content. Comprehensive cooperation between the two countries is accelerating and entering a fruitful phase. Bilateral trade volume continues to rise against global trends, setting new historical records. Numerous cooperation projects in fields such as new energy and connectivity have taken root. The positive effects of mutual visa exemption are being steadily released, and people-to-people exchanges have made breakthrough progress.
China is willing to work with Kazakhstan to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continuously strengthen strategic mutual trust, jointly build the high-quality Belt and Road Initiative, enhance multilateral international cooperation, and push China-Kazakhstan relations to open new horizons and achieve fresh outcomes.
Wang Yi emphasized that the recent Central Conference on Work Related to Foreign Affairs with Neighboring Countries has clearly defined the direction of China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the coming period. China will adhere to the principles of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit, and inclusiveness, as well as the vision of building a community with a shared future, to join hands with neighboring countries in building a common homeland, jointly pursuing development and prosperity, and creating a better future. China has always regarded Kazakhstan as a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy and is willing to continue firmly supporting each other on issues concerning core interests, advancing the building of a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future, and playing a leading and exemplary role in the region.
Nurtleu said that Kazakhstan regards China as a trustworthy and reliable good neighbor, good friend, and good partner. Kazakhstan appreciates the proactive foreign policy direction established by China’s conference on neighborhood diplomacy. The all-weather friendship and high-level mutual trust between Kazakhstan and China remain unaffected by any geopolitical factors. Under the guidance of the two heads of state, the permanent comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries has reached unprecedented new heights, with expanding cooperation content and increasingly close interactions and frequent exchanges across various sectors and departments. China has become Kazakhstan’s largest trading partner, and bilateral trade volume has repeatedly hit new highs. Kazakhstan is full of confidence in the future of bilateral relations and is committed to deepening mutually beneficial cooperation to achieve common prosperity and greater well-being for both peoples, ushering in the next golden 30 years of Kazakhstan-China relations.
The two foreign ministers conducted in-depth exchanges of views on bilateral and multilateral cooperation and reached a broad consensus.
Both sides agreed that deepening the integration of interests and accelerating joint development aligns with the fundamental interests of the two peoples and the trend of the times. They will continue to expand economic and trade cooperation and strive to achieve at an early date the bilateral trade volume target set by the two heads of state. The two sides will also broaden energy cooperation, enhance collaboration across the entire industrial chain, strengthen connectivity cooperation, and accelerate the construction of cross-border infrastructure.
Additionally, they will explore innovative cooperation in artificial intelligence and the digital economy to inject new momentum into their respective development, jointly combat the “three evil forces” of terrorism, extremism and separatism, and build a solid security barrier for the region.
Both sides believe that China and Central Asian countries are connected by mountains and rivers and share a common destiny. They will work together to ensure the success of the upcoming China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, prepare well for the second China-Central Asia Summit, and promote China-Central Asia cooperation to reach new heights, building a China-Central Asia community with a shared future.
The two sides will strengthen communication and coordination within multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, support free trade and the multilateral trading system, oppose unilateral protectionism, uphold universally recognized international rules, safeguard international fairness and justice, and practice true multilateralism.
Following the talks, the two sides signed documents, including a memorandum of understanding between the two foreign ministries.
Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, holds the second China-Kazakhstan Foreign Ministers’ strategic dialogue with Murat Nurtleu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on April 25, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on April 26, 2025.
80 years after Benito Mussolini’s death, what can democracies today learn from his fascist rise? Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matthew Sharpe, Associate Professor in Philosophy, Australian Catholic University Hitler and Mussolini in Munich, Germany, June 18, 1940. Everett Collection/Shutterstock This Monday marks 80 years since Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was killed in an Italian village towards the end of the Second World War in 1945. The
Samoan nun tells of ‘like a blur’ awesome meeting with Pope Francis By Susana Suisuiki, RNZ Pacific presenter The doors of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican have now been closed and the coffin sealed, ahead of preparations for tonight’s funeral of Pope Francis. The Vatican says a quarter of a million people have paid respects to Pope Francis in the last three days. Sister Susana Vaifale
Israel’s endgame for tormented Gaza is political and physical erasure COMMENTARY: By Nour Odeh There was faint hope that efforts to achieve a ceasefire deal in Gaza would succeed. That hope is now all but gone, offering 2.1 million tormented and starved Palestinians dismal prospects for the days and weeks ahead. Last Saturday, the Israeli Prime Minister once again affirmed he had no intention to
Trump signs ‘deeply dangerous’ order to fast-track deep sea mining An ocean conservation non-profit has condemned the United States President’s latest executive order aimed at boosting the deep sea mining industry. President Donald Trump issued the “Unleashing America’s offshore critical minerals and resources” order on Thursday, directing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to allow deep sea mining. The order states: “It is the
Election Diary: Dutton tops list of most distrusted, amid deepening voter cynicism about political leaders Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In this election, voters are more distrustful than ever of politicians, and the political heroes of 2022 have fallen from grace, swept from favour by independent players. A Roy Morgan survey has found, for the first time, that Australians are
Pacific editor welcomes US court ruling in favour of Radio Free Asia By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor The former head of BenarNews’ Pacific bureau says a United States court ruling this week ordering the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) to release congressionally approved funding to Radio Free Asia and its subsidiaries “makes us very happy”. However, Stefan Armbruster, who has played a key role in
Source: ASEAN – Association of SouthEast Asian Nations
1. The 33rd ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council Meeting was held on 24 April 2025, in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.
2. The Meeting expressed its deepest sympathies and condolences to the peoples of Myanmar and Thailand by recent earthquake. The Meeting reaffirmed ASEAN’s solidarity and commended the prompt humanitarian response in supporting the relief and recovery efforts.
Download the full statement here.
The post Joint Statement of The Thirty–Third ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council appeared first on ASEAN Main Portal.
Washington/Sydney, Saturday 26 April 2025 — Greenpeace Australia Pacific has slammed Donald Trump’s support of deep sea mining as a ‘gross betrayal of the Pacific’ after the Trump administration signed an executive order advancing U.S. ambitions to launch deep sea mining in U.S. and international waters.
This rogue action is highly politically controversial for appearing to bypass the International Seabed Authority (ISA), the regulatory body set up by the United Nations to protect the deep sea as the common heritage of humankind and decide whether deep sea mining can start in the international seabed.
The Metals Company (TMC) – a deep sea mining company – recently declared its intention to work with the Trump Administration outside of the UN-established regulatory framework, to try to start mining in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the Pacific – a region that sits outside jurisdiction. The Executive Order instructs the Secretary of Commerce to expedite the process for reviewing and issuing exploration and commercial recovery permits under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA), breaking the longstanding tradition of the US being a good-faith actor on UNCLOS (The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea).
The order outlines that the Trump administration seeks to identify minerals for defence, infrastructure and energy purposes, and makes no mention of addressing the climate crisis.
Shiva Gounden, Head of Pacific at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said:“By authorising deep sea mining outside of international law, the Trump Administration is dressing up a disaster in a suit and tie, signing policies in boardrooms that will drown Pacific nations in financial, economic, cultural and environmental disaster. It’s neocolonialism with a letterhead.
“The Metals Company steam-rolled its way over multilateralism at the ISA and straight through the doors of Donald Trump, without a look back at the Pacific nations it is betraying. Pushing ahead with deep sea mining is a slap in the face to multilateralism, an insult to the UN’s regulatory body, and a gross betrayal of the Pacific.”
If approved, the plans could allow TMC to start mining in the CCZ – a region known for an abundance of polymetallic nodules – and threaten to derail years of negotiations between TMC and its sponsoring states including Nauru, Tonga and Kiribati.
“This move risks leaving Nauru, Kiribati and Tonga high and dry; TMC promised the people of Nauru jobs and prosperity from this agreement, saying that mining their waters would help fix the climate crisis. But it has taken the first chance it got to turn its back on Nauru and it will do the same to any other Pacific country. TMC is a money-hungry machine, using and abusing its Pacific partners without a care for the people, their cultural connection to the ocean, jobs, prosperity or the climate crisis,” Gounden said.
“Deep sea mining is piracy in policy – allowing governments to raid resources and leave wreckage behind. The Trump administration is looking for minerals to build weapons for America – not help the Pacific. This should be a warning to all Pacific leaders: the deep sea mining industry is not our friend, it is an industry of lies and betrayal. Pacific leaders must now unite to protect our Pacific Ocean and call for a moratorium on deep sea mining.”
According to The Metals Company, it will apply for permits “in the second quarter of 2025”, with reports stating intent to commence mining operations as soon as 2027. Gerard Barron, the Australian CEO of The Metals Company, has gone on the record with his company’s willingness and desire to bypass internationally agreed regulations, stating in reference to the ongoing negotiations at the ISA “by all means, go ahead and sign your treaty…we’ll be out there”.
Currently, 32 countries have backed a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep sea mining, including Tuvalu, Palau, Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands, Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, Vanuatu and Samoa. Australia has not.
—ENDS—
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Kimberley Bernard on +61 407 581 404 or [email protected]
The doors of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican have now been closed and the coffin sealed, ahead of preparations for tonight’s funeral of Pope Francis.
The Vatican says a quarter of a million people have paid respects to Pope Francis in the last three days.
Sister Susana Vaifale of the Missionaries of Faith has lived in Rome for more than 10 years and worked at the Vatican’s St Peter’s parish office.
She told RNZ Pacific Waves that when she met the Pope in 2022 for an “ad limina” (obligatory visit) with the bishops from Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands, she was lost for words.
“When I was there in front of him, it’s like a blur, I couldn’t say anything,” she said.
Sister Vaifale said although she was speechless, she thought of her community back home in Samoa.
“In my heart, I brought everyone, I mean my country, my people and myself. So, in that time . . . I was just looking at him and I said, ‘my goodness’ I’m here, I’m in front of the Pope, Francis . . . the leader of the Catholic Church.”
At Easter celebration Sister Vaifale said she was at the Easter celebration in St Peter’s Square where Pope Francis made his last public appearance.
However, the next day it was announced that Pope Francis died.
The news shattered Sister Vaifale who was on a train when she heard what had happened.
“Oh, I cried, yeah I cried . . . until now I am very emotional, very sad.”
“He passed at 7:30 . . . I am very sad but like we say in Samoa: ‘maliu se toa ae toe tula’i mai se toa’.. so, it’s all in God’s hands.”
Pope Francis with Fatima Leung Wai in Krakow, Poland in 2016. Image: Fatima Leung Wai/RNZ Pacific
Siblings pay final respects The Leung-Wai family from South Auckland are in Rome and joined the long queue to pay their final respects to Pope Francis lying in state at St Peter’s Basilica.
Fatima Leung-Wai along with her siblings Martin and Ann-Margaret are proud of their Catholic faith and are active parishioners at St Peter Chanel church in Clover Park.
The family’s Easter trip to Rome was initially for the canonisation of Blessed Carlo Acutis — a young Italian boy who died at the age of 15 from leukemia and is touted to be the first millennial saint.
Leung Wai siblings in St Peter’s Basilica were among the thousands paying their final respects to Pope Francis. Image: Leung Wai family/RNZ Pacific
Plans changed as soon as they heard the news of the Pope’s death.
Leung-Wai said it took an hour and a half for her and her siblings to see the Pope in the basilica and the crowd numbers at St Peter’s Square got bigger each day.
Despite only seeing Pope Francis’ body for a moment, Leung-Wai said she was blessed to have met him in 2016 for World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland.
She said Pope Francis was well-engaged with the youth.
“I was blessed to have lunch with him nine years ago,” Leung-Wai said.
“Meeting him at that time he was like a grandpa, he was like very open and warm and very much interested in what the young people and what we had to say.”
Leung Wai siblings with their parents, mum Lesina, and dad Aniseko. Image: Leung Wai family/RNZ Pacific
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:
BRAZZAVILLE, Congo (Republic of the), April 25, 2025/APO Group/ —
Filipe Basílio, officer in charge of monitoring and evaluation in Mozambique’s malaria programme in the northern Nampula Province recalls the laborious task of data collection and analysis in his day-to-day work: “All record-keeping tools were manual and it used to take a long time for the data to reach the Ministry, because community distributors had to submit their reports at the end of the day to their supervisor, who would then forward them to the district level, then to the provincial level, and only after that would the Ministry receive the information,” he says.
The country’s Ministry of Health faced an enormous challenge of dealing with large volumes of data from several different areas of its malaria control programme. Health authorities were overwhelmed with large volumes of data from several different sources, making data collection and analysis scattered and slow, and in turn diminishing their ability to rapidly respond to the needs of communities.
To address this challenge, in 2022, the Ministry of Health created a data repository called the Integrated Malaria Information System. By integrating its major data systems – campaign data, supervision data, epidemiological data, and entomological data – and linked them to a visual and user-friendly dashboard, the Ministry could receive data in real-time from the field, improving its quality.
Then, in 2023, the country moved to digitalize malaria campaigns. It started with mosquito net distribution campaigns, then seasonal malaria chemoprevention, and finally indoor residual spraying campaigns. All three are now fully digitalized and integrated. A user can log in and see all campaign information, including coverage and performance, which makes analysis much easier. Results were almost immediate. Campaign duration dropped from 7–14 days to just five.
“We analyse data and know what’s happening in real time,” says Dr Baltazar Candrinho, Director of the National Malaria Control Programme in Mozambique. “We no longer need to wait for someone to report a problem days later. We can track coverage and team performance and monitor stock levels. If a village hasn’t received nets or hasn’t been reached, we know exactly where it is using GPS.”
The ministry trained its staff in all 11 provinces, and they subsequently cascaded the training to community distributors, who conduct interviews and gather data in their communities. The aim is to improve the collection and analysis of data for decision-making at the district level.
“At the central level, we already use these data for decision-making, but districts need to do the same. It’s a process of shifting mindset,” says Dr Candrinho. In terms of collecting, managing and storying data, Mozambique is among the most advanced malaria programmes globally and is one of the only countries to have all three of its malaria campaigns fully digitalized.
“In the first year of introducing digitalization, it was a challenge to find community distributors who were comfortable using mobile devices, as many had limited education,” says Basílio. “But with training, things have changed. Nowadays, people in the community actually ask to become distributors because they’re interested in the digital process.”
Mozambique leads Africa in malaria digitalization, setting a benchmark for regional health innovation. “As we implement the project on advancing development of national malaria data repositories, Mozambique will provide valuable lessons and best practices, guiding what worked and why as we scale to other countries”, say Dr Lawrence Kazembe, team leader for Precision Public Health Programme at the WHO Regional Office for Africa who is implementing similar innovations in other African countries.
Malaria is endemic in Mozambique, accounting for 3.4% of malaria cases globally and is the fifth highest country globally in terms of total case numbers. In 2024, over 11 million cases were reported by the country, placing the entire population at risk, with the highest prevalence of the disease in the north and along the Indian Ocean coast.
In 2024, the country implemented three malaria campaigns using the digital process, a step towards gaining an even more comprehensive understanding of the disease burden, including mortality patterns across all communities within the country.
“Through WHO-led high burden to high impact initiative, we advocated and supported data driven planning and provided frameworks for malaria surveillance, data analytics and advice on how to align data digitalization to decision making processes based on WHO guidelines,” says Dr Eva de Carvalho, medical officer responsible for malaria in WHO Mozambique.
Digitalization uses evidence from multiple information sources to ensure an efficient allocation of resources to the most affected communities and vulnerable populations. It facilitates programme evaluation and improves its performance. It’s an approach the country plans to use for other areas of its health response and this has already begun with the neglected tropical diseases programme. Ultimately, this will have an impact on the health outcomes of the end user – people. “In the end, if we’re more efficient, the community definitely benefits,” says Dr Candrinho.
Researchers and malaria programmes, however, must strengthen collaborations. This will ensure the limited resources are used in ways that make the most impact.
The numbers
Some progress has been made, but in some cases there have been reverses.
Between 2000 and 2015 there was an 18% reduction in new cases from 262 million in 2000 to 214 million in 2015. Since then, progress has stalled.
The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 2.2 billion cases have been prevented between 2000 and 2023. Additionally, 12.7 million deaths have been avoided. In 2025, 45 countries are certified as malaria free. Only nine of those countries are in Africa. These include Egypt, Seychelles and Lesotho.
The global target set by the WHO was to reduce new cases by 75% compared to cases in 2015. Africa should have reported approximately 47,000 cases in 2023. Instead there were 246 million.
Almost every African country with ongoing malaria transmission experienced an increase in malaria cases in 2023. Exceptions to this were Rwanda and Liberia.
So why is progress stagnating and in many cases reversing?
How malaria affects countries around the world.
The setbacks
Effective malaria control is extremely challenging. Malaria parasite and mosquito populations evolve rapidly. This makes them difficult to control.
Africa is home to malaria mosquitoes that prefer biting humans to other animals. These mosquitoes have also adapted to avoid insecticide-treated surfaces.
It has been shown in South Africa that mosquitoes may feed on people inside their homes, but will avoid resting on the sprayed walls.
Mosquitoes have also developed mechanisms to resist the effects of insecticides. Malaria vector resistance to certain insecticides used in malaria control is widespread in endemic areas. Resistance levels vary around Africa.
Resistance to the pyrethroid class is most common. Organophosphate resistance is rare, but present in west Africa. As mosquitoes become resistant to the chemicals used for mosquito control, both the spraying of houses and insecticide treated nets become less effective. However, in regions with high malaria cases, nets still provide physical protection despite resistance.
An additional challenge is that malaria parasites continue to develop resistance to anti-malarial drugs. In 2007 the first evidence began to emerge in south-east Asia that parasites were developing resistance to artemisinins. These are key drugs in the fight against malaria.
Recently this has been shown to be happening in some African countries too. Artemisinin resistance has been confirmed in Eritrea, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. Molecular markers of artemisinin resistance were recently detected in parasites from Namibia and Zambia.
Malaria parasites have also developed mutations that prevent them from being being detected by the most widely used rapid diagnostic test in Africa.
Countries in the Horn of Africa, where parasites with these mutations are common, have changed the malaria rapid diagnostic tests used to ensure early diagnosis.
The progress
Nevertheless, the fight against malaria has been strengthened by novel control strategies.
Firstly, after more than 30 years of research, two malaria vaccines – RTS,S and R21 – have finally been approved by the WHO. These are being deployed in 19 African countries.
These vaccines have reduced disease cases and deaths in the high-risk under-five-years-old age group. They have reduced cases of severe malaria by approximately 30% and deaths by 17%.
Secondly, effectiveness of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets has been improved.
New insecticides have been approved for use. Chemical components that help to manage resistance have also been included in the nets.
Thirdly, novel tools are showing promise. One option is attractive toxic sugar baits. This is because sugar is what mosquitoes naturally eat. Biocontrol by altering the native gut bacteria of mosquitoes may also prove effective.
Fourthly, reducing mosquito populations by releasing sterilised male or genetically modified mosquitoes into wild mosquito populations is also showing promise. Trials are currently happening in Burkina Faso. Genetically sterilised males have been released on a small scale. This strategy has shown promise in reducing the population.
Fifthly, two new antimalarials are expected to be available in the next year or two. Artemisinin-based combination therapies are standard treatment for malaria. An improvement to this is triple artemisinin-based combination therapy. This is a combination of this drug with an additional antimalarial. Studies in Africa and Asia have shown these triple combinations to be very effective in controlling malaria.
The second new antimalarial is the first non-artemisinin-based drug to be developed in over 20 years. Ganaplacide-lumefantrine has been shown to be effective in young children. Once available, it can to be used to treat parasites that are resistant to artemisinin. This is because it has a completely different mechanism of action.
The end game
It has been several years since the malaria control toolbox has been strengthened with novel tools and strategies that target both the vector and the parasite. This makes it an ideal time to double down in the fight against this deadly disease.
In 2020, the WHO identified 25 countries with the potential to stop malaria transmission within their borders by 2025. While none of these countries eliminated malaria, some have made significant progress. Costa Rica and Nepal reported fewer than 100 cases. Timor-Leste reported only one case in recent years.
Three southern African countries are included in this group: Botswana, Eswatini and South Africa. Unfortunately, all these countries showed increases in cases in 2023.
With the new tools, these and other countries can eliminate malaria, getting us closer to the dream of a malaria-free world.
– Malaria scorecard: battles have been won and advances made, but the war isn’t over – https://theconversation.com/malaria-scorecard-battles-have-been-won-and-advances-made-but-the-war-isnt-over-255230
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Plastics are widely used in our daily lives, but their decomposition may take over a hundred years, during which they will be fragmented into plastic particles. If waste plastics accidentally enter into the sea, not only will they affect the marine ecosystem, plastic particle fragments or microplastics will also enter into the food chain if absorbed by marine organisms, thereby threatening human and animal health.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Government launched the Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050 on 8 October 2021, setting out the vision of “Zero-carbon Emissions· Liveable City·Sustainable Development”, and outlining the strategies and targets for combating climate change and achieving carbon neutrality. For details, please see the Action Plan.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Government issued the Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong 2035 with the vision of “Healthy Living．Low-carbon Transformation．World Class”. It leads Hong Kong to a liveable city with air quality on par with major international cities by 2035.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region 3
The Education Bureau, Hong Kong Education City, and Committee on Home-School Co-operation will co-organise the “Embracing the e+ Internet Generation Parent Seminar (4): Identifying Fake News & Vision Management Tips”. The seminar will be held on 12 April 2025 from 11:00 am to 12:30 pm in webinar mode. Registration is now open (application deadline: 11 April 2025 5:00 pm). An Assistant Professor from the Department of Communication at Hong Kong Baptist University will share the fact-checking strategy and relevant tools, using real-life cases to demonstrate how to discern the authenticity of online information. A clinical assistant professor (Honorary), from Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, will share methods for preventing myopia in children, slowing its progression, and treating high myopia. Parents are cordially invited to join the seminar. For details, please refer to the website (https://www.hkedcity.net/eventcalendar/event/67e0da91cc9f93313d08642f).
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ17: Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination programme offered outside Hong Kong It is learnt that the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE) is widely recognised, and its multiple pathways have attracted quite a number of students outside Hong Kong to register for it. To meet the needs of students, the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority has accepted four Mainland schools in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as “Participating Schools” and allowed them to present their eligible candidates to register for the HKDSE as school candidates. These “Participating Schools” have been accredited by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications as meeting the requirements for offering HKDSE programmes. In addition, other eligible students may register for the HKDSE as private candidates. There are views that, on the contrary, the quality and qualifications of teachers of HKDSE programmes offered by non-“Participating Schools” and other training institutions outside Hong Kong vary, and problems even frequently arise in some training courses for the HKDSE operated under affiliated overseas organisations, not only affecting the students but also tarnishing the image of the HKDSE. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of cases with people outside Hong Kong registering for the HKDSE as private candidates were rejected in the past three years, and the reasons for that; among such cases, the respective numbers of review applications involved and successful review applications;
(2) of the following information on the requests for assistance or complaints received by the authorities in the past three years in relation to training programmes for the HKDSE offered outside Hong Kong: (i) the number of cases received, (ii) the main details of the cases, (iii) the specific follow-up measures taken by the authorities, (iv) the number of cases for which follow-up actions were completed, and (v) the time taken by the authorities to complete the follow-up actions on these cases; and
(3) whether the authorities have considered setting up a qualification accreditation system for teachers, teaching materials and curricula of the HKDSE programmes offered outside Hong Kong; if so, of the specific standards and procedures; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply: The Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE) is a widely recognised academic qualification in Hong Kong and abroad. Apart from using the HKDSE results for further studies or employment in Hong Kong, candidates can apply for direct admission to non-local universities or post-secondary institutions. Post-secondary institutions worldwide accept applications from students using their HKDSE results. More than 1 000 of them have published their entry requirements for HKDSE holders on the website of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) and the number of overseas institutions doing so is steadily increasing.
The reply to the question raised by Professor the Hon William Wong is set out below:
(1) In the past three years, there were 11 (2023), 52 (2024) and 77 (2025) cases in which applications from persons outside Hong Kong for entry to the HKDSE as private candidates were rejected. It is because the applicants concerned failed to meet the requirements of the examination regulations of the HKDSE for private candidates.
As at March 18, 2025, there were a total of 199 cases for review of the application for the 2025 HKDSE by persons outside Hong Kong, of which 169 were successful, with the vast majority involving the submission of additional supplementary information. For the 2024 HKDSE, there was only one case for review of the application by a person outside Hong Kong, which was successful. There was no application for review for the 2023 HKDSE.
(2) In the past three years, the Education Bureau has not received any requests for assistance or complaints relating to training programmes for the HKDSE conducted outside Hong Kong.
(3) The entry qualifications for the HKDSE are categorised into school candidates and private candidates. School candidates should be bona fide Secondary Six (or Secondary Six equivalent) students of HKDSE “Participating Schools” and studying at the registered address of the schools as per the record of the HKEAA. If a school for Hong Kong children/Hong Kong and Macao children in the Greater Bay Area in the Mainland intends to become a HKDSE “Participating School”, for recommending its bona fide Secondary Six students to sit for the HKDSE as school candidates, it has to obtain the approval of the relevant Mainland authorities and the consent of the HKEAA. In order to meet the requirements for the implementation of the Hong Kong curriculum, the schools concerned must make complementary efforts in terms of the quality of teaching and learning and the administration of the senior secondary schools. It should also be fully accredited by, among others, the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications on its curriculum and operation to demonstrate that it is comparable to a registered school in Hong Kong before it can apply to the HKEAA to become a “Participating School” in the HKDSE. Since there is already a well-established system for schools to become “Participating Schools” in the HKDSE, the Education Bureau does not consider it necessary to set up other accreditation system for HKDSE programmes outside Hong Kong at this stage. Issued at HKT 11:30
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region 3
LCQ10: Nurturing and attracting innovation and technology talents Question:
There are views that in order to realise the vision of developing Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology (I&T) centre, as well as to develop new quality productive forces and promote sustainable economic development, Hong Kong needs to nurture and attract sufficient I&T talents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers and ratios of senior secondary students who took the subjects of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and the Extended Part of Mathematics, as well as those who took two or more of the above subjects at the same time in the past three school years;
(2) of the measures the Government has put in place to encourage students to take science subjects including Physics, Chemistry, Biology and the Extended Part of Mathematics, etc, so as to further nurture local I&T talents;
(3) as there are views that in order to realise Hong Kong’s positioning as centres for development in eight key areas as set out in the Outline of the National 14th Five-Year Plan, relevant human resources plans are a crucial complementary part, of the Government’s plans in place to further nurture and attract talents, so as to achieve the objectives of the relevant human resources plans;
(4) as there are views that artificial intelligence (AI) has become a major element required for future development, whether the Government will study making coding and AI applications compulsory subjects in primary and secondary schools and provide relevant teaching guidelines for teachers; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(5) as there are views that there is currently a shortage of teachers in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics) education, whether the Government will consider introducing AI-assisted teaching and “Massive Open Online Courses” (i.e. opening up courses to a large number of online users for participation in learning through the Internet) to enable students to receive multi-model software application training online and equip themselves early, so as to meet the needs of the future job market; and
(6) as there are views pointing out that at present, generative AI has already been integrated into life, for example, free chatbots such as DeepSeek can be downloaded and used free of charge on the Internet, whether the authorities will consider providing teaching guidelines for teachers to make full use of AI-assisted teaching, such as allowing AI to act as classroom assistants and assist teachers in drawing up curriculum frameworks, and at the same time encouraging students to interact with AI, so as to enable students to master as early as possible the skills of using AI?
Reply:
President,
The government continues to proactively promote science and mathematics education in primary and secondary schools, and strengthen digital education so as to provide talent support for developing Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub as well as fully implementing the national strategies of invigorating the country through science and education, strengthening the nation with talents, and driving development through innovation. The Education Bureau (EDB), by optimising the curriculum and enhancing teacher training, creates a learning atmosphere of science and I&T in schools and cultivates students’ interest and ability in learning mathematics, science and technology from an early age, as well as their digital literacy, fostering their aspirations in science and I&T, and enabling students to embrace the opportunities brought by the development of I&T and meet the requirements of the future workplace.
Regarding the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Elizabeth Quat, our reply is as follows:
(1) and (2) Following the implementation of the optimisation measures for senior secondary curriculum introduced by the EDB in the 2021/22 school year, which has provided students with more space, the number of students taking three elective subjects at the senior secondary level has increased significantly. Among them, the number and percentage of students taking Physics, Chemistry, Biology and the Mathematics Extended Modules (M1/M2), as well as those taking two or more of these subjects have shown a steady increase from the 2021/22 school year to the 2023/24 school year. Details are as follows:
School Year(32.7%)(25.9%)(19.7%)(34.7%)(34.6%)(33.1%)(25.6%)(20.1%)(35.5%)(35.0%)(33.1%)(25.8%)(20.8%)(36.1%)Source: The Survey on Senior Secondary Subject Information conducted by the EDB. The data is provided by approximately 440 schools (including government and aided secondary schools, caput schools, and secondary schools under the Direct Subsidy Scheme) offering the local senior secondary curriculum. Data for the 2024/25 school year is still being collected.
The EDB is taking a multi-faceted approach to strengthen students’ foundation in science and mathematics so as to further nurturing local I&T talents. In respect of curriculum, the EDB will continue to optimise the curriculum, including reviewing the current senior secondary curricula of Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and enhancing I&T elements. We are also strengthening mathematics education by launching more school support programmes on promoting mathematical modelling education, fostering students’ ability to apply mathematics and their interest in learning mathematics.
Regarding teacher training, the EDB continuously organises professional development programmes in science, mathematics, and I&T for teachers, enabling teachers to stay abreast of the latest developments in I&T and incorporate innovative elements into classroom teaching. Topics in these programmes cover biotechnology, robotics, energy technology, and mathematical modelling, with an aim to enrich students’ learning experiences.
On student activities, we continue to collaborate with I&T related organisations, such as tertiary institutions, Cyberport, professional engineering bodies, and the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education, to provide students with I&T related experiential activities, lectures, competitions, and training programmes both within and beyond the classroom. Examples include the Distinguished Lecture Series on Applications of Mathematics in STEAM World, the Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition, and the Innovative Engineering Education Programme for Primary and Secondary Schools. All these initiatives aim to inspire students to pursue careers in scientific research and I&T, so as to meet the future demand for innovative talents in society.
We will set up an ad hoc committee under the Curriculum Development Council Committee on Science Education to engage various stakeholders in exploring options for further optimising science education.
(3) Education is the key to nurturing talents. For the University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities, the Government has set the target in the 2022 Policy Address to continue to enhance post-secondary education by encouraging them to offer programmes with greater relevance to future economic development, such that students from the UGC-universities studying in disciplines relevant to the “eight centres” will reach around 60 per cent by the 2026/27 academic year. Through the triennial Planning Exercise of UGC, the UGC-funded universities will offer more new programmes relevant to the “eight centres” in the 2025-28 triennium, thereby nurturing more talents to meet the development needs of Hong Kong and creating impetus for the development of the “eight centres”.
(4), (5) and (6) The promotion of digital education (including artificial intelligence (AI)) in primary and secondary schools by the EDB focuses on enhancing students’ digital literacy and laying a solid foundation for the development of digital skills, nurturing students to become responsible citizens and lifelong learners.
To encourage schools to adopt AI in supporting teaching, the EDB launched the “AI for Science Education” Funding Programme on a pilot basis for Junior Secondary Science in the end of 2024. This funding programme is open to applications from publicly funded secondary schools. Successful applicant schools will receive a one-off grant of $100,000 to arrange for science teachers to enroll in training courses offered by tertiary institutions or relevant professional bodies, fostering pedagogical innovation.
To enable students to master coding and AI skills from an early age, the EDB has launched the “Module on Artificial Intelligence for Junior Secondary Level” and the “Enriched Module on Coding Education for Upper Primary Level” in 2023, which further cultivate students’ computational thinking more systematically and enhance students’ understanding of the foundation and application of AI. The curriculum modules include suggestions and guidelines of learning and teaching for teachers’ reference. Almost all publicly-funded schools have implemented the enriched coding education and AI education in upper primary level and junior secondary level respectively.
Regarding teacher training, the EDB continues to provide professional development programmes related to coding and AI. These programmes focus on guiding students to effectively utilise I&T and information technology tools to solve problems, thereby enhancing learning and teaching effectiveness. The training courses also cover the application of AI tools in teaching across various subjects, including helping teachers master essential skills to teach students how to effectively pose questions to generative AI tools, enabling them to fully leverage AI to support teaching. The courses also share the good practices from schools on integrating AI technology into teaching, such as using these tools to design lesson plans and develop teaching materials. Additionally, the training assists teachers in developing school-based arrangements or guidelines for the use of AI, tailored to their specific teaching contexts. The training courses are conducted in both online and offline modes to benefit a greater number of teachers.
With regard to e-learning platforms and resources, the Quality Education Fund of the EDB has reserved $500 million to provide schools with a total of 22 projects, which have commenced at the beginning of the 2023/24 school year. The projects will deploy innovative technologies such as big data and AI to enhance learning and teaching effectiveness in a wide array of subjects/areas, including mathematics and science education, coding, robotics. It is expected that in mid-2025, the deliverables of projects will be successively released for use by schools. In addition, we are collaborating with the Hong Kong Education City to launch an online learning platform on AI and computational thinking, as well as a webpage featuring expert lecture videos by 2025, aiming to promote self-directed online learning among students (including learning the application of various software).
The higher education in Hong Kong has always been bold in innovation and growing together with technological development. With the advent of generative AI, innovative and breakthrough technologies have presented new challenges and enormous opportunities in transforming pedagogies and student learning experiences. To this end, the UGC, with the support from the Quality Assurance Council, has allocated $100 million to set up the Fund for Innovative Technology-in-Education to provide impetus for universities to harness innovative and breakthrough technologies in transforming pedagogies and enriching student learning experiences, and to nurture a digitally competent and technologically responsible generation, for the future success of their students in the digital economy. Universities also actively explore the application of AI in teaching and learning, such as providing AI learning tools and introducing AI lecturers, etc. In addition, a number of universities are currently providing Massive Open Online Courses for students from all over the world to study programmes online, with some being free of charge. Through a more flexible and innovative learning mode, these courses provide a more convenient progression pathway for students who aspire to self-enhancement. Issued at HKT 11:50
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region 3
From the 2017/18 academic year, the Government provides a non-means-tested annual subsidy for eligible students pursuing full-time locally accredited local and non-local self-financing undergraduate (including top-up degree) programmes in Hong Kong (save for those enrolling in places already supported under the Study Subsidy Scheme for Designated Professions/Sectors) offered by eligible institutions.
The non-means-tested annual subsidy is up to $35,120 in the 2025/26 academic year. The subsidy will apply to both new and continuing eligible students, and is tenable for the normal duration of the programmes concerned. Eligible students enrolling in the relevant programmes will pay a tuition fee after subsidy. Students in need may still apply for student financial assistance from the Student Finance Office of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency in respect of the actual amount of tuition fee payable.
To understand the eligibility, participating institutions and programmes of the scheme, please visit www.cspe.edu.hk/nmtss for details.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
CHENGDU, April 25 — On Friday, 14 new international passenger and cargo routes connecting Chengdu, the capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province, with 13 global destinations are unveiled, according to Sichuan Province Airport Group Co., Ltd.
The 13 global destinations include Paris, Madrid, Athens, Dubai, as well as Tokyo, Bali and Penang.
The air routes — which include newly launched services, resumed connections and increased flight frequencies — are part of the aviation hub’s efforts to improve its flight connectivity network.
The airport group aims to expand a total of 28 international and regional routes this year, with a focus on strengthening cargo and passenger links with Europe, North America and ASEAN.
As one of the major aviation hubs in western China, the city of Chengdu handled 87.34 million passengers in 2024, ranking the third in China for passenger throughput.
Source: United States Department of Defense (video statements)
In the face of overwhelming odds, @usarmy1st Lt. Brian Thacker showcased gallantry and leadership during a North Vietnamese attack. Despite being wounded, he evaded capture for eight days in the jungle until help arrived. For his courage and selflessness, he received the #MedalofHonor. #TrueAmericanHero #military
For more on the Department of Defense, visit: http://www.defense.gov