NewzIntel.com

Category: Farming

  • MIL-OSI Global: How to create a thriving forest, not box-checking ‘tree cover’

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Thomas Murphy, Lecturer in Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth

    A Chinese proverb says that the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the second best time is today. But it’s not easy to ensure the trees of today actually become the healthy, functioning forests of tomorrow.

    This is a key issue in the UK, which recently announced it will plant 20 million trees to create a new “national forest” in the west of England. Given the UK is one of the least forested countries in Europe, and one of the most nature-depleted in the world, more trees are definitely needed.

    But I know from years of trying to research and restore native forest on Dartmoor in the south west of England, that creating healthy forests requires attention to detail. Unless we are careful, these new woodlands might damage rather than improve the environment: 20 million non-native conifers (or any single tree species), densely planted row on row is not a recipe for a healthy or resilient forest.

    So what could a successful forest expansion look like – and how could the UK get there?

    Forests for the future

    When planting a sapling, we are starting a journey not reaching a destination.
    The aim isn’t to just grow dense forests everywhere, but to create a diverse “treescape” that includes woodland, pasture, orchards and hedgerows. Including glades and clearings allow plants and animals from the surrounding landscape to move in, helping to create a richer, more complex forest over time.

    A wild pony hangs out in a glade in the New Forest in southern England.
    Helen Hotson / shutterstock

    In this ideal future, Britain’s bigger, more diverse, and better joined-up forests would have a higher chance of coping with the hotter summers, wetter winters and other climate changes including extreme weather. That’s because these larger more connected forests limit whats is known as the “edge effect” where the benefits of the forest’s microclimate is reduced. Having more different tree species – mostly native but not always – would help these woodlands cope with, and adapt to, the projected increase in pests, disease and other environmental stresses.

    These larger more biodiverse woodlands would also store more carbon in trees, soils and decaying wood. Research I published with colleagues showed new native forests can alleviate flood risk rather quickly too. Over time, many could also provide timber for low-carbon construction, and charcoal-like “biochar”.

    Where to grow a forest – and how

    Creating woodland for biodiversity and these wider benefits requires planning and management. This can be done by studying the land beforehand – looking at habitats, soils and the animals that graze there, but importantly considering the wider landscape. Digital tools can model a combination of land features, climate and other data to help planners decide where trees should be targeted for the biggest wins, especially as the climate changes.

    The idea is to support, not replace, Britain’s many existing ancient trees. Some new forests would help buffer woodlands from damage at their edges, while others help connect isolated forest fragments and lone trees.

    For example, in Britain’s wet valleys where temperate rainforests could grow, saplings planted in the 2020s might provide new homes for rare lichens and mosses. This will help shield highly vulnerable sites such as Wistmans Wood on Dartmoor from changes in climate.

    Restoring these rainforests will usually require active control of grazing animals. One promising solution is to plant small, carefully chosen patches of diverse tree species and protect them at first from the sheep, cattle, ponies and deer that eat young trees. Over time, through a process known as “applied nucleation”, these patches could help trees naturally spread, creating a mix of woodland and pasture.

    On Britain’s moorlands, hungry animals eat saplings before they can turn into fully-grown (and less tasty) trees.
    Digital Wildlife Scotland / shutterstock

    It’s true that sapling-munching deer have surged to unsustainable levels, and many uplands areas in particular are overgrazed by sheep. However, when moderated and managed carefully, these animals are essential ingredients for dynamic forests. Grazing, browsing and rootling (pigs and wild boar) animals create glades and clearings, and support natural processes. Trees and forests in return provide animals with forage, shade, shelter and more.

    We should embrace the potential for mutual benefit between animals and forests. By integrating more trees and forests into agricultural areas we may even make both our forests more dynamic and our agricultural areas more resilient.

    Local leadership and community roots

    The public generally considers tree planting a positive thing, but local people often feel left out of the process and its benefits. Getting them onboard and involved is critical. That’s particularly the case in Britain’s northern and western uplands, where few trees are left and many people feel threatened by national woodland policies that might affect how they use the land.

    Moor Trees community tree nurseries on Dartmoor, or collectively owned and community forests in 15 regions of England show there are ways to get locals involved and empowered.

    Larger forests near towns and cities would offer more space for recreation and education, taking pressure off smaller and more fragile woodlands. In the urban areas themselves, we could grow more micro “Miyawacki” forests. These are tennis court-sized areas of diverse and densely packed native trees, which allow children to connect with nature every day in their school grounds (the UK already has more than 280 such forests).

    Tree planting is only a start

    This is a rather optimistic vision for the future, of course. To get there, we’ll have to learn from experience. That means tracking what works and involving local people in citizen science. These projects not only help gather valuable data, they also give volunteers a meaningful experience and support their appreciation of the natural world.

    There are plenty of recommended guidelines for forest restoration, but turning young trees into healthy resilient woodlands isn’t about following a strict rulebook. Instead, success will come from using a range of strategies – working with local communities, supporting natural processes and adapting over time based on what is shown to work.

    Thomas Murphy does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How to create a thriving forest, not box-checking ‘tree cover’ – https://theconversation.com/how-to-create-a-thriving-forest-not-box-checking-tree-cover-254160

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Efforts to remove wrecked and abandoned vessels

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    The Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dr Dion George, has directed the urgent removal of wrecked and abandoned vessels that pose significant risks to navigation, marine ecosystems, and the safety of coastal communities.

    These efforts reflect the bold steps being taken to address longstanding environmental and safety complexities in South Africa’s proclaimed fishing harbours, including Gordons Bay, Lamberts Bay, Saldanha Bay, St Helena Bay and Hout Bay.

    “For too long, these derelict vessels have been a blight on our harbours, endangering our marine environment and the safety of those who rely on these waters. I am committed to reversing this legacy of neglect and ensuring our coastal infrastructure supports both environmental sustainability and economic prosperity,” the Minister said on Tuesday.

    Under the authority of the Wreck and Salvage Act 94 of 1996, the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) has issued Marine Information Notice MIN 08-25, directing the owners of identified wrecks to remove their vessels by 16 June 2025. 

    Failure to comply by this date will result in further action by the authorities, with costs recoverable from the owners as stipulated in the Act.

    According to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment the removal of these wrecks will enhance the safety of harbours, protect marine biodiversity, and support the livelihoods of communities that depend on these waters. 

    “Our harbours are vital to our coastal communities and marine ecosystems. By removing these wrecks, we are safeguarding our oceans for future generations and creating safer, more sustainable hubs for maritime activities,” George said.

    The department, in consultation with SAMSA, will ensure that the process is conducted responsibly, prioritising environmental protection and compliance with legal frameworks. 

    The Minister has called on all vessel owners to cooperate fully with this directive and contact SAMSA promptly to arrange compliance by 16 June 2025.

    “I urge vessel owners to act swiftly and responsibly to meet the 16 June 2025 deadline. Together, we can restore the vibrancy of our harbours and protect the natural heritage of our coastline,” he said.

    For further details, refer to the SAMSA Marine Information Notice MIN 08-25, available at www.samsa.org.za, or contact SAMSA at marinenotices@samsa.org.za. –SAnews.gov.za

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Onderstepoort Biological Products appoints interim CEO

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    The Board of Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP), in consultation with Agriculture Minister, John Steenhuisen, has appointed Dr Jacob Modumo as interim Chief Executive Officer, following the resignation of Dr Bethuel Nthangeni, due to health reasons.

    Onderstepoort Biological Products Communication Officer, Zipho Linda, said Dr Modumo brings a wealth of experience and insight to the role.

    “With over 20 years of leadership experience, he is well-positioned to guide the organisation during this transitional period. Dr Modumo is committed to upholding the organisation’s values, advancing its strategic goals, and ensuring the continued delivery of exceptional service to all stakeholders,” Linda said.

    Linda added that Modumo’s appointment reflects the organisation’s commitment to maintaining continuity and stability during the interim phase.

    Under Dr Modumo’s leadership, Linda said the OBP will continue to strengthen its initiatives to meet the needs of its community, clients, and partners.

    She said the Board has commenced a formal search for a permanent CEO to lead the organisation into the next phase of growth and development.

    “In the meantime, the Board is confident that Dr Modumo will steer the organisation with skill and dedication.”

    Onderstepoort Biological Products SOC Ltd is a South African state-owned animal vaccine manufacturing entity, whose mandate is to manufacture and distribute animal vaccines to prevent and control animal diseases that impact food security, human health, and livelihoods.

    The mandate is delivered through the continued development of innovative products and efficient manufacturing, which ensures vaccine affordability and accessibility, through varied distribution channels. – SAnews.gov.za
     

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Infrastructure, jobs and Growth: Inside South Africa’s construction revolution

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    South Africa is on a path of accelerated progress with infrastructure development fuelling economic growth and job creation. 

    This according to Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, who spoke to SAnews on the sidelines of the Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium South Africa, being held in Cape Town.

    Macpherson cited the second edition of the Construction Book which showcases 250 fully funded infrastructure projects – worth at least R238 billion – as one example of government’s commitment to turning South Africa into a construction site.

    “We are actively putting our money into those projects to ensure that they are prepared on time and on budget and that they have the best chance of success. We heard from the President and his commitment to driving infrastructure growth in the country, the R1 trillion that’s been committed by Minister [Enoch] Godongwana in the budget, record levels of investment in public infrastructure.

    “You can start to see that this country is on the move, that infrastructure is at the heart of our growing economy and job creation plans,” he said. 

    Furthermore, Infrastructure South Africa (ISA) has announced the new top seven infrastructure priorities for 2025/26. These are:

    • Boegoebaai Port and Rail Development in the Northern Cape;
    • Project Alpha 300MW Gas to Power Project;
    • City of Ekurhuleni Wastewater Conveyance and Treatment System Regionalisation;
    • Coega SEZ 100MW Solar Farm – ground mount;
    • South Africa Water Reuse Programme (WRP);
    • ⁠Regional Energy Infrastructure, Storage and Distribution Programme by Limpopo Energy User Association; and
    • ⁠Gauteng Urban Upgrade Programme, Johannesburg CBD.

    The Minister highlighted the critical role that ISA has to play in the next few years.

    “We are very optimistic about the role that [ISA] will play in being the central point of coordination, planning and preparation to make sure that budgets are spent; to make sure that projects are delivered [and] to make sure that our economy grows to create jobs,” the Minister told SAnews.

    On Monday, Macpherson led a Leaders Forum at SIDSSA, which included Ministers from across the African continent, Premiers and local government leaders.

    The Minister described discussions at the forum as “hugely important”.

    “We were able to discuss and conceptualise how we need to find commonality in how we approach infrastructure projects on the continent…the language that we use, technical specifications and the agreements, the partnerships.

    “You could really see a blossoming of cooperation in that room and so these are now conversations that we will want to take forward to the AU [African Union]; that we want to take forward into regional blocs and on a country-to-country basis,” he said.

    Improving Municipal infrastructure

    On the Adopt-A-Municipality initiative, Macpherson hailed it as an opportunity to improve the coalface of service delivery in South Africa.

    The initiative – which is in its pilot phase at three municipalities – paves the way for ISA to work with municipalities to introduce rapid infrastructure interventions and assist with the delivery of infrastructure projects.

    The scope of ISA’s work with the three – Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga – based municipalities will include:

    • Project preparation and planning;
    • Collaboration with municipalities and strategic partners to efficiently package projects and programmes;
    • Assisting municipalities in developing robust and bankable business cases to attract funding from both public and private sectors;
    • Streamlining approvals, authorisations, licences, and permissions to expedite project implementation and address regulatory bottlenecks that may hinder progress; and
    • Implementing effective monitoring mechanisms to track project progress, ensuring accountability and the timely completion of infrastructure developments.

    “We know that local government is really battling in the infrastructure space and that’s where communities really feel it the most. We have put together a plan to partner with municipalities over 24 months to have help with their project preparation and to help them deliver in those municipalities about R3.5 billion worth of infrastructure which is really big.

    “That is hugely exciting and it came from the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Council in November. [But] it shows that we’re not just talking about things. We’re actually getting them moving and getting them going and I’m looking forward to showing the President those results in 24 months’ time about what the net result of properly planned and prepared infrastructure can be,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Not just talk: how dialogue can help address complex problems

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Ralph Hamann, Professor, University of Cape Town

    Societies around the world are confronted with complex problems that defy resolution by any single actor, even well-resourced governments or corporations. Problems like food security, climate change, or biodiversity loss involve a lot of elements and dynamics. A variety of stakeholders need to be involved in creating effective responses to such problems.

    The difficulty is not only in creating coordinated responses. There is often also a need to develop a shared understanding of what the problem and its underlying causes actually are.

    To foster a shared understanding and coordinated, innovative action, it can help to convene key players in multi-stakeholder dialogue processes.

    A first step is to identify and enrol the actors that are either influential in – or directly affected by – the focal problem. These people are then invited to engage in dialogue with each other in a carefully designed, structured process.

    Processes can take a variety of forms. But a common feature is that participants have enough time and support to look at the problem from different angles, to interact in ways that break down stereotypes, and to think afresh about new ways of acting.

    Fifteen years ago, we were involved in establishing a platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue with a focus on the problem of hunger and food insecurity. It is called the Southern Africa Food Lab. Recently, we analysed the numerous dialogue processes hosted by this initiative over the years to better understand when and how they can make a positive difference.

    We found that even though some dialogue processes don’t seem to be obviously successful, they can play an important role in enabling subsequent dialogues to have far-reaching impacts. And for dialogue to have an impact, it needs to involve a “deeper” kind of participant interaction, beyond formal roles, polite facades, and adversarial debate.

    What does success look like, and when is it achieved?

    Participants and funders are unlikely to remain committed to a dialogue process if they feel it is little more than a series of “talk-shops”. We wanted to achieve tangible changes in government policies and corporate strategies, or collaborative actions that combine resources from different organisations.

    Because we had hosted numerous dialogue initiatives over the 15-year lifespan of the Food Lab, in our analysis we were able to compare different processes in terms of their impacts.

    We found that some of the dialogue processes – especially the early ones – had relatively limited impacts. Though the participants said they’d gained new insights and formed new relationships, there were few changes in organisational policies or practices.

    For example, early on in the initiative, we hosted a dialogue on supporting smallholder farmers. Participants emphasised that they learnt important lessons during this process. During field trips in different parts of the country, they came to appreciate the diverse difficulties encountered by smallholder farmers. And government officials appreciated academics’ analysis of the different kinds of smallholder farmers and corresponding support needs. But these insights and experiences did not yet result in changes in organisational behaviours or strategies.

    Other initiatives were more obviously successful in creating new and influential responses to the hunger problem. For example, we convened a second dialogue focused on smallholder farmers 18 months after the first one. It included some of the same participants as the first process, as well as others. This process resulted in more far-reaching changes.

    For instance, retail companies agreed to revise their supplier standards so that smallholder farmers’ diverse needs and challenges were better accounted for. Government officials used the dialogue to redesign their agricultural extension services. A farmer training programme was established with links to a more context-sensitive and supportive certification system.

    In our analysis, we considered many different explanations for why some dialogue processes were more successful than others. We discovered a pattern: our early dialogue processes were less likely to have impact than subsequent, follow-up dialogues.

    The early dialogues played a crucial role, however, in preparing the ground for the subsequent dialogues to be more effective. They helped participants develop the insights and relationships that enabled the deeper engagement necessary to create real changes.

    What kind of dialogue is needed?

    To create meaningful change, a dialogue needs to move from what we call “shallow” to “deep” dialogue. Shallow dialogue is the more common kind. It is what happens when different people are invited to a workshop and their interactions are shaped by their established views of themselves, the problem at hand, and other actors. Often they hide behind polite facades or blame each other.

    Deep dialogue, in contrast, has a distinct flavour and temperament. Participants gain a more multi-faceted understanding of each other. Thabo is not just a government official but also passionate about nature-based farming. John is not just a corporate manager but also volunteers for animal rights.

    Participants’ focus shifts from defending their personal views or organisational interests to a more expansive, genuine interest in learning from each other, and to exploring new ways to understand the focal problem and possible responses.

    How can this kind of dialogue be achieved?

    First, the potential for multi-stakeholder dialogue needs to be carefully assessed and motivated. Participants and funders need to agree that the problem is complex and in need of fresh responses. This rationale needs to be continuously reviewed and communicated to maintain commitment and engagement.

    Second, it is important to get the “right people” to participate in the process. This includes actors with influence, such as government officials or leaders. But it also includes people who are most directly affected by the focal problem, not least because they have unique knowledge about it.

    Third, convening and facilitating dialogue requires a range of commitments, resources and skills. For a start, as university-based researchers we had some degree of convening power. Participants perceived us to have at least some degree of neutrality. We needed to maintain this perception as much as possible, for example by being careful about what funding to accept. This was important given the controversies in the food security field.

    We also had to make sure we had the necessary facilitation competencies. Especially in the early years, we benefited from facilitators who had a lot of experience in this kind of thing. A facilitator needs to be able to make participants feel comfortable but, when necessary, challenge them to move beyond their “comfort zone”.

    Finally, it is helpful to recognise the cyclical and longer-term nature of dialogue – earlier processes create the “groundwork” for subsequent ones. This means that, as conveners, we needed to find ways of keeping the initiative alive in the periods in between dialogue processes, even if there was no funding available. In our case, it helped that we were university researchers who did not rely on consulting fees. More generally, conveners and funders should budget for “bridging” resources to enable the longer-term unfolding of dialogue’s true impact.

    Rebecca Freeth is a co-author of this article. She is a senior consultant with Reos Partners (Africa office).

    – Not just talk: how dialogue can help address complex problems
    – https://theconversation.com/not-just-talk-how-dialogue-can-help-address-complex-problems-256825

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Not just talk: how dialogue can help address complex problems

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Ralph Hamann, Professor, University of Cape Town

    Societies around the world are confronted with complex problems that defy resolution by any single actor, even well-resourced governments or corporations. Problems like food security, climate change, or biodiversity loss involve a lot of elements and dynamics. A variety of stakeholders need to be involved in creating effective responses to such problems.

    The difficulty is not only in creating coordinated responses. There is often also a need to develop a shared understanding of what the problem and its underlying causes actually are.

    To foster a shared understanding and coordinated, innovative action, it can help to convene key players in multi-stakeholder dialogue processes.

    A first step is to identify and enrol the actors that are either influential in – or directly affected by – the focal problem. These people are then invited to engage in dialogue with each other in a carefully designed, structured process.

    Processes can take a variety of forms. But a common feature is that participants have enough time and support to look at the problem from different angles, to interact in ways that break down stereotypes, and to think afresh about new ways of acting.

    Fifteen years ago, we were involved in establishing a platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue with a focus on the problem of hunger and food insecurity. It is called the Southern Africa Food Lab. Recently, we analysed the numerous dialogue processes hosted by this initiative over the years to better understand when and how they can make a positive difference.

    We found that even though some dialogue processes don’t seem to be obviously successful, they can play an important role in enabling subsequent dialogues to have far-reaching impacts. And for dialogue to have an impact, it needs to involve a “deeper” kind of participant interaction, beyond formal roles, polite facades, and adversarial debate.

    What does success look like, and when is it achieved?

    Participants and funders are unlikely to remain committed to a dialogue process if they feel it is little more than a series of “talk-shops”. We wanted to achieve tangible changes in government policies and corporate strategies, or collaborative actions that combine resources from different organisations.

    Because we had hosted numerous dialogue initiatives over the 15-year lifespan of the Food Lab, in our analysis we were able to compare different processes in terms of their impacts.

    We found that some of the dialogue processes – especially the early ones – had relatively limited impacts. Though the participants said they’d gained new insights and formed new relationships, there were few changes in organisational policies or practices.

    For example, early on in the initiative, we hosted a dialogue on supporting smallholder farmers. Participants emphasised that they learnt important lessons during this process. During field trips in different parts of the country, they came to appreciate the diverse difficulties encountered by smallholder farmers. And government officials appreciated academics’ analysis of the different kinds of smallholder farmers and corresponding support needs. But these insights and experiences did not yet result in changes in organisational behaviours or strategies.

    Other initiatives were more obviously successful in creating new and influential responses to the hunger problem. For example, we convened a second dialogue focused on smallholder farmers 18 months after the first one. It included some of the same participants as the first process, as well as others. This process resulted in more far-reaching changes.

    For instance, retail companies agreed to revise their supplier standards so that smallholder farmers’ diverse needs and challenges were better accounted for. Government officials used the dialogue to redesign their agricultural extension services. A farmer training programme was established with links to a more context-sensitive and supportive certification system.

    In our analysis, we considered many different explanations for why some dialogue processes were more successful than others. We discovered a pattern: our early dialogue processes were less likely to have impact than subsequent, follow-up dialogues.

    The early dialogues played a crucial role, however, in preparing the ground for the subsequent dialogues to be more effective. They helped participants develop the insights and relationships that enabled the deeper engagement necessary to create real changes.

    What kind of dialogue is needed?

    To create meaningful change, a dialogue needs to move from what we call “shallow” to “deep” dialogue. Shallow dialogue is the more common kind. It is what happens when different people are invited to a workshop and their interactions are shaped by their established views of themselves, the problem at hand, and other actors. Often they hide behind polite facades or blame each other.

    Deep dialogue, in contrast, has a distinct flavour and temperament. Participants gain a more multi-faceted understanding of each other. Thabo is not just a government official but also passionate about nature-based farming. John is not just a corporate manager but also volunteers for animal rights.

    Participants’ focus shifts from defending their personal views or organisational interests to a more expansive, genuine interest in learning from each other, and to exploring new ways to understand the focal problem and possible responses.

    How can this kind of dialogue be achieved?

    First, the potential for multi-stakeholder dialogue needs to be carefully assessed and motivated. Participants and funders need to agree that the problem is complex and in need of fresh responses. This rationale needs to be continuously reviewed and communicated to maintain commitment and engagement.

    Second, it is important to get the “right people” to participate in the process. This includes actors with influence, such as government officials or leaders. But it also includes people who are most directly affected by the focal problem, not least because they have unique knowledge about it.

    Third, convening and facilitating dialogue requires a range of commitments, resources and skills. For a start, as university-based researchers we had some degree of convening power. Participants perceived us to have at least some degree of neutrality. We needed to maintain this perception as much as possible, for example by being careful about what funding to accept. This was important given the controversies in the food security field.

    We also had to make sure we had the necessary facilitation competencies. Especially in the early years, we benefited from facilitators who had a lot of experience in this kind of thing. A facilitator needs to be able to make participants feel comfortable but, when necessary, challenge them to move beyond their “comfort zone”.

    Finally, it is helpful to recognise the cyclical and longer-term nature of dialogue – earlier processes create the “groundwork” for subsequent ones. This means that, as conveners, we needed to find ways of keeping the initiative alive in the periods in between dialogue processes, even if there was no funding available. In our case, it helped that we were university researchers who did not rely on consulting fees. More generally, conveners and funders should budget for “bridging” resources to enable the longer-term unfolding of dialogue’s true impact.

    Rebecca Freeth is a co-author of this article. She is a senior consultant with Reos Partners (Africa office).

    Ralph Hamann’s work with the Southern Africa Food Lab has benefited from funding from the African Climate and Development Institute, the University of Cape Town, and the National Research Foundation. The Food Lab’s funders are listed on its website.

    Scott Drimie co-directs the Southern Africa Food Lab.

    Warren Nilsson is affiliated with the University of Vermont and the Institute for Collective Wellbeing.

    – ref. Not just talk: how dialogue can help address complex problems – https://theconversation.com/not-just-talk-how-dialogue-can-help-address-complex-problems-256825

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Xinjiang-Central Asia Agricultural Machinery and Inputs Expo to be held in Kashgar, Xinjiang

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    URUMQI, May 27 (Xinhua) — The Xinjiang Central Asia Agricultural Machinery and Production Equipment Expo will be held in Kashgar Prefecture of northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from Sept. 26 to 28.

    This year, the total area of exhibition pavilions within the event will exceed 50 thousand square meters. At the moment, more than 600 enterprises have applied to participate in the event. Buyers from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan have been invited to it.

    In addition, leading enterprises in the fields of seeds, fertilizers, agricultural and veterinary drugs, agricultural machinery, etc. will participate in the expo, and agricultural production technologies and equipment will be fully demonstrated. The event aims to promote agricultural development and increase farmers’ incomes in southern Xinjiang, and help producers develop markets in southern Xinjiang and Central Asia.

    The exhibition will also feature a China-Central Asia Business Fair and a Central Asia Logistics Business Fair, which will aim to promote exchanges in agricultural science and technology and match supply and demand.

    It is worth recalling that in 2024, more than 100 enterprises participated in the Xinjiang-Central Asia Agricultural Machinery and Capital Goods Expo, where more than 1,000 pieces of mechanical equipment were exhibited, and transactions worth nearly 300 million yuan were concluded. -0-

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Federal Charge Filed Against Convicted Felon for Illegal Firearm Possession in Shiprock

    Source: US FBI

    ALBUQUERQUE – A previously convicted felon, already under investigation for multiple crimes, has been federally charged after being found with a stolen firearm in Shiprock.

    According to court documents, on the morning of May 15, 2025, the Navajo Nation Police Department received reports of a male firing a gun near a Marathon gas station on U.S. Highway 64 in Shiprock. Responding officers located and detained Jay Kelly, 39, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation. Officers discovered a stolen revolver and approximately 100 rounds of ammunition inside Kelly’s backpack.

    Witnesses confirmed Kelly fired the handgun multiple times in the air, but did not report anyone being threatened or injured. A background check revealed Kelly to be a convicted felon, making it illegal under federal law for him to possess firearms or ammunition. Kelly was implicated in two other criminal investigations earlier this year, including arson and illegal firearm possession.

    Kelly is charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. He will remain in custody pending a detention hearing, which will occur next week. If convicted of this charge, Kelly faces up to 10 years in prison.

    U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Philip Russell, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Farmington Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Police Department and Navajo Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary C. Jones is prosecuting the case.

    A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Large-scale wheat harvesting with combines launched in China

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) — As of 5 p.m. on May 26, China had harvested 70.05 million mu (about 4.67 million hectares) of winter wheat, and combine harvesters had harvested more than 4 million mu of wheat fields every day over the past three days, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

    The country has launched large-scale wheat harvesting using combines, the aforementioned department noted.

    By now, wheat harvesting has been completed on 20 percent of all wheat fields in China. In particular, wheat harvesting has already come to an end in the southwestern regions of the country and in Hubei Province. Wheat harvesting has been completed on 30 percent of fields in Henan Province. In Anhui, Jiangsu and other agricultural regions, wheat harvesting has only just begun as the grains mature.

    As noted by the responsible officials of the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the department has developed a plan for the mobilization and transfer of agricultural machinery in advance in preparation for the summer harvest. Thus, this year, during the harvesting of the summer grain crop, the subsequent sowing campaign and the implementation of measures to care for the sown grain crops, over 17 million units / sets / of agricultural machinery of various types will be mobilized in the country for their timely use during the above-mentioned three stages of work in the fields.

    In addition, more than 800,000 combine harvesters have been deployed nationwide to harvest wheat, and 200,000 of them will be sent to other regions to harvest wheat. These combine harvesters are equipped with the Beidou positioning system and a monitoring system for the operation process.

    The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, together with the transportation sector, police, meteorological service and petroleum and petrochemical industry, provide services for the implementation of agricultural machinery work in the fields.

    At present, more than 3,400 service points have been set up in wheat-growing regions in China, more than 4,800 green lanes have been set up at highway toll booths for free passage of agricultural machinery, and 5,800 special zones have been set up at gas stations for refueling agricultural machinery at preferential prices. More than 1,260 emergency telephone lines have also been set up to promptly resolve problems among farmers. A special mechanism for providing meteorological data has been launched.

    According to weather forecasters, next week in most provinces of the country favorable weather for harvesting wheat and drying it will prevail. -0-

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI: New Study Reveals Agriculture as Largest, Most Resource-Intensive Industry on Earth

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    BOSTON, May 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — RA Capital Management’s Planetary Health Team and The Nature Conservancy have released a groundbreaking analysis that exposes agriculture as the most resource-intensive industry on Earth: it’s the leading contributor to methane emissions, a key driver of water pollution, and it uses roughly half of viable land on Earth. As agriculture is often viewed in silos, its $15T scale and opportunity are often overlooked. The just-released Agriculture Map by RA Capital Management’s Planetary Health team and The Nature Conservancy calls for a systems-level approach to address the urgent risks and transformative opportunities within agriculture through innovation, incentives to change, and direct investment.

    A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available in this link.

    The Agricultural Map highlights:

    • Agriculture’s massive footprint means high ROI for broader adoption of best practices: optimizing global yields of staple grains, fruits, and vegetables would allow the world to produce the same amount of food with much less land – freeing up a land area the size of Mexico (~3x the size of Texas).
    • Agriculture produces more methane (a potent greenhouse gas) than any other human activity: Cattle alone produce as much methane as oil, coal, and bioenergy; rice paddies produce more methane than the natural gas industry.
    • Agriculture consumes more water than any other human activity and also causes the most water pollution. Investment in on-field and edge-of-field systems can significantly improve water quality and use. 
    • Fertilizer is important for optimizing crop yields, but fertilizer runoff causes hundreds of billions of dollars worth of losses each year, mostly due to impacts on commercial fishing, tourism, and property values, and creates aquatic dead zones the size of the United Kingdom.

    “Agriculture is the backbone of our global economy, but it’s also the most resource-intensive and environmentally demanding industry on Earth. If we are serious about tackling climate change, water pollution, and food security, we must rethink how we grow, produce, and manage our resources. Sustainable solutions are not just an option – they are a necessity to transform agriculture into a cleaner, more efficient, and resilient industry that can feed the world for generations to come,” noted Kyle Teamey, managing partner, RA Capital Planetary Health.

    Details within the Agriculture Map provide decision-makers with the knowledge they need to navigate the future of agriculture, from sustainable investment strategies to policy reform and innovation in farming technologies. The findings challenge conventional wisdom and call for urgent and coordinated attention from businesses, investors, governments, and philanthropic organizations. The map is a culmination of extensive research led by RA Capital and The Nature Conservancy. It combines proprietary data analysis with a systems-level approach to visualize and communicate the scale and interconnectedness of global agriculture’s planetary impacts while highlighting a range of potential solutions for select problems.

    “The environmental and human health challenges posed by the food system are well-understood in some circles but making this information material and actionable to stakeholders can be a real challenge,” said Stephen Wood, Senior Scientist of Agriculture and Food Systems at The Nature Conservancy. “This map makes it possible for non-experts to quickly understand the scope and scale of the problem, as well as the solutions.”

    The full map is available for download at Agriculture: Hiding in Plain Sight. 

    About RA Capital Management 

    Founded in 2004, RA Capital Management is a multi-stage investment manager dedicated to evidence-based investing in public and private healthcare, life sciences, and planetary health companies. RA Capital creates and funds innovative companies, from private seed rounds to public follow-on financings, allowing management teams to drive value creation from inception through commercialization and beyond. RA Capital’s knowledge engine is guided by its TechAtlas internal research division, and Raven, RA Capital’s healthcare incubator, offers entrepreneurs and innovators a collaborative and comprehensive platform to explore the novel and the re-imagined. RA Capital has more than 150 employees and over $10 billion in assets under management. 

    RA Capital’s Planetary Health team focuses on creating and funding companies that commercialize scalable, profitable solutions to reduce emissions, increase resource availability, and restore environmental quality, because solutions that heal the planet will yield both healthy people and healthy profits. 

    About The Nature Conservancy

    The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 81 countries and territories (40 by direct conservation impact and 41 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit nature.org or follow @nature_press on X.

    Media Contact:

    Alex Banat for RA Capital

    racapital@v2comms.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Plea for UN intervention over illegal PNG loggers ‘stealing forests’

    RNZ Pacific

    A United Nations committee is being urged to act over human rights violations committed by illegal loggers in Papua New Guinea.

    Watchdog groups Act Now! and Jubilee Australia have filed a formal request to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to consider action at its next meeting in August.

    “We have stressed with the UN that there is pervasive, ongoing and irreparable harm to customary resource owners whose forests are being stolen by logging companies,” Act Now! campaign manager Eddie Tanago said.

    He said these abuses were systematic, institutionalised, and sanctioned by the PNG government through two specific tools: Special Agriculture and Business Leases (SABLs) and Forest Clearing Authorities (FCAs) — a type of logging licence.

    “For over a decade since the Commission of Inquiry into SABLs, successive PNG governments have rubber stamped the large-scale theft of customary resource owners’ forests by upholding the morally bankrupt SABL scheme and expanding the use of FCAs,” Tanago said.

    He said the government had failed to revoke SABLs that were acquired fraudulently, with disregard to the law or without landowner consent.

    “Meanwhile, logging companies have made hundreds of millions, if not billions, in ill-gotten gains by effectively stealing forests from customary resource owners using FCAs.”

    Abuses hard to challenge
    The complaint also highlights that the abuses are hard to challenge because PNG lacks even a basic registry of SABLs or FCAs, and customary resource owners are denied access to information to the information they need, such as:

    • The existence of an SABL or FCA over their forest;
    • A map of the boundaries of any lease or logging licence;
    • Information about proposed agricultural projects used to justify the SABL or FCA;
    • The monetary value of logs taken from forests; and
    • The beneficial ownership of logging companies — to identify who ultimately profits from illegal logging.

    “The only reason why foreign companies engage in illegal logging in PNG is to make money,” he said, adding that “it’s profitable because importing companies and countries are willing to accept illegally logged timber into their markets and supply chains.”

    ACT NOW campaigner Eddie Tanago . . . “demand a public audit of the logging permits – the money would dry up.” Image: Facebook/ACT NOW!/RNZ Pacific

    “If they refused to take any more timber from SABL and FCA areas and demanded a public audit of the logging permits — the money would dry up.”

    Act Now! and Jubilee Australia are hoping that this UN attention will urge the international community to see this is not an issue of “less-than-perfect forest law enforcement”.

    “This is a system, honed over decades, that is perpetrating irreparable harm on indigenous peoples across PNG through the wholesale violation of their rights and destroying their forests.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: VE Day tribute raises thousands for Royal British Legion 27 May 2025 Wartime spirit alive on the Solent: VE Day tribute raises thousands for Royal British Legion

    Source: Aisle of Wight

    In a touching tribute to the 80th anniversary of VE Day, staff at Cowes Floating Bridge turned a routine day of crossings into a powerful act of remembrance and charity.

    With the support of Isle of Wight Council leader, Councillor Phil Jordan, the team suspended fares on 8 May, inviting passengers instead to donate to the Royal British Legion.

    The floating bridge was adorned with festive VE Day bunting, creating a vibrant and nostalgic atmosphere. The public responded with remarkable generosity, raising an impressive £2,600 for the charity.

    For many of the long-serving staff, the event was especially meaningful. It honoured the memory of their late colleague, Dave Todd, a passionate fundraiser for the Ryde branch of the Royal British Legion.

    Adding to the day’s charm was a visit from “Tilly,” a 1940s tea car, complete with its own ARP Warden, delighting passengers and evoking the wartime spirit.

    Paul Turner, floating bridge deputy manager, shared his pride in the day’s success: “We were absolutely blown away by the generosity of our passengers.

    “It was a proud moment for the team, not just because of the amount raised, but because it showed how strong our community spirit still is.”

    The team extended heartfelt thanks to all who contributed. “This day showed that our community can still come together and summon the wartime spirit to support a fantastic cause,” Paul added.

    Lynn Ashby, of the Royal British Legion, who accepted the donation, said: “We would like to say a massive thank you to your wonderful staff and passengers for their donations.

    “Without people like yourselves, the Royal British Legion could not carry out the work we do.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: PINE GROVE – Shapiro Administration to Tour Schuylkill County Dairy Farm Where Commonwealth Investments in Planning, Innovation are Feeding Farm Success

    Source: US State of Pennsylvania

    May 27, 2025 – Pine Grove, PA

    ADVISORY – PINE GROVE – Shapiro Administration to Tour Schuylkill County Dairy Farm Where Commonwealth Investments in Planning, Innovation are Feeding Farm Success

    Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding will announce a significant increase in the amount available to farmers statewide to support strategic business planning. The announcement will be made at Jersey Acres Farms, a Schuylkill County family farm that has taken advantage of state support from Farm Vitality Grants and an Agricultural Innovation Grant to fund critical planning and robotic technology that will keep their farm thriving in the future.

    Media are invited to tour the farm’s dairy along with Sec. Redding and fourth-graders from Blue Mountain Elementary West. Students will see first-hand how technology works on a modern dairy farm to make the dairy products they enjoy safe and healthy.

    The event will highlight Shapiro Administration investments supporting the future of family farms across Pennsylvania and creating opportunities for rural communities to succeed. Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposes an increase of $13 million to the historic Agriculture Innovation Grant program to help farms across Pennsylvania compete and succeed.

    WHO:
    Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding
    Agriculture Deputy Secretary for Farm, Food, and Market Access Heidi Secord
    Jersey Acres Farms Owner Kent Heffner
    Schuylkill Conservation District Manager Jenna St. Clair

    WHEN:
    Tuesday, May 27 at 10 a.m.

    WHERE:
    Jersey Acres Farm
    1615 Panther Valley Road, Pine Grove, PA 17963

    RSVP:
    Press attending should RSVP with news outlet and photographer and reporter names to aginfo@pa.gov.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Beijing to hold over 1,700 activities for Dragon Boat Festival

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Beijing will celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, also known as Duanwu Festival, with over 1,700 events across the city.

    The planned activities including dragon boat racing, traditional cultural heritage events, and garden flower viewing. This year, the festival falls on Saturday, May 31.

    Districts across Beijing will offer interactive activities, such as a dragon boat tug-of-war at Gubei Water Town, Hanfu clothing experiences at Baihuashan Scenic Area, and dragon boat races at Yanqi Lake.

    More than 720 cultural activities will be held by cultural institutions at different levels of the city, including lectures, poetry readings, and exhibitions. 

    The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism has created seven themed tour routes focusing on nature, geology, and cultural sites. Ten exhibition-themed travel routes are also available, featuring popular exhibitions like “This is the Shang” and an animated film showcase at Shougang Park.

    City parks will host activities such as crafting scented sachets, braiding colorful ropes, and archery. Beihai Park will hold a traditional sports festival, and Yuanmingyuan Park will offer workshops on ancient Chinese crafts. Visitors to China National Botanical Garden, Taoranting Park, and Beijing Garden of World’s Flowers will have the opportunity to view Chinese roses and learn about their history in Chinese gardening.

    Family-friendly events will include a LEGO Children’s Festival at Chaoyang Park, where children can build large LEGO structures, and a nighttime forest exploration for teenagers at Fragrant Hills Park. 

    In addition, around 30 sports events are scheduled, including the 2025 Beijing Grand Canal Dragon Boat Carnival from May 31 to June 2. The carnival will feature 32 teams and over 500 athletes competing in dragon boat races, in addition to other events including paddle boarding, kayaking, tug-of-war, arm wrestling, and kite flying. Organizers expect around 100,000 visitors.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: From a Science Festival to Film Tours: What Moscow’s Cultural Venues Have Prepared for International Children’s Day

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –

    The capital’s cultural venues have prepared a large-scale program in honor of International Children’s Day, which is celebrated on June 1. The first events will begin in May, Natalia Sergunina, Deputy Mayor of Moscow.

    “Concerts, master classes, quests, performances and musical performances will be organized for young residents and guests of Moscow – more than 300 events in total. For example, a large scientific festival will be held in Zaryadye Park, and new film tours will appear at the Gorky Film Studio,” said Natalia Sergunina.

    One of the main events will be the children’s arts festival “Nebo”, which will be held on May 31 and June 1 in the Muzeon Arts Park. It will bring together creative groups from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Perm, Voronezh, Krasnoyarsk, Tobolsk and Kaliningrad. 600 participants will perform for the audience, including theater actors, circus performers, musicians and dancers.

    During these days, the Moscow Festival of Animation and Children’s Cinema will be held in the Moskino Cinema Park. The program includes presentations of student animation works, screenings of fairy-tale plays, and a quest dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Korney Chukovsky’s Barmaley.

    On the central square, children will be able to take part in creative workshops: voice over animated films, draw their favorite character or create a 3D figurine of him. In the “Cowboy Town” decoration, there will be a staged filming of the movie “Aibolit-66”. Those who wish will be offered to dress up as the characters in the film and act in one of the scenes. Entrance by tickets to the cinema park.

    The theme will be continued at the Gorky Film Studio. On June 1, the list of excursions at the institution will be expanded with three new walks: “Cinema in Motion” for young children, “The Hero of Your Cinema,” and “Film Poster Workshop” for teenagers and adults. The focus will be on the biographies of famous actors and directors who worked here, as well as the stories behind the creation of fairy tale films, such as the film “Morozko.” Admission is paid, tickets can be purchased aton the institution’s website.

    On June 1, from 12:00 to 22:00, young visitors to Zaryadye Park are invited to the Sciencefest festival. They will enjoy talks with researchers, educational shows, practical classes, intellectual games, an interactive exhibition, and a large quest created jointly with scientists from Lomonosov Moscow State University.

    The festival at the Kolomenskoye Museum-Reserve will be dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Soviet film The Adventures of Buratino, based on the fairy tale by Alexei Tolstoy. The culmination of the event will be carnival processions featuring characters from popular cartoons and films.

    A number of events have been prepared by the venues of the Moscow Exhibition Halls association. Thus, on May 30 at 19:00, the Khodynka Gallery will host a lecture entitled “How to Talk to Children about Art.” The expert will speak in plain language about the trends and directions of painting in the last century and teach how to analyze works using specific examples. To attend, you need pre-registration.

    On May 31, the Belyaevo Gallery will host a talk called “Antique Toys and Games.” The audience will be presented with a unique collection of toys from leading centers of folk art and crafts: clay toys from Dymkovo, Abashevskaya, Filimonovskaya, Khludnevskaya, Kargopolskaya, wooden toys from Bogorodskaya, and many others. The start is at 12:00, admission is byonline registration.

    Thematic meetings will continue in the capital’s libraries until June 5. Young readers will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of literature, make bookmarks, create collages, listen to music, and take part in competitions of dexterity and ingenuity.

    The Vatutinki Cultural Center invites children and adults to share photos of their favorite toys and stories about them. Photos with stories should be sent from June 1 to June 8 to the email address: dkvatutinki@culture.mos.ru with the subject line “World of Childhood.” They will become part of a thematic photo exhibition that will open on June 9.

     

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    Please Note; This Information is Raw Content Directly from the Information Source. It is access to What the Source Is Stating and Does Not Reflect

    https: //vv.mos.ru/nevs/ite/154358073/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • From Digital India to Digital Classrooms-How Bharat’s Internet Revolution is Reaching its Young Learners

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    New Chapter in Bharat Begins

    In a quiet village in rural Karnataka, five young friends huddle below the sprawling banyan tree wide eyed with wonder at the glow of a tablet. What might seem like an ordinary sight in a metropolitan school is a scene of silent transformation in the heart of Bharat. The internet is here — not just as a public utility, but as a storyteller, a teacher, and a window to a thousand possibilities. It’s not just technology but a revolution at work.

    Today, India moves quickly toward a digital future. And while the dust of the world rages outside, applauding the glories of fibre-optic cables adorning urban skyscrapers and metro cities, the real magic is being spun within the fields, villages, and small towns where Digital India, PM-WANI, and PM eVidya are changing destinies — especially for the young learners of this nation.

    On one of my trips to a village in Shivamogga district of Karnataka, a particular image stayed with me: that of children gathered under a tree, connecting to an internet hotspot for their online classes. Behind this is a real force: PM-WANI (Prime Minister Wi-Fi Access Network Interface), a grand scheme under Digital India.

    What is PM-WANI, and Why It Matters?

    Imagine a village school where eight students share two textbooks. Now imagine the same school with a public Wi-Fi hotspot letting every child get access to digital libraries, educational videos, virtual museums, and interactive learning apps. Which one do you think is better? This is what PM-WANI promises.

    Launched in December 2020, PM-WANI is a project under Digital India mission to democratize access to the Internet through public Wi-Fi hotspots at common places like railway stations, village squares, markets, and even under trees. Ordinary spaces have now turned into digital classrooms.

    Why is it a revolution?

    • First of all, it brings affordable, high-speed Internet where there is none.
    • Second, it removes both the geographical and the economic barriers to knowledge.
    • Third, it empowers children and communities by making digital tools accessible.

    Where PM-WANI brings the pipes, PM eVidya brings the water — rich, culturally relevant educational content for these digital pipelines.

    PM eVidya: India’s Learning Lifeline

    This program was launched in 2020, in light of the closure of schools due to the pandemic. With PM eVidya, no child was left behind in learning- no matter where they live.

    It is a complete program integrating the three modes: digital, radio, and television education, while providing various resources including:

    • Diksha platform- interactive e-content and learning tools
    • Swayam Prabha – 34 DTH channels dedicated for education programming
    • Radio School – lessons broadcast in various languages through All India Radio.

    The strength of PM eVidya is in its multi-mode access so that either the child has a smartphone, a television, or even just a simple radio. There are lessons and stories with which they can easily access to satisfy their learning curiosity.

    Already, this effort has touched more than 12 crore students across our country and opened the door completely to the avenue of knowledge and possibilities.

    The stories that technology makes possible are more inspiring to me than the technology itself. For example, in Jharkhand, I read about a girl named Rekha who attended a virtual science class for the very first time in her life, thanks to a PM-WANI hotspot near to where she lives. Another example is of children who were all gathered together in a house in Kerala to watch eVidya lessons while their parents looked on with doting awe. And in a very remote corner of Ladakh, a group of children downloaded e-books about space exploration, thereby dreaming of becoming astronauts someday. Such things are not one-off events. They are going to make quite a different normal.

    A recent government report states that so far, more than 2 lakh public hot spots have been registered under PM-WANI, and this number is increasing rapidly. Each of these is a gateway to knowledge for the children of Bharat.

    Why Does This Matter for Children’s Literature?

    As a children’s author and educator, I have realized the importance of growing with the times in terms of children’s literature. This digital revolution is not confined to cities; neither should be the stories in children’s literature. These should reflect both the old and the familiar, and the new, exciting transformations shaping their world. Kids should get the idea that technology belongs to them, that their dreams are possible.

    When kids read stories where characters, much like them, traverse through digital terrains, it creates normalcy around progress. I hope to achieve this through Little Dreamers of Bharat, by capturing this changing Bharat – where a farmer’s daughter learns coding under a banyan tree, where a young boy watches his grandmother weave patterns he then animates on a tablet. Evolving storytelling must mirror the world in which children are growing up.

    The Cultural Layer: Keeping Bharat at the Heart

    What makes this digital revolution genuinely Indian is how it merges technology with tradition. In many ways, villages of Bharat are not abandoning their roots but have digitized them.

    Diksha and Swayam Prabha offer online lessons on folk music, classical dances, ancient crafts, and regional history. What earlier survived only through oral tradition now sees recorded survival in cloud libraries. Digital India indeed does not erase Bharat’s soul; it preserves it in pixels!

    In Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, a government school set up a PM-WANI hotspot and supplemented it with online storytelling sessions in Awadhi and Hindi, introducing the children in the area to regional poetry and folk tales through smartphones. Now that’s an awesome model of culture-rooted digital literacy to replicate.

    From Possible to Powerful

    • India boasts over 1.2 billion mobile connections – and now, thanks to PM-WANI, those connections are reaching beyond city limits.
    • Over 12 crore students accessed digital lessons via PM eVidya.
    • Rural children, once excluded from digital conversations, are now coding, creating, and collaborating.

    Children who walked several miles each day to attend school can now learn coding under trees. Girls who never ventured beyond their village now participate in a science fair via the virtual medium. Villages that had no electricity now stream digital stories.

    In Tamil Nadu, there is this project called “E-Library on Wheels”, which is connecting PM-WANI networks with village libraries and enabling children to enjoy access to free e-book, virtual field trips, and video workshops on local crafts and traditions. Such stories prove how this revolution is real. What more can one ask to point out the highest degree of a revolution?

    What Else Needs to Be Done

    Great strides have been made. Yet challenges still exist. We need:

    • More local-language resources for children;
    • More digital literacy of parents and teachers;
    • Reliable power infrastructure to complement digital initiatives;
    • Stories that help reflect this new Bharat in every library and classroom.

    Digital infrastructure should be matched with social infrastructure-awareness campaigns, community centres with internet access, and culturally rich, age-appropriate digital libraries.

    The government has initiated Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan in schools to integrate digital tools in the government schools, but sustained local engagement would be significant for effective results.

    Join the Movement

    As a nation, we are penning a fresh chapter — in which technology is owned by each child, whether she is in Delhi or Doddaballapura. And, to finish writing this chapter, we need the readers, teachers, authors, parents, and policymakers to:

    • Promote and create digital content that is local and culturally embedded.
    • Help children view technology as a tool, not a toy.
    • Record and share success stories from towns and villages.
    • Help public Wi-Fi and digital learning programs thrive.

    Let’s bridge the digital divide not just with devices and networks, but stories, confidence, and culturally rooted narratives.

    The Story is Just Beginning

    We often say children are the future. But in Bharat, the future is already sitting under banyan trees watching glowing screens and dreaming big. Once again, thanks to Digital India, PM-WANI, and PM eVidya; the budding generations—their learning, growing, and connecting abilities—now seem so possible compared to how things were ten years ago.

    As a writer, I find myself in the fortunate position of bearing witness to this revolution and writing about it. We must nurture this movement, amplify its voices, and ensure that every child — whether in bustling Bengaluru or remote Bastar — feels part of India’s digital, cultural, and literary renaissance.

    That’s the kind of magic story worth telling.

    (R. Savitha is an accomplished educator and author with extensive experience developing innovative teaching-learning materials and training programs. With close to 12 years of teaching experience across grades 1 to 12 (CBSE), she has also served as the Head of the English Department in a premier CBSE school, where she led overall curriculum planning and academic initiatives. A certified teacher-trainer, Savitha specializes in enhancing communication skills, grammar, and vocabulary-building through activities. She has conducted numerous pedagogy programs for teachers, empowering them with effective strategies and innovative approaches.

    R. Savitha holds an MA degree in English, an M. Ed, and an MBA. With her vast educational background, she worked as a project manager for the foundational stage at Samvit Research Foundation, curating textbooks and teacher handbooks aligned with NEP 2020. A core member of the NCERT national team, she has contributed to the syllabus and textbook development for the Foundational and Preparatory stages. She excels in creating engaging books for children, teaching-learning materials, and designing creative activities. Her published works reflect her dedication to fostering effective and meaningful learning experiences and enhancing classroom interactions, inspiring both students and educators to explore the transformative power of language and education for the betterment of our nation.)

  • MIL-OSI: Cardano Foundation and Switzerland for UNHCR cooperate in Industry-First ETP That Funds Refugee Support Through Crypto Staking, Geneva, Switzerland

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

     With over 100 million people forcibly displaced worldwide, the humanitarian system faces unprecedented challenges in funding essential services. In response, an innovative financial product—the Cardano Impact for UNHCR ETP (CASL)—launches on 28 May on the SIX Swiss Exchange, creating a bridge between institutional capital and humanitarian relief through blockchain.

    The CASL ETP (Ticker: CASL | ISIN: CH1327686056) is the first-ever regulated exchange-traded product that converts blockchain staking rewards into continuous funding for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. The product offers investors exposure to Cardano (ADA), while automatically donating 100% of staking rewards—not principal—toward field operations supporting refugees across over 135 countries, including Syria, Sudan, and Venezuela.

    “This launch represents a world first in sustainable finance and humanitarian aid,” said Oliver Anselmo, Deputy Executive Director at Switzerland for UNHCR. “It transforms passive investment returns into a recurring, scalable stream of support for people who have lost everything.”

    Quantifying Impact

    Based on current ADA staking yields (~3.5% APY) and projections of initial fund inflows, the CASL ETP could generate $1.5 to $2 million in annual donations with $50 million in assets under management—funds that directly power UNHCR’s emergency response and innovative refugee programs.

    Industry-First Technical and Regulatory Design

    Structured by issuance.swiss AG and operated under Swiss regulatory approval, CASL is physically backed 1:1 by ADA, with a 1.5% management fee. It bypasses crypto-native complexities through a familiar ISIN, allowing institutions to invest using USD, EUR, or CHF—with no wallets, private keys, or blockchain knowledge required.

    “CASL is an industry-first that merges full regulatory compliance, institutional-grade staking infrastructure, and humanitarian aid in one product,” said Laurent Kssis, CIO at issuance.swiss AG. “We’ve eliminated the operational barriers—from fiat on-ramps to staking—and embedded impact at the protocol layer of capital allocation.”

    Powered by Trusted Partners

    Custody and staking are operated by Taurus SA, a FINMA-regulated securities firm and leader in digital asset infrastructure, based in Geneva, Switzerland. ADA contributions to the underlying stake pool include 3.5 million ADA from the Cardano Foundation, alongside more than 200 delegations of holdings from the HOSKY team and their fans for a total amount of 6.3 million ADA, underscoring community trust and sustainability.

    “Our infrastructure secures the ADA and operates staking pools to maximize both yield and impact,” said Lamine Brahimi, Managing Partner at Taurus SA. “We are extremely proud to extend our partnership with UNHCR for Switzerland and with Cardano, and to demonstrate how innovation can be a force for good by providing support to forcibly displaced people.”

    Why Cardano? Why UNHCR?

    “From funding streams to digital ID, one thing is clear: blockchain has the potential to be a great leveler, providing innovative ways of solving some of the administrative problems that make seeking refuge even harder. With the technology and use cases now at a stage where they have the capacity to substantially facilitate daily operations, the widespread adoption of humanitarian blockchain solutions must become one of the industry’s key priorities,” said Frederik Gregaard, CEO of the Cardano Foundation.

    Cardano currently ranks among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap (~$22 billion), with ADA priced at approximately $0.62 as of May 2025. Its proof-of-stake consensus, peer-reviewed architecture, and environmental efficiency make it uniquely suited for mission-critical applications.

    The Bigger Picture

    This model is already drawing attention from other humanitarian and philanthropic entities.

    “We believe this model can and should be replicated,” added Pavel Izmaylov, CEO of issuance.swiss AG. “Discussions are already underway to launch additional impact-linked ETPs supporting education, climate resilience, and public health within the next 6 to 12 months.”

    An early institutional investor Florian Volery, Liqwid.Finance, commented: “CASL gives us ADA exposure, recently included in US Fed Reserve digital assets and the only blockchain never experienced any technical outage, while automatically contributing to one of the most urgent causes of our time—it’s smart capital at its best.”

    Product Summary

    • Name: Cardano Impact for UNHCR ETP (CASL)
    • Ticker: CASL | ISIN: CH1327686056
    • Launch Date: May 28, 2025
    • Exchange: SIX Swiss Exchange
    • Management Fee: 1.5%
    • Custodian & Staking Operator: Taurus SA
    • Currency: USD / EUR / CHF
    • Underlying: 100% physically backed Cardano (ADA)

    About UNHCR
     UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, protects and assists people forced to flee due to conflict and persecution. Operating in over 135 countries, UNHCR delivers life-saving aid and solutions to refugees and stateless people.

    About Switzerland for UNHCR

    Switzerland for UNHCR is the national partner of the UN Refugee Agency for Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Its mission is to support UNHCR’s mission by mobilizing essential resources and raising awareness on behalf of those who are forced to flee.   

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    The MIL Network –

  • Why Grassroot Leadership is Important for India and the Modi Government’s Vision in Facilitating the same.

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Grassroots leadership refers to the vision, action and success that emerges from the local levels, often in communities or organizations, rather than from top-tier or centralized authorities. It involves ordinary people stepping up to address issues that directly affect their lives, using their unique insights and experiences to drive a significant change – which impacts not only their immediate surroundings but the people at large. This type of leadership invents new systems from ground zero, because adversities are many and resources are scanty.

    Grassroots leadership is crucial for a country because it fosters solutions that are more personalized and customized with reference to the sensitivities of the people, having acknowledged the first-hand experiences of dealing with the problems. The policies and decisions under such leadership are more in sync with the needs and priorities of the target users, rather than being formulated by distant, detached bosses. This kind of leadership promotes self-sufficiency where people are empowered to identify and resolve their own problems, while raising a network group dedicated to the cause. It also improves social equity by giving marginalized or underrepresented groups a voice and a platform. Grassroots leaders build trust and solidarity within their communities, creating a more resilient society. When communities learn to lead change from within, it involves people directly in the shaping of their future.

    Grassroots leadership in India has evolved significantly from ancient times to the present day, reflecting the country’s changing social, political, and economic landscape. In ancient India, village councils, or panchayats, played a crucial role in self-governance, with elders and community leaders making collective decisions. These decentralized governance systems were deeply rooted in local traditions and ensured community participation. During the colonial period, grassroots leadership took on a resistance role, as leaders like Mahatma Gandhi mobilized people through movements such as Satyagraha and Swadeshi, emphasizing self-reliance and local empowerment. Post-independence, India institutionalized grassroots leadership through the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments in 1992, which strengthened Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies, giving power to local representatives, including women and marginalized groups. 

    Women have been at the forefront of grassroots leadership, often playing pivotal roles in community-building and social change. Their contributions however, frequently go unnoticed and undervalued. Women’s presence as grassroot visionaries are powerfully reflected in the ancient culture and history of India. Both the Ramayana and the Mahabharata introduce female characters playing pivotal roles in shaping events, often through resilience, wisdom, and influence at the community or familial level. In the Ramayana, Sita expresses agrarian expertise and herbal knowledge while she was in exile. Shabari, a tribal woman, demonstrates unwavering faith and service, engaged in gathering fruits and berries. Damayanti and Draupadi, in the Mahabharata, became servants at other’s kingdoms demonstrating their adaptations to economic hardships or adverse conditions. While Hidimbi and Satyabhama were war-trained agro experts, Gargi, Maitreyi and Sulabha took up the roles of teachers and scholars. Kunti, Gandhari and Draupadi guided their men through political and existential dilemmas, questioning injustice and lawlessness, ultimately influencing the course of history. 

    Given that we are the descendants of such a strong and able society, it is only obvious that women’s grassroots leadership in India would be powerfully rooted in empathy, inclusivity, and long-term sustainability. Other than the women-led businesses that contribute to the GDP directly, women are often the driving force behind social movements focused on justice, peace, and human rights which cleanse a society and raise better individuals, thus multiplying the number of capable contributors who can make direct contributions to the GDP. Examples are Jumde Yomgam Gamlin fighting against substance abuse in Arunachal Pradesh, Bharatanatyam artist Dr. Narthaki Nataraj spreading the message for gender equality, Moirangthem Muktamani Devi from Manipur initiating a knitted shoe-start up, uplifting knitting from its women’s hobby status and simultaneously making her way out of poverty, and many others. By recognizing and supporting the leadership of women at the grassroots level, who have made their way up battling systemic barriers and unequal access to opportunities, societies can unlock tremendous potential for social and political transformation.

    India was always a land of great leaders operating from the grassroots. What had been lacking over a long period of time was their recognition. Right from the beginning of its tenure in 2014, the Modi government had focussed on rerouting towards its roots because the world is standing at the threshold where every moment would usher a gigantic change. The model was clear. In order for the top leadership of the country to face larger storms before taming and integrating new policies and regulations into the Indian business scenario, the support of the grassroot leaders would be very essential in maintaining a healthy social and economic movement for the citizens!

    Today, grassroots leadership in India has expanded beyond governance into social activism, environmental movements, and digital advocacy, with local leaders addressing issues like climate change, gender equality, and rural development. The rise of social entrepreneurship and technology-driven initiatives has further amplified grassroots leadership, making it more inclusive and dynamic. This is increasingly vital for sustainability in the present and future, especially as rapid technological advancements and climate change are expected to disrupt the traditional ways of life. With global automation and artificial intelligence revolutionizing industries, many conventional jobs, particularly in agriculture, manufacturing, and services, will increasingly face obsolescence. This shift threatens the livelihoods of millions, especially in rural and semi-urban areas, making localized leadership essential for retraining, skill development, and economic adaptation. Grassroots leaders play a key role in preparing communities for this transformation by challenging stagnation of the masses and promoting new dreams through embracing digital literacy, fostering entrepreneurship, and encouraging sustainable employment opportunities that align with emerging industries.

    At this juncture, the world along with India is facing severe climate challenges, including unpredictable monsoons, rising temperatures, and extreme weather events that threaten agriculture, water security, and infrastructure. Grassroots leadership is critical here in mobilizing communities for climate adaptation, implementing sustainable practices, promoting water conservation, and developing disaster-resilient infrastructure. Local leaders, often deeply connected with their environments, can drive impactful change by integrating indigenous knowledge with modern solutions. India being a huge country with diverse culture, it would be difficult for a centralized system to address the exponentially growing concerns of the vast population. Growth of grassroots leaders ensures decentralized, community-driven, innovative and people-centric governance – stabilizing the effects of automation and ecological uncertainties. 

    The Modi government has undertaken numerous schemes and development initiatives to empower grassroots leadership across India, fostering local governance, entrepreneurship, and community-driven progress. Recognizing that true development stems from the empowerment of people at the ground level, these initiatives aim to equip individuals with the necessary skills, resources, and platforms to lead change in their communities, both in remote rural areas and urban centers. One of the most significant steps in this direction has been the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), which focuses on mobilizing rural women into self-help groups (SHGs) to enhance their economic participation. By providing financial assistance, skill training, and market linkages, this initiative has empowered millions of women to emerge as local leaders in micro-entrepreneurship. The government has also promoted StartUp India and StandUp India, encouraging young entrepreneurs, including women and marginalized communities, to establish innovative businesses, ensuring a culture of self-reliance and leadership at the grassroots level. In governance, the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) and the Panchayati Raj System Digitization aim to strengthen local self-governance by integrating digital tools, transparency, and community-driven decision-making. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment has been further reinforced with increased financial grants and capacity-building programs, ensuring that local leaders can effectively plan and implement development projects. Additionally, the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) has been instrumental in enhancing the capabilities of panchayat leaders through leadership training and technological integration, fostering accountable and efficient governance. Recognizing the importance of urban grassroots leadership, initiatives like the Smart Cities Mission and AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) encourage local urban bodies to take an active role in planning sustainable and technologically advanced cities. These programs prioritize participatory governance, where local communities and leaders contribute to urban planning, infrastructure development, and environmental sustainability. Another major initiative strengthening grassroots leadership is the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, which provides direct income support to farmers, ensuring economic stability and empowering them to adopt innovative agricultural practices. Complementing this is the Fasal Bima Yojana, which secures farmers against climate uncertainties, allowing them to take calculated risks and lead agricultural advancements. Similarly, the Jal Jeevan Mission empowers village-level committees to oversee water supply management, ensuring sustainable water access in remote areas through decentralized governance.

    Women’s leadership at the grassroots level has been specifically encouraged through the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme, which not only promotes female education but also fosters leadership among young girls. Likewise, the Mahila E-Haat initiative provides a digital marketplace for women entrepreneurs, strengthening their financial independence and influence within their communities. Programs like Digital India and Skill India have further enabled grassroots leaders to integrate modern technology into local governance, small businesses, and educational initiatives. The PM SVANidhi Yojana, supporting street vendors with easy credit access, has also uplifted informal sector entrepreneurs, making them active contributors to urban economies.

    The Modi government achieved 100% electrification of India through initiatives like Saubhagya Yojana, bringing power to even the remotest villages. This milestone has transformed lives by boosting education, healthcare, and businesses, ensuring energy access for all, fostering economic growth, and enhancing India’s global standing in sustainable development and infrastructure advancement. The Digital India initiative by the Modi government has revolutionized governance, economy, and daily life through increased internet penetration, digital payments (UPI), e-governance, and Aadhaar-linked services. It has empowered citizens, boosted startups, enhanced transparency, and made services more accessible, driving India toward a digitally inclusive and self-reliant future. The financial push offered through UPI, Jan Dhan Yojana, and MSME digital lending has empowered small businesses by ensuring easy transactions, financial inclusion, and quick credit access. This has reduced dependency on cash, increased transparency, and boosted economic growth, making India a global leader in fintech innovation.

    Through these initiatives and more, the Modi government is creating an environment where grassroots leaders—whether in villages, towns, or metropolitan areas—are equipped with resources and skills to drive change. This holistic approach ensures that leadership is not concentrated at the top but flourishes at every level, securing a resilient and innovative future for India. The call for action at local and individual levels has also been topped with fair recognition systems to celebrate the front-runners and inspire others to follow suit. The transformation of the Padma Awards into a “People’s Award,” where citizens can nominate deserving individuals through a democratic process, plays a significant role in that vision. Traditionally perceived as honors reserved for elites, bureaucrats, or celebrities, the Modi government has repositioned these awards to recognize the contributions of unsung heroes—ordinary individuals making extraordinary impacts in their communities. This shift not only elevates grassroots leaders but also creates a ripple effect, inspiring millions to take initiative in their own spheres.

    By celebrating success stories of farmers innovating in agriculture, social workers uplifting marginalized communities, artisans preserving cultural heritage, and environmentalists leading conservation efforts, the Padma Awards highlight real-life examples of leadership that emerges from the urban, rural and remote geographies. These stories showcase how dedication, resilience, and ingenuity can drive meaningful change, regardless of formal authority or social status. When local leaders, who often work in anonymity, receive national recognition, it reinforces the idea that transformative contributions are valued and acknowledged by the nation. Also, making the nomination process open to the public allows citizens to identify and elevate role models from their own communities, fostering a sense of collective responsibility toward nation-building. By honoring individuals from remote villages, tribal communities, and lesser-known professions, the awards challenge traditional notions of success, promoting a broader, more inclusive definition of leadership. In the era of remarkable changes, it is only obvious for the citizens of the country to participate and take ownership of change, instead of staying detached, ensuring the spirit of nation-building is a shared emotion across every corner of the country.

    (Koral Dasgupta is an accomplished author and content curator with over 20 years of experience. Her diverse work spans academic non-fiction to relationship dramas, focusing on gender narratives and complex human emotions. Koral founded Tell Me Your Story, a platform that uses literature to inspire social engagement and drive behavioral change for inclusion and diversity. She designs and executes learning programs, conducts writing workshops, and curates content for events focused on gender and mythology. Koral has been an advisory member of the Central Board for Film Certification.

    She holds an MBA in Marketing and a BA in Economics. With her qualifications, she continues to explore the journeys of mythological women further through the lenses of spirituality, leadership, and sexuality, and her Sati Series is widely acclaimed across the circles. Her notable achievements include being shortlisted for the Sahitya Academy Awards in 2023, securing a five-book contract with Pan Macmillan, and cataloging her books in prestigious libraries such as Harvard and Columbia University. Her works have earned her recognition as an Innovator25 Asia Pacific in 2019 and a spot in Outlook Business’ Women of Wonder list. Koral continues to weave narratives that empower voices, inspire change, and reshape perspectives on gender and human connection.)

  • MIL-OSI: Non-Mortgage Delinquencies Reach Levels Not Seen Since 2009

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    – 1.4 million people in Canada missed a credit payment as refinancing and renewals dominate the Q1 Mortgage market –

    Equifax Canada Market Pulse Quarterly Consumer Credit Trends and Insights

    TORONTO, May 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Economic uncertainty continued to impact credit usage and consumer financial health across Canada during the first quarter of 2025 according to Equifax® Canada’s latest Market Pulse Consumer Credit Trends and Insights. Total consumer debt in Canada was $2.55T at the end of Q1, up four per cent year over year, but down more than $6B from the end of 2024. Average non-mortgage debt per consumer rose to $21,859 in Q1 2025, primarily driven by a strong auto loan market as buyers looked to lock in purchases before anticipated price hikes.

    “We often observe seasonal changes in credit usage during the first quarter. Generally speaking in the spring, we tend to see mortgage debt rising, however for Q1 2025 we saw mortgage debt levels fall compared to last quarter,” said Rebecca Oakes, Vice President of Advanced Analytics at Equifax Canada.” Despite a slowdown in demand for non-mortgage debt, overall balances remained fairly flat, an indication that consumer payment levels may be falling.”

    Card spending slows but balances continue to rise
    After experiencing high numbers for new credit card openings in 2023 and 2024, the first quarter of 2025 saw a 10.3 per cent decline in new card originations. Consumers that have lower credit scores accounted for an increase in new card openings, potentially indicating heightened credit reliance and financial strain in this consumer group.

    Average monthly credit card spend1 per card holder fell by $107 dollars during Q1, dropping to the lowest level since March 2022. Ontario, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Yukon saw the biggest pull back in spending, dropping between six and seven per cent compared to the prior year.

    “A drop in credit card spending when combined with increased payment amounts can imply improving financial conditions of consumers,” said Oakes. “Our data shows card payment levels, especially for younger consumers, are starting to fall, indicating this spending slowdown is likely driven more by consumers trying to be prudent rather than switching from credit to debit for financing.”

    The average credit card pay rate2 decreased to 52.9 per cent in Q1, down 32 basis points. Notably, younger consumers (under 35 years old) showed a more dramatic shift, with their average pay rate falling 392 basis points from 62.9 per cent to 58.9 per cent. This same group also exhibited the greatest increase in the level of minimum payers, rising 25 basis points year-over-year.

    Mortgage growth driven primarily by renewals and refinancing
    New mortgage originations jumped 57.7 per cent year-over-year in Q1 2025, but much of this activity stemmed from renewals and refinancing. This reflects the onset of the so-called “Great Renewal,” as a wave of pandemic-era mortgages come up for renewal.

    Renewal and refinancing activity surged, particularly in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C., with an estimated 28 per cent of mortgages switching lenders as Canadians shop around and seek better rates. Almost half of those switching (46 per cent) moved between the “Big Five” banks, reflecting intense competition among major lenders.

    “The shift in the mortgage market is clear – this is currently about existing homeowners navigating a complex refinancing environment,” added Oakes. “But even as some find relief, affordability challenges haven’t eased for everyone.”

    First-time homebuyers returned to the market, with activity up 40 per cent from Q1 2024. Affordability remained a hurdle and while average monthly payments dropped by 7.8 per cent to $2,300, the average loan size increased by 7.5 per cent year-over-year.

    Debt divide deepens as missed payments rise for some
    While some consumers showed signs of prudence in their spending choices during the first quarter, missed payments continued to rise across most credit products. In total, more than 1.4 million consumers (1 in 22) missed at least one credit payment during the quarter.

    Although mortgage holders experienced some stabilization thanks to steady interest rates, financial strain remained acute for non-mortgage consumers. Consumer level delinquency rates among non-mortgage holders rose 8.9 per cent year-over-year, compared to 6.5 per cent for mortgage holders. Younger Canadians were hit hardest, with the 18–25 age group experiencing a 15.1 per cent increase in delinquency rates.

    Ontario consumers under stress
    Ontario continued to remain a hotspot for financial stress in Canada, experiencing the most pronounced increase in delinquency rates across all credit products. Ontario’s 90+ day mortgage delinquency rate rose to 0.24 per cent, a substantial 71.5 per cent increase since Q1 2024. British Columbia followed with a notable rise of 33.3 per cent, reaching 0.18 per cent, while the rest of Canada (excluding these two provinces) showed a comparatively modest increase of 3.3 per cent, reaching an average of 0.19 per cent overall.

    Ontario also led the rise in non-mortgage delinquencies, up 24 per cent year-over-year, followed by Alberta at 15.9 per cent and Quebec at 13.9 per cent.

    Significant increases for younger consumers and auto loans
    The highest credit card 90+ day delinquency rates were observed among younger consumers under the age of 26, at 5.38 per cent, a significant 21.7 per cent increase year-over-year for this group. Overall, this rate stood at 3.76 per cent, marking a 15.8 per cent increase.

    Auto loans followed a similar trend, with the delinquency rate for younger consumers rising by 30 per cent to 1.95 per cent, compared to an overall rate of 1.08 per cent, which represented a 15.3 per cent increase.

    “We’re observing positive shifts in consumer behaviour, with reduced credit card usage and early signs of delinquency stabilization for some consumers. However, headwinds will likely persist, such as rising unemployment and rising food prices, in already strained regions,” concluded Oakes.

    Age Group Analysis – Debt & Delinquency Rates (excluding mortgages)

      Average
    Debt
    (Q1 2025)    		 Average Debt Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)    		 Delinquency Rate ($)
    (Q1 2025)    		 Delinquency Rate ($) Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)
    18-25 $8,459 4.63% 2.17% 20.06%
    26-35 $17,394 1.14% 2.37% 21.04%
    36-45 $26,873 1.57% 1.91% 21.20%
    46-55 $34,371 2.94% 1.38% 17.53%
    56-65 $28,780 5.25% 1.15% 13.25%
    65+ $14,596 3.57% 1.13% 3.93%
    Canada $21,859 2.74% 1.60% 17.06%
             

    Major City Analysis – Debt & Delinquency Rates (excluding mortgages)

    City Average
    Debt
    (Q1 2025)    		 Average Debt Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)    		 Delinquency Rate ($)
    (Q1 2025)    		 Delinquency Rate ($) Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)
    Calgary $23,922 1.11% 1.71% 14.25%
    Edmonton $23,547 -0.03 2.26% 18.29%
    Halifax $21,263 1.86% 1.56% 15.13%
    Montreal $16,971 2.56% 1.49% 18.52%
    Ottawa $19,501 1.16% 1.52% 22.03%
    Toronto $21,048 3.46% 2.17% 24.28%
    Vancouver $23,304 3.93% 1.28% 14.27%
    St. John’s $23,872 1.41% 1.49% 1.19%
    Fort McMurray $37,269 0.81% 2.56% 18.37%
             

    Province Analysis – Debt & Delinquency Rates (excluding mortgages)

    Province Average
    Debt
    (Q1 2025)    		 Average Debt Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)    		 Delinquency Rate ($)
    (Q1 2025)    		 Delinquency Rate ($) Change
    Year-over-Year
    (Q1 2025 vs. Q1 2024)
    Ontario $22,543 3.08% 1.73% 24.00%
    Quebec $18,985 2.28% 1.12% 13.95%
    Nova Scotia $21,296 2.62% 1.68% 5.72%
    New Brunswick $21,490 2.82% 1.77% 9.18%
    PEI $23,707 4.09% 1.19% 8.21%
    Newfoundland $24,770 4.02% 1.56% 0.48%
    Eastern Region $22,218 3.09% 1.65% 5.74%
    Alberta $24,398 1.00% 1.97% 15.93%
    Manitoba $18,171 3.68% 1.72% 2.04%
    Saskatchewan $23,194 2.82% 1.82% 6.24%
    British Columbia $22,631 3.33% 1.40% 12.63%
    Western Region $22,878 2.44% 1.69% 12.49%
    Canada $21,859 2.74% 1.60% 17.06%
             

    * Based on Equifax data for Q1 2025

    About Equifax
    At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by nearly 15,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 24 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.ca.

    Contact:

    Andrew Findlater
    SELECT Public Relations
    afindlater@selectpr.ca
    (647) 444-1197

    Angie Andich
    Equifax Canada Media Relations
    MediaRelationsCanada@equifax.com

    1 average spend comparisons have been adjusted for inflation
    2 pay rate = payments / last months balance

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: The drought is back – we need a new way to help farmers survive tough times

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Linda Botterill, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University

    Australia in 2025 is living up to Dorothy McKellar’s poetic vision of a country stricken by “drought and flooding rains”.

    The clean up is underway from the deadly floods in the Hunter and mid-north coast regions of New South Wales. At the same time, large swathes of Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania are severely drought affected due to some of the lowest rainfall on record.

    Do we have the right support arrangements in place to help farmers and communities survive the current dry period?

    Or is there a better way to help primary producers through the tough times, which are predicted to become more frequent and severe under climate change?

    Managing risk

    Drought is not a natural disaster – at least not according to Australia’s National Drought Policy. In 1989, drought was removed from what are now known as the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements.

    The decision was made for several reasons, including the high level of expenditure on drought relief in Queensland. The federal finance minister at the time, Peter Walsh, suggested the Queensland government was using the arrangements as a “sort of National Party slush fund to be distributed to National Party toadies and apparatchiks”.

    The more considered reason was that our scientific understanding of the drivers of Australia’s climate, such as El Niño, suggested drought was a normal part of our environment. Since then, climate modelling points to droughts becoming an even more familiar sight in Australia as a result of global warming.

    So the focus of drought relief shifted from disaster response to risk management.

    Building resilience

    The National Drought Policy announced in 1992 stated drought should be managed like any other business risk.

    Since then, the language of resilience has been added to the mix and the government lists three objectives for drought policy:

    • to build the drought resilience of farming businesses by enabling preparedness, risk management and financial self-reliance
    • to ensure an appropriate safety net is always available to those experiencing hardship
    • to encourage stakeholders to work together to address the challenges of drought.

    Since 1992, various governments have introduced, and tweaked, different programs aimed at supporting drought-affected farmers.

    The most successful program is the Farm Management Deposits Scheme. This has accumulated a whisker under A$6 billion in farmer savings, which are available to be drawn down during drought to support farm businesses.

    Others have come and gone – for example, the much-criticised Exceptional Circumstances Program.

    More help needed

    In 2025, the federal government is using the Future Drought Fund to invest $100 million per year to promote resilience. It also offers support through the Farm Household Allowance and concessional loans for farms and related small businesses.

    Apart from the Farm Management Deposit Scheme and the Farm Household Allowance, these programs do not offer immediate financial assistance to the increasing number of farmers across southern Australia being impacted by drought. If the drought worsens, it is likely there will be increasing calls for greater support.

    This provides the government with a dilemma: it is already investing significantly in the risk and resilience approach to drought, but politically, it is hard to resist cries for help from farmers who are a highly valued group in our community.

    A better way?

    There is a solution available to government to improve support. It can be done through the provision of “revenue contingent loans” for drought-affected farmers. Financial support would be available to farmers when they need it, consistent with the risk management principles underpinning the national drought policy.

    Our detailed modelling, extending now over 25 years, shows compellingly that revenue-based loans would mean taxpayers spending less on drought arrangements. But the assistance compared with other forms of public sector help would be greater.

    Capacity to repay would be the defining feature of the scheme. A revenue contingent loan is only paid down in periods when the farm is experiencing healthy cash flow. If a farm’s annual financial situation is difficult, no repayments are required.

    These loans would also remove foreclosure risk associated with an inability to repay when times are tough. Loan defaults simply can’t happen, a feature which also takes away the psychological trauma associated with the fear of losing the property due to unforeseen financial difficulties.

    Good policy

    These benefits would address governments’ main motivation with drought policy, which is risk management. That is because repayment concerns and default prospects would be eliminated. With farming, in which there is great uncertainty, these are very significant pluses for policy.

    Revenue contingent loans are a proper risk management financial instrument that requires low or no subsidies from government. They would complement the Farm Management Deposit Scheme and be an effective replacement for the concessional loans currently on offer.

    A win-win for farmer and taxpayer, alike.

    Linda Botterill has in the past received funding from the Australian Research Council, the Grains Research and Development Corporation, and Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (now Agrifutures).

    Bruce Chapman has received funding from the Australian Research Council in various years, and was a consultant to the Federal Government’s Department of Education University Accord Enquiry in 2023/24.

    – ref. The drought is back – we need a new way to help farmers survive tough times – https://theconversation.com/the-drought-is-back-we-need-a-new-way-to-help-farmers-survive-tough-times-256576

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Funding terror: how west Africa’s deadly jihadists get the money they need to survive

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Egodi Uchendu, Professor (of History and International Studies), University of Nigeria

    The west Africa–Sahel region has seen a proliferation of militant Islamist groups since the 1990s.

    One of the most vicious groups operating in the region is Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (Support Group for Islam and Muslims). The militant group emerged in 2017 in Algeria and Mali, and has targeted civilian populations.

    The UN listed the group as an al-Qaeda affiliate in 2018. Al-Qaeda is an Islamist organisation founded by Osama bin Laden in the 1980s.

    The 2024 global terrorism index listed Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin as one of the world’s most dangerous terrorist organisations. Its influence has expanded in most parts of the Sahel. The group emerged to strengthen the jihadist insurgency under al-Qaeda. It combines violence with diplomacy to expand its influence and challenge state authorities.

    Despite growing pressure from counter militancy campaigns spearheaded by local, regional and international militaries, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin continues to survive and adapt by regrouping and reorganising. This was demonstrated in its latest operation in Burkina Faso in 2024. The group exerted significant control by closing schools, setting up taxation checkpoints and abducting locals.

    Its engagement in illicit economies has been key to the group’s successful expansion. This revenue is used to carry out devastating attacks.

    We research jihadi-based insurgencies, and have found that this is a common tactic among terrorist groups in the west Africa-Sahel axis, including Boko Haram militants.

    From our research, we find that Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin funds its activities by relying on

    • artisanal mining

    • kidnapping

    • livestock theft

    • money laundering.

    Dismantling the group’s illicit economies and blocking its financial flows are key to countering its activities.

    Financial resources

    The group needs money for fighting, and to sustain political and social influence in its areas of operation.

    Artisanal gold mining has proven to be a major factor in its expansion and resilience. In areas where the group exerts influence, illicit gold mining generates over US$30 billion annually. According to a report by Swissaid, a development group based in Switzerland, the main destinations for this gold are the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Switzerland.

    The jihadists gain access to gold by controlling mining sites and transport routes to and from mines. They sometimes allow trusted allies, who include local armed groups, bandits and other criminal networks, to mine in exchange for a payout. The extent of gold mining funds is not exactly known, but the artisanal sites in areas controlled by the group have the capacity to produce 725 kilograms of gold per year, valued at US$34 million.

    Read more: West Africa could soon have a jihadist state – here’s why

    Another source of income – and political influence – is kidnapping for ransom. Kidnap victims include cattle owners, businessmen, state officials and foreigners. The group received a ₤30 million ransom in 2020 to release one French and two Italian hostages. Between 2017 and 2023, the group and its affiliated units were responsible for 845 out of approximately 1,100 recorded kidnappings in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Burkina Faso and Mali remain the epicentre of the group’s violent activities. In the first quarter of 2023, over 180 cases of kidnapping were recorded in these countries’ war-torn areas.

    Livestock theft has also been a critical source of funds. The practice of livestock theft as economic warfare and a means to generate funds has led to livestock being forcibly taken from herders who fail to pay zakat (a religious fee among Muslims) or subscribe to the group’s ideology. The stolen livestock are sold in Mali, Mauritania or Senegal. The ability to monetise stolen livestock makes their theft a cornerstone of the Sahelian war economy and a source of cash for weapons and vehicles.

    Money laundering is another illicit economy central to the militant group’s financing. It lends money to merchants, invests with banks and funds small shops with the aim of getting profits. This helps ensure a constant flow of money and provisions to support the group’s terrorist acts. It has attached much importance to this illicit economy, to the extent of assassinating those who interfere with its investments.

    Way out

    To cut down Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin’s financial base – and thereby weaken its capacity for militancy – counterinsurgency efforts need to take the following actions.

    • Government security actors should collaborate with local self-defence militias to regulate artisanal mining and thwart kidnappings.

    • Financial intelligence units need to identify merchants who receive money from the militant group to block the flow of illicit funds.

    Read more: Jihadism and coups in West Africa’s Sahel region: a complex relationship

    • Specialised courts that deal with money laundering and terrorism financing cases should be established and made operational in Burkina Faso and Mali, the epicentres of the group’s activities.

    • Burkina Faso and Mali should increase security around civilians to minimise civilian casualties from terror operations.

    Since finance is the basis of the militant group’s strength, regional security co-operation should be strengthened. This would help with systematically tracking illicit flows and stopping them.

    – Funding terror: how west Africa’s deadly jihadists get the money they need to survive
    – https://theconversation.com/funding-terror-how-west-africas-deadly-jihadists-get-the-money-they-need-to-survive-242306

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI China: China Day shows fruitful cooperation at Cote d’Ivoire’s int’l agricultural fair

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Cote d’Ivoire’s Minister of State and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani and Zhang Xingwang, vice minister of agriculture and rural affairs of China, sign an agreement during the China Day event of the 7th Abidjan International Agriculture and Animal Resources Exhibition in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, on May 24, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    A special China Day event was held Saturday at the 7th Abidjan International Agriculture and Animal Resources Exhibition, showcasing the fruitful cooperation between the two countries.

    Addressing the event, Ivorian Minister of State and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani said that in less than half a century, China has achieved spectacular transformation, particularly in the fields of agricultural and agro-industrial development.

    “Cote d’Ivoire is honored and proud to welcome the People’s Republic of China to this event, which underscores the solid friendship and deep cooperation between our two nations,” he said.

    Hoping to boost the modernization of Cote d’Ivoire’s agriculture with Chinese technologies and experience, the minister also vowed to further deepen the agricultural partnership with China, emphasizing joint efforts in technical training, resource sharing and supply chain integration.

    Chinese Ambassador to Cote d’Ivoire Wu Jie stated that as the guest of honor, China’s participation in the fair reflects strong bilateral relations and promising prospects for high-quality agricultural cooperation between China and Cote d’Ivoire.

    The two sides signed a number of Memoranda of Understanding and agricultural cooperation framework agreements during the event.

    1   2   3   >  

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI: Bitget Delivers A Knockout Experience: VIP Access to Karate Combat’s KC54 Dubai UFC Fight

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitget, the leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company, brought the heat to Token2049 with an exclusive ringside experience at Karate Combat KC54 in Dubai on May 2nd. Think high-octane strikes, VIP treatment, and a night so wild, even the blockchain felt the impact.

    This year, Bitget raised the stakes by offering a premium experience that put crypto enthusiasts right at the heart of the action. Bitget’s esteemed VIPs witnessed world-class fighters trade blows while enjoying gourmet food and premium beverages in an exclusive VIP section reserved just for Bitget’s key opinion leaders and special guests.

    With a crowd of 4,000-5,000 roaring fight fans, the energy in Dubai’s premier venue was electric. Bitget COO Vugar Usi Zade perfectly captured the spirit of the event: “Crypto trading and combat sports demand the same qualities—quick reflexes, strategic thinking, and nerves of steel. We’re thrilled to give our community this exclusive opportunity to experience world-class competition up close. Whether you’re analyzing charts or analyzing fight techniques, this is where champions are made.”

    Robert Bryan, CEO of Karate Combat, remarked, “KC54 marked a significant milestone in our journey, and having Bitget as a sponsor amplified our commitment to innovation in combat sports. Their support helped us deliver an unforgettable experience that blended tradition with cutting-edge technology.

    Asim Zaidi, President of Karate Combat, also added, “Partnering with Bitget for KC54 was a game-changer. Their involvement not only elevated the event’s profile but also underscored the synergy between martial arts and the evolving digital landscape.”

    The event marked another strategic partnership for Bitget in the combat sports world, following their successful collaborations with professional combat athletes such as Wrestling World Champion, Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu, and Boxing Gold Medalist Samet Gümüş (Boxing). By creating these exclusive live experiences, Bitget continues to build meaningful connections between the crypto community and high-profile sporting events.

    Jyotsna Hirdyani, Bitget’s South Asia head, who orchestrated the event, shared insights. “This is the future. From blockchain to sports, crypto is changing the game forever. This is what happens when sports & entertainment meet blockchain technology. It’s a cultural shift where you will see more & more cross-plays of sports x crypto, the ultimate cross-over.”

    This partnership underscores Bitget’s commitment to delivering unique, high-value experiences to its community. Just as in trading, timing is everything, and May 2nd in Dubai was when crypto met combat in what turned out to be an unforgettable showdown. Bitget’s focus remains on creating tangible value for the crypto community beyond digital interfaces.

    About Bitget

    Established in 2018, Bitget is the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 100 million users in 150+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions, while offering real-time access to Bitcoin price, Ethereum price, and other cryptocurrency prices. Formerly known as BitKeep, Bitget Wallet is a world-class multi-chain crypto wallet that offers an array of comprehensive Web3 solutions and features including wallet functionality, token swap, NFT Marketplace, DApp browser, and more.

    Bitget is at the forefront of driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships, such as its role as the Official Crypto Partner of the World’s Top Football League, LALIGA, in EASTERN, SEA and LATAM markets, as well as a global partner of Turkish National athletes Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (Wrestling world champion), Samet Gümüş (Boxing gold medalist) and İlkin Aydın (Volleyball national team), to inspire the global community to embrace the future of cryptocurrency.

    For more information, visit: Website | Twitter | Telegram | LinkedIn | Discord | Bitget Wallet

    For media inquiries, please contact: media@bitget.com

    Risk Warning: Digital asset prices are subject to fluctuation and may experience significant volatility. Investors are advised to only allocate funds they can afford to lose. The value of any investment may be impacted, and there is a possibility that financial objectives may not be met, nor the principal investment recovered. Independent financial advice should always be sought, and personal financial experience and standing carefully considered. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Bitget accepts no liability for any potential losses incurred. Nothing contained herein should be construed as financial advice. For further information, please refer to our Terms of Use.

    About Karate

    Karate Combat is the world’s premier full-contact karate league, renowned for its innovative approach to combat sports entertainment. Known for its distinctive, fast-paced fighting style – essentially MMA without ground fighting, Karate Combat delivers high-energy bouts, with nearly half ending in knockouts. With over 7 million followers, hundreds of millions of views monthly, and over 100,000 active app users, Karate Combat is at the forefront of blending sports, technology community-driven experiences.

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c42afdf6-d6ba-4c86-9956-11a55ab53e57

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7491be04-23bb-4a08-adea-298413bc3465

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/11cf807e-3ef9-44f5-8645-11265a51e617

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3b65cc5e-9dd9-4842-9b2c-cb12d08b16d6

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: FMA confirms fintech sandbox participants

    Source: Budget 2025 – Greenpeace braced for ‘scorched earth’ budget from Govt

    Media Release  
    MR No. 2025 – 12 

    The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) – Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko has announced the six fintech firms who will be testing their innovative products, services or business models in the FMA’s pilot regulatory sandbox.  

    The successful fintech firms are: 

    Fintech firm Details on their intentions
    ECDD Holdings Limited ECDD Holdings Limited (part of the exchange service Easy Crypto) intends to launch a yield bearing NZD-backed stablecoin and to generate revenue from interest earned on money held on trust in interest-bearing accounts.
    Emerge Group Limited Emerge is a digital banking alternative offering products like debit cards, current accounts, and in-app expense tracking. Customer funds are currently held in trust with a partner bank but Emerge aims to transition to higher yielding options such as government bonds. 
    Homeshare

    Homeshare offers investors the opportunity to own a fractional share of real estate, with each property divided into 1,000 equal shares. These shares are tokenised and can be bought and sold via an online platform.
    IndigiShare

    IndigiShare aims to improve access to capital for Māori entrepreneurs and small businesses. It seeks to offer Te Whare Manaaki (a koha loan platform), as a way to lower barriers to entry for indigenous businesses and enable community entrepreneurship.  
    Invest in Farming Co-op IIF (Invest in Farming) is an Australian-based cooperative that connects investors to farming by digitising ownership of livestock, aquaculture, horticulture, and agriculture. It allows investors to own a share of agricultural assets, where investment returns are unlocked on the sale of the stock or crop.
    Tandym Limited A group investment platform enabling people to form groups and build wealth together in a social and engaging way – while removing administrative burden.

    FMA Executive Director Strategy and Design Daniel Trinder says, “We offered this pilot sandbox to spur innovation for both startups and established licensed financial institutions. We received 24 applications to be part of the sandbox and went through a thorough review process to determine which of the firms would be chosen to be part of the pilot.” 

    The criteria used to determine the final six was: 

    • genuine innovation exists that is either unique or solves an existing issue, 
    • likely benefit to consumers,  
    • the product or service does not pose high risk of causing consumer harm, 
    • there is a demonstrated need to be in the sandbox, 
    • the firm is ready and has a product to test, and  
    • the management team have appropriate experience and skills to execute the sandbox testing plan. 

    “During the pilot they can test new products and services in a controlled environment, helping them to obtain a deeper understanding of supervisory expectations,” says Daniel. “The opportunity to adjust a product or service before full commercial launch may also help reduce costs for firms. 

    “We see clear benefits for the FMA too. By working closely with the firms during their time in the sandbox, we expect to gain greater insights into the benefits and risks of financial innovation and new technologies. Experiences gained through such a testing phase should allow us to react faster and more effectively to any potential regulatory and supervisory problems. It should also highlight gaps around investor and customer protection, allowing development of more appropriate and timely solutions.” 

    The FMA is committed to supporting financial services innovation and is grateful for the constructive work and support from FintechNZ throughout the process. 

    ENDS

    Background 

    You can read more about the launch of our regulatory sandbox pilot on our website

    FMA launches regulatory sandbox pilot

    Innovation

    Media contact 

    If you have any questions on this media release, please contact [email protected]  

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Advice seen by Minister

    Source: Tertiary Education Commission

    Date
    Reference Number
    Title

    19 December 2019
    AM/19/01484
    Aide-Memoir: Discussion paper: establishing a CoVE specialising in Secondary Tertiary Programmes, Multiple Pathways and Transitions (PDF 1.4 MB) 

    5 December 2019
    B/19/01460
    Funding Agreement between the Crown and Lincoln University (PDF 1.3 MB) 

    3 December 2019
    1210568
    Education Report: High-level decisions on the unified funding system for discussion at the strategy session on 12 December (PDF 7.8 MB)

    22 November 2019
    B/19/01385
    Tertiary Education Commission 2019/20 Quarter One Performance Report

    20 November 2019
    B/19/01340
    Tertiary Education Report: August 2019 Fees-Free Enrolment Update (PDF 658 KB) 

    20 November 2019
    B/19/01339
    Tertiary Education Report: August 2019 Enrolment Update (PDF 590 KB) 

    15 November 2019
    AM/19/01341
    Expenditure accrual adjustment to Vote Tertiary Education

    13 November 2019
    AM/19/01357
    Overview of standard operating procedures and/or code of practices for TEI accommodation services

    11 November 2019
    Cabinet paper
    Confirmation of Crown capital investment to support the rebuild of Lincoln University’s science facilities (PDF 1.2 MB)

    7 November 2019
    AM/19/01351
    Tertiary Education Institution Accommodation Overview

    1 November 2019
    AM/19/01338
    No recoveries for exceeding prior achievement limit in 2019 for YG and SAC 1-2

    29 October 2019
    B/19/01328
    Tertiary Education Commission Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2019

    25 October 2019
    AM/19/01337
    Reform of Vocational Education Programme Governance – Update

    24 October 2019
    E/19/01252
    Ako Aotearoa 2019 Tertiary Teaching Excellence Awards Evening – 30 October 2019

    23 October 2019
    B/19/01284
    Crown support for Whitireia Community Polytechnic

    15 October 2019
    E/19/01277
    Launch of Drawing the Future event on 18 October at Porirua East School

    14 October 2019
    B/19/01260
    Report to Ministers from the University of Canterbury Futures Governance Oversight Group

    14 October 2019
    B/19/01275
    ITP constitutions for two councils

    9 October 2019
    AM/19/01258
    AgResearch business case for a new building at Lincoln University

    4 October 2019
    E/19/01256
    Opening the 15th New Zealand Vocational Education and Training Research Forum on Tuesday 15 October 2019

    25 September 2019
    B/19/01192
    Update on Careers System Strategy Engagement Process (PDF 500 KB) 

    20 September 2019
    B/19/01175
    Tertiary Education Commission draft Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2019 (PDF 276 KB) 

    19 September 2019
    B/19/01211
    Tertiary Education Report: Draft Cabinet paper on supporting the rebuild of Lincoln University’s science facilities and reallocation of funding to Tai Poutini Polytechnic (PDF 159 KB) 

    17 September 2019
    B/19/01023
    Review of the appointment of the Commissioner of Whitireia and WelTec (PDF 250 KB) 

    13 September 2019
    B/19/01210
    Establishing a Stakeholder Advisory Group for Reform of Vocational Education

    13 September 2019
    B/19/01209
    Workforce Development Council and ITO Workstream: Progress update (PDF 861 KB) 

    13 September 2019
    1204429
    Briefing Note: Unified Funding Work Programme: Progress update (PDF 3.6 MB)

    10 September 2019
    E/19/01176
    Ministerial visit to the University of Auckland on Tuesday, 10 September 2019

    9 September 2019
    E/19/01176
    Ministerial visit to the University of Auckland on Tuesday, 10 September 2019 (PDF 871 KB) 

    9 September 2019
    E/19/01169
    Meeting with Greg Wallace, Chief Executive of Master Plumbers on Thursday 12 September 2019

    6 September 2019
    B/19/01141
    ITP constitutions for seven councils (PDF 297 KB) 

    2 September 2019
    E/19/01158
    Ministerial visit to Unitec Institute of Technology on Tuesday, 3 September 2019 (PDF 3.2 MB) 

    27 August 2019
    B/19/01065
    Tertiary Education Report: Lincoln University Programme Business Case: Moving Forward (PDF 487 KB) 

    27 August 2019
    B/19/01086
    Tertiary Education Report: April 2019 Fees-Free Enrolment Update (PDF 640 KB) 

    21 August 2019
    B/19/01085
    Tertiary Education Report: April 2019 Enrolment Update (PDF 826 KB)

    19 August 2019
    E/19/01093
    Minister of Education Opening the Primary ITO Symposium on Tuesday 20 August 2019

    8 August 2019
    AM/19/00929
    Fees-free monitoring and addressing non-complying TEOs

    26 July 2019
    E/19/00868
    Ōritetanga Learner Success Conference (PDF 240 KB) 

    26 July 2019
    AM/19/00971
    Talking Points for Cabinet on 29 July 2019 – NZIST Establishment Board Appointment

    25 July 2019
    B/19/00928
    Lincoln University and the University of Canterbury Partnership Proposal (PDF 1.5 MB) 

    24 July 2019
    B/19/00882
    Crown support for Tai Poutini Polytechnic (PDF 670 KB)

    20 July 2019
    AM/19/00790
    WAIKATO INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 2018 Annual Report (PDF 459 KB) 

    19 July 2019
    AM/19/00959
    Southern Institute of Technology’s proposal for Telfrod – Talking point for Cabinet

    19 July 2019
    AM/19/00954
    Annotated Agenda – NZ Institute of Skills and Technology Establishment

    17 July 2019
    B/19/00773
    Update on Careers System Strategy and Career Action Plan (PDF 275 KB) 

    17 July 2019
    B/19/00867
    Southern Institute of Technology’s proposal for operating Telford in 2020 and 2021 (PDF 486 KB) 

    15 July 2019
    AM/19/00800
    Assurance findings for the Reform of Vocational Education Programme

    15 July 2019
    B/19/00763
    2020 Investment Round Update: Indicative Allocations

    11 July 2019
    E/19/00879
    Minister to visit Otago University on 12 July 2019 (PDF 465 KB) 

    10 July 2019
    B/19/00819
    Manukau Institute of Technology– council constitution (PDF 402 KB) 

    10 July 2019
    AM/19/00880
    Compliance monitoring of fees-free tertiary education and prosecution for false statutory declarations

    4 July 2019
    B/19/00785
    TEC 2018/19 Quarter Three Performance Report (PDF 355 KB) 

    3 July 2019
    B/19/00861
    Review of the appointment of the Commissioner of Unitec (PDF 289 KB) 

    1 July 2019
    B/19/00840
    2018 Educational Performance Indicators (PDF 1.1 MB) 

    1 July 2019
    AM/19/00820
    Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi 2018 Annual Report (PDF 506 KB) 

    1 July 2019
    B/19/00708
    Publication of the Tertiary Education Commission’s Statement of Intent 2019/20–2022/23 and Statement of Performance Expectations 2019/20 (PDF 274 KB) 

    1 July 2019
    AM/19/00827
    Aide-Memoire: Lincoln University Programme Business Case: Moving Forward (PDF 303 KB) 

    1 July 2019
    B/19/00840
    2018 Educational Performance Indicators

    28 June 2019
    E/19/00835
    Meeting with Service Skills Institute Incorporated on Monday 1 July 2019

    25 June 2019
    AM/19/00821
    Talking Points for APH on 26 June 2019 – Appointment to the council of Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi (PDF 219 KB)

    20 June 2019
    AM/19/00790
    WAIKATO INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 2018 Annual Report

    19 June 2019
    AM/19/00797
    Growing the Food and Fibres Sector – Recommendations for the TEC

    17 June 2019
    E/19/00776
    University of Canterbury – Opening of the Rehua Building on 25 June 2019 (PDF 326 KB) 

    12 June 2019
    E/19/00690
    Meeting with the Commissioner of WelTec and Whitireia (PDF 346 KB) 

    12 June 2019
    AM/19/00749
    Update on Whitireia Community Polytechnic and the Wellington Institute of Technology

    10 June 2019
    AM/19/00739
    Update on the current situation of funding training and education of carers

    7 June 2019
    B/19/00702
    Recognition of Skills Active Aotearoa Limited as an industry training organisation (PDF 1.1 MB) 

    31 May 2019
    B/19/00709
    Waikato Institute of Technology Council Constitution (PDF 441 KB) 

    31 May 2019
    AM/19/00704
    Unitec Institute of Technology 2018 Annual Report (PDF 408 KB)

    31 May 2019
    B/19/00706
    2018 final full-year enrolments at tertiary education organisations

    31 May 2019
    AM/19/00707
    Update on the financial position of ITPs

    30 May 2019
    B/19/00703
    Recognition of the Funeral Service Training Trust of New Zealand as an industry training organisation (PDF 479 KB) 

    30 May 2019
    B/19/00701
    Recognition of Primary Industry Training Organisation as an industry training organisation (PDF 897 KB) 

    30 May 2019
    E/19/00705
    Meeting with UCOL on 5 June 2019  (PDF 2.6 MB)

    27 May 2019
    AM/19/00648
    Advice on options to support the University of Canterbury following the Christchurch mosque attacks

    24 May 2019
    B/19/00650
    Ministerial appointment to Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi

    17 May 2019
    B/19/00706
    2018 Final Full-Year Enrolments at Tertiary Education Organisations (PDF 1.1 MB) 

    17 May 2019
    B/19/00640
    Tai Poutini Polytechnic Capital Injection – Final Milestone (PDF 386 KB) Tai Poutini Polytechnic Capital Injection Appendix A (PDF 1.6 MB) 

    16 May 2019
    AM/19/00651
    Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki 2018 Annual Report (PDF 516 KB) 

    10 May 2019
    E/19/00555
    Meeting with Professor Jan Thomas from Massey University on 22 May 2019 (PDF 682 KB) 

    10 May 2019
    E/19/00644
    Meeting with Southland Federated Farmers

    9 May 2019
    B/19/00613
    Letters for Ministerial appointments to two tertiary education councils (PDF 286 KB) 

    8 May 2019
    E/19/00509
    Minister to speak at the Open Polytechnic Graduation on Thursday, 23 May 2019 (PDF 3.2 MB).

    3 May 2019 
    AM/19/00611
    Lincoln University 2018 financial results (PDF 247 KB) 

    3 May 2019
    AM/19/00615
    Ministerial Appointment to the council of Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi

    23 April 2019
    B/19/00527
    Release of the 2018 PBRF Quality Evaluation Results 

    10 April 2019
    E/19/00512
    Meeting with Primary Industry Training Organisation on Thursday 11 April 2019 

    9 April 2019
    E/19/00473
    Meeting with WITT to discuss RoVE on 11 April 2019 

    8 April 2019
    E/19/00482
    Meeting with Andrew Robb from Tai Poutini Polytechnic on 11 April 2019 

    3 April 2019
    B/19/00451
    Salvation Army foundation education delivery consultation outcomes 

    3 April 2019
    B/19/00469
    Inspiring Futures – Response 

    2 April 2019
    E/19/00465
    Ministerial visit to open new Tech Park Campus development at Manukau Institute of Technology on 5 April 2019 

    28 March 2019
    E/19/00446
    BusinessNZ Major Companies Group – Chief Executive Forum on Friday 5 April 2019 

    27 March 2019
    B/19/00448
    Letters for Ministerial appointments to eight tertiary education institution councils 

    27 March 2019
    B/19/00442
    Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology – council constitution 

    25 March 2019
    B/19/00360
    2018 Interim Full-Year Enrolments at Tertiary Education Organisations 

    18 March 2019
    AM/19/00414
    Talking Points for APH on appointments to eight ITP councils 

    14 March 2019
    B/19/00161
    TEC 2018/2019 Quarter Two Performance Report 

    12 March 2019
    E/19/00396
    Meeting with The Skills Organisation 14 March 2019 

    12 March 2019
    E/19/00398
    Meeting with Careerforce Thursday 14 March 2019 

    12 March 2019
    B/19/00381
    Letters for Ministerial appointments to two university councils 

    7 March 2019
    B/19/00158
    Careers System Strategy Workstream Implementation Update 

    5 March 2019
    AM/19/00330
    Talking Points for APH on appointments to two TEI Councils 

    1 March 2019
    E/19/00166
    Meeting with Competenz Chair and Chief Executive Thursday 7 March 

    1 March 2019
    E/19/00234
    Local Government New Zealand Rural and Provincial Meeting 

    27 February 2019
    E/19/00165
    Visit to Telford (PDF 326 KB) 

    26 February 2019
    E/19/00150
    Meeting with primary industry leaders to discuss your vision on Reform of Vocational Education (PDF 269 KB) 

    25 February 2019
    E/19/00246
    Meeting with the Tertiary Education Union (TEU) at Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec) (PDF 2 MB) 

    15 February 2019
    B/19/00082
    Lincoln University and the University of Canterbury Partnership Proposal: next steps (PDF 2.3 MB) 

    11 February 2019
    AM/19/0060
    World Economic Forum OECD Release of Envisioning the Future of Education and Jobs: Trends, Data and Drawings report (PDF 159 KB) 

    7 February 2019
    AM/19/00083
    2018 full-year enrolment reporting timeline (PDF 397 KB) 

    1 February 2019
    B/19/00081
    Southern Institute of Technology’s proposal for operating Telford in 2019 (PDF 393 KB) 

    February 2019
    Cabinet paper
    Council Appointments for Ara Institute of Canterbury, Eastern Institute of Technology, Manukau Institute of Technology, NorthTec, Otago Polytechnic, Tai Poutini Polytechnic, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, UCOL and the Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki (PDF 320 KB) 

    30 January 2019
    B/19/00055
    Appointment of an advisory committee to support the Commissioner of Whitireia and WelTec (PDF 202 KB) 

    29 January 2019
    AM/19/00064
    Computer in Homes Tender (PDF 824 KB) 

    28 January 2019
    AM/19/00063
    Meeting with the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Canterbury (PDF 1.2 MB) 

    21 January 2019
    E/19/00010
    Ara Institute of Canterbury – Manawa and Outpatients facility opening on Thursday 31 January 2019 (PDF 1.2 MB) 

    11 January 2019
    B/19/00028
    Update World Economic Forum: Launch of Envisioning the Future of Education and Jobs (PDF 554 KB) 

    8 January 2019
    B/19/00007
    University of Auckland – amendment to council constitution (PDF 303 KB) 

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Compensation for livestock farmers in Thessaly – Delays in payment – E-001985/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-001985/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Nikolaos Anadiotis (NI)

    Following the devastating floods of September 2023 in Thessaly, the European Commission approved significant financial support to Greece, aiming to relieve those affected and restore agricultural and livestock activity.

    Specifically, the following provision was made: a) EUR 43 million through the agricultural reserve for direct compensation to farmers and livestock farmers[1], b) EUR 101.5 million through the EU Solidarity Fund, with an advance payment of EUR 25.3 million approved in January 2024[2] and c) full coverage of damages to livestock and facilities, according to statements by the competent Minister of Rural Development.

    However, significant delays have been recorded in the payment of compensation to affected farmers. The 2nd equal instalment of just EUR 12.7 million was paid in March 2024[3], which raises reasonable questions about the efficient and timely use of European funds.

    In light of the above:

    • 1.Have the Greek authorities kept the Commission informed of progress and the reasons for the delays in the payment of compensation?
    • 2.Is the Commission monitoring the implementation of the relevant support measures and, if so, does it intend to request that the procedures be accelerated?
    • 3.In the event of continued delays on the part of the national authorities, does the Commission intend to provide further support or intervene?

    Submitted: 17.5.2025

    • [1] https://www.globaltradealert.org/state-act/83177/greece-european-commission-approves-compensation-package-for-farmers
    • [2] https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1247120/e101-5-mln-in-eu-aid-for-thessaly/
    • [3] https://www.archyde.com/thessaly-12-7-million-euros-were-paid-to-farmers-and-breeders-2024-03-25-215834/
    Last updated: 26 May 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: EU Fact Sheets – WTO Agreement on Agriculture – 23-05-2025

    Source: European Parliament

    The domestic support systems in agriculture are governed by the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA), which entered into force in 1995 and was negotiated during the Uruguay Round (1986-1994). The long-term goal of the AoA is to establish a fair and market-oriented agricultural trading system and to initiate a reform process through the negotiations of commitments on support and protection, and through the establishment of strengthened and more operationally effective rules and discipline. Agriculture is therefore special because the sector has its own agreement, whose provisions prevail.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • PM Modi: Gujarat emerging as a global hub for high-tech manufacturing and tribal development

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi today underlined Gujarat’s rising stature as a global hub for high-tech engineering and manufacturing, while also reaffirming the government’s deep commitment to tribal welfare and inclusive development.
     
    Addressing a large gathering in Dahod, the Prime Minister said that Gujarat has made remarkable progress in diverse sectors such as education, IT, semiconductors, and tourism. He informed that a major semiconductor plant is being established in the state with an investment of thousands of crores, further strengthening India’s footprint in the global semiconductor industry and creating employment opportunities for lakhs of youth.
     
    The Prime Minister highlighted that Dahod, Vadodara, Godhra, Kalol, and Halol have together formed a robust high-tech engineering and manufacturing corridor. He said, “Vadodara is rapidly advancing in aircraft manufacturing, with the Airbus assembly line inaugurated recently. The city is also home to India’s first Gati Shakti University. Savli has a major rail coach manufacturing facility, and now Dahod is manufacturing India’s most powerful 9,000-horsepower locomotives. These developments mark a proud moment for the nation.”
     
    He added that small and medium-scale industries across Godhra, Kalol, and Halol are also playing a vital role in Gujarat’s industrial growth. Envisioning the future of the region, he said, “From bicycles and motorcycles to railway engines and aircraft, this corridor will produce it all. Such a high-tech corridor is rare even on the global stage.”
     
    Reaffirming his government’s commitment to tribal welfare, the Prime Minister said that the development of tribal regions is essential for building a developed India. He noted that significant work has been carried out in the last 11 years to uplift tribal communities across the country.
     
    PM Modi said, “I have had the privilege of working extensively in Gujarat’s tribal areas, and that experience has shaped many national-level initiatives. There was a time when tribal children couldn’t even dream of studying science. Today, the tribal belt has access to quality education through ITIs, medical colleges, and two dedicated tribal universities.”
     
    He stated that the network of Eklavya Model Schools has been strengthened over the past decade to ensure better educational opportunities for tribal students, including several such schools now operating in Dahod.
     
    Referring to the ‘Dhartii Aaba Janjati Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan’, he said this is a historic initiative launched for the first time in independent India. He informed that the Central Government is investing nearly ₹80,000 crore in the program, aimed at transforming over 60,000 tribal villages by providing electricity, water, roads, schools, hospitals, and pucca houses.
     
    PM Modi said, “Our government is working for those who were long neglected. The PM Janman Yojana has been introduced to support particularly vulnerable tribal groups who have been deprived for decades. New infrastructure and job opportunities are being created to ensure inclusive development.”
     
    The Prime Minister also highlighted the launch of a national mission to eliminate sickle cell anemia in tribal communities, under which millions have already been screened.
     
    Speaking on regional transformation, PM Modi said that Dahod, once classified as a backward district, is now progressing rapidly as an Aspirational District. He remarked, “South Dahod once faced severe water scarcity. Today, thanks to hundreds of kilometers of new pipelines, Narmada water is reaching every home. Over the years, 11 lakh acres of land from Umargam to Ambaji have been brought under irrigation, easing the burden on tribal farmers.”

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Extension of the EU-Ukraine trade agreement – E-001263/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The Commission does not intend to propose the prolongation of the current Autonomous Trade Measures Regulation[1] providing duty free and quota free imports for Ukraine.

    Instead, the Commission is pursuing consultations with Ukraine to review the reciprocal tariff liberalisation under the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement[2] in accordance with Article 29 of that Agreement.

    This review will lead to a well-balanced solution that will allow for reciprocal trade between the EU and Ukraine in agricultural goods, while at the same time protecting EU farmers and addressing interests flagged by some Member States and Members of the European Parliament.

    Furthermore, the Commission is proposing that the negotiated solution would also include a safeguard clause that would be triggered to prevent any adverse impacts of trade flows on the EU market, including one Member State.

    As mandated by Article 4(2) of the Autonomous Trade Measures Regulation, the Commission monitors on a regular basis the impact of the Autonomous Trade Measures adopted by the European Parliament and the Council.

    The monitoring report is shared with the European Parliament and with the Member States. So far, this monitoring has not shown any adverse effect on the EU market or the market of one or several Member States.

    The Commission is regularly consulting Member States on this issue. The views of the Member States, as well as the European Parliament and relevant stakeholders, feed into the Commission’s decision-making process.

    The Commission is not in a position to share the specific feedback received from Member States since it is not the author of such documents.

    • [1]  OJ L, 2024/1392, 29.5.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1392/oj.
    • [2] http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_internation/2014/295/oj.
    Last updated: 26 May 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Verizon to speak at Cowen TMT Conference May 28

    Source: Verizon

    Headline: Verizon to speak at Cowen TMT Conference May 28

    NEW YORK, N.Y. – Frank Boulben, senior vice president and chief revenue officer for the Consumer Group of Verizon (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), is scheduled to speak at the Cowen Technology, Media & Telecom Conference on Wednesday, May 28, at 10:15 a.m. ET. His remarks will be webcast, with access instructions available on Verizon’s Investor Relations website, www.verizon.com/about/investors.

    For details on Verizon’s most recent financial results, view the company’s 1Q25 earnings results here.

     

    MIL OSI Economics –