NewzIntel.com

Category: Politics

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Weevil used to control floating pennywort in the Cam Washes

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    An innovative biocontrol project has been launched aiming to reduce the spread of floating pennywort in the Cam Washes, SSSI.

    Weevil (Listronotus elongatus)

    Led by CABI (www.cabi.org), a not-for-profit inter-governmental organisation specialising in natural solutions for invasive non-native plants, the project is funded by the Environment Agency, working in partnership with CABI scientists.

    Floating pennywort (Hydrocotyle ranunculoides), an invasive aquatic weed plant native to South America, has become a major threat to the UK’s waterbodies. It is known for its rapid growth and ability to spread up to 20cm a day, forming dense mats that disrupt ecosystems, causing deoxygenation, blocking flood defences, impacting recreational activities, and contributing to flood risk issues.

    The cost of controlling floating pennywort, together with the impact on tourism and recreation is estimated to exceed £25 million annually in the UK. To address this growing problem and reduce the spread of the plant, a South American weevil Listronotus elongatus, was approved for release in the UK in 2021 after a decade of safety testing; this is the fourth weed biological control solution approved for release in the UK.

    Unlike traditional control methods such as manual or mechanical removal and herbicide applications, which are costly, labour-intensive, and often ineffective, the biocontrol with the weevil presents a long-term, self-sustaining solution. The weevil has evolved to only feed and develop on floating pennywort, reducing biosecurity issues that can arise from disturbance.

    The trial involved the release of weevils on the Cam Washes SSSI. This site was chosen for the weevil release due to the difficulties of controlling floating pennywort using traditional methods and the need to manage the reinfestation of the River Cam.

    Prior to the release, the extent of floating pennywort spread was captured using drone footage. It is hoped that continued drone monitoring will help to show how effective these weevils could be as a cost-effective solution to managing this invasive species.

    Djami Djeddour, Senior CABI project lead said: “We are thrilled to be able to work in partnership with the Environment Agency to help tackle floating pennywort in the Cam Washes. Biological control of non-native, invasive aquatic weeds using specialist insects has proved highly effective globally, and we are hopeful that these released weevils (beetles) will be the plant’s Achilles’ heel. Once the weevil populations are successfully established, they will play an important role in the sustainable control of floating pennywort, reducing its impact on native habitats and enhancing their biological diversity and function”.  

    Pippa Keynes, Environment Agency project lead, said “We are very happy to partner with CABI in this important project. Following on from extensive Floating Pennywort control work that has been carried out on the Bedford Ouse, we are keen to explore different ways of controlling this invasive plant which can cause havoc on our waterways.”

    For East Anglia press office please contact (24 hours): 0800 917 9250

    All Environment Agency news releases, both area and national, can be found under Announcements at www.gov.uk/government/organisations/environment-agency

    Follow us on Twitter @EnvAgencyAnglia

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murphy, Blumenthal, Hayes, DeLauro, Larson, Himes Urge Immediate Reversal Of EPA’s Illegal Efforts To Withold Toxic Clean Up Funding From Naugatuck Valley

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Connecticut – Chris Murphy

    February 03, 2025

    HARTFORD—U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (D-Conn.-01), Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.-03), Jim Himes (D-Conn.-04), and Jahana Hayes (D-Conn-05), on Monday wrote a letter to President Donald Trump urging the immediate reversal of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) suspension of $8.6 million in federal funding for the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG).
    “We are deeply concerned about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) illegal efforts to withhold congressionally appropriated funding from our constituents, in response to the swath of Executive Orders you have issued since being sworn in,” the lawmakers wrote.
    “In Connecticut, we have heard from the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments that their access to an open Fiscal Year 2022 Revolving Loan Fund grant was suspended by EPA. As of the afternoon of Wednesday, January 29, they were unable to access already promised funds through the federal portal – an $8.66 million balance. This grant provides vital funding to remediate brownfield sites, helping local communities conduct environmental clean-up. Cleaning up brownfields is one of the best investments the federal government can make in a community,” they continued. “We demand that you immediately rescind this order.”
    Last week, NVCOG’s access to their Fiscal Year 2022 Revolving Loan Fund grant was suspended with no notice. The grant provides vital funding to remediate brownfield sites, helping local communities conduct environmental clean-up that lead to vital private real estate development deals, housing initiatives, and regional economic revitalization efforts. With its suspension, municipalities and developers alike are left facing stalled projects, financial uncertainty, and scrambling to find alternative funding sources. This suspension will impact 13 projects across Naugatuck Valley.
    Last week, the Trump Administration announced a decision to freeze all federal grants, including those already approved by Congress and signed into law, through a memo from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The OMB memo was later rescinded, but the Trump Administration’s efforts to freeze funding persist while organizations across Connecticut report difficulty accessing federal funding. The President’s Executive Order on “Unleashing American Energy” directs all agencies to immediately pause the disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
    Full text of the letter is available HERE and below.
    Dear President Trump,
    We are deeply concerned about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) illegal efforts to withhold congressionally appropriated funding from our constituents, in response to the swath of Executive Orders you have issued since being sworn in. These executive orders to freeze funding, including “Unleashing American Energy,” are clearly unconstitutional and should be rescinded immediately.
    On January 27, 2025, your administration made the unconstitutional and unilateral decision to freeze all federal funding through a memorandum issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). As a result, chaos and confusion halted payments to everything from veterans’ programs to Head Start to Medicaid. While the sweeping OMB memo has since been rescinded – after a federal court stepped in – many critical programs remain unable to access federal funding.
    In Connecticut, we have heard from the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments that their access to an open Fiscal Year 2022 Revolving Loan Fund grant was suspended by EPA. As of the afternoon of Wednesday, January 29, they were unable to access already promised funds through the federal portal – an $8.66 million balance. This grant provides vital funding to remediate brownfield sites, helping local communities conduct environmental clean-up.
    Cleaning up brownfields is one of the best investments the federal government can make in a community. It is an investment that creates jobs and helps transform polluted land into economically viable and environmentally safe parcels that communities will use for years to come. Federal brownfield funding protects people’s health, incentivizes economic growth and development, and improves quality of life for all.
    We understand this funding is being withheld in accordance with Section 7 of the Executive Order on “Unleashing American Energy.” This section, titled “Terminating the Green New Deal,” directs all agencies to “immediately pause the disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169) or the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58).”
    We demand that you immediately rescind this order.
    Sincerely,

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Man prosecuted for running illegal waste site near Milton Keynes

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Waste including asbestos was burned next to a housing estate and ancient woodland

    Burning waste found at the illegal waste site

    A man has been fined for operating an illegal waste site near Milton Keynes, following an investigation by the Environment Agency.

    Mark Greenhalgh, age 64 of Walnut Tree, Milton Keynes, pleaded guilty to two waste crime charges at Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court on 31st January. He has been ordered to pay fines, victim surcharges and prosecution costs totalling £20,864.

    From 2018 to 2023, Environment Agency officers investigated the site in Woburn Sands which Mr Greenhalgh operated without an environmental permit. Despite repeated visits, he ignored the Environment Agency’s guidance and failed to comply with a notice requiring him to clear the waste from the land. Officers found an increased amount of waste on site with each visit.

    Drone image showing part of the illegal waste site

    Waste was burned repeatedly including asbestos, plastic, metals, wood, soft furnishings, vehicles, domestic appliances and commercial refrigeration units. Scrap vehicles were also stored and broken on site.

    The waste site is surrounded by a housing estate and ancient woodland. The activities of the illegal operation put the neighbouring residents and nature at huge risk of harm.

    All types of waste were stored improperly, creating even more fire risk. The local fire and rescue service were called to the site numerous times throughout the years, and in August 2022 there was a significant fire on site. The fire service had to close a road and deploy multiple pumps, using an estimated 800,000 litres of water.

    Louis de Quincey, East Anglia Environmental Crime Officer, said:

    Waste criminals make their profits by breaking the law and not paying tax. Illegal waste sites such as the one operated by Mr Greenhalgh undermine legitimate businesses which carry out their activities with consideration for the environment. 

    The Environment Agency works to stop waste criminals and support legitimate business whilst protecting communities and nature from harm. We take illegal waste activity very seriously and will not hesitate to disrupt criminal activity and prosecute those responsible.

    Anyone who suspects illegal waste activity should report it to our 24-hour incident hotline on 0800 807060, or anonymously through CrimeStoppers on 0800 555111.

    Background information

    Charges:

    1. Mark Greenhalgh, between 13 September 2018 and 10 July 2023, did deposit controlled waste on land at the north side of Bow Brickhill Road, Woburn Sands, registered under title number BM146933, when there was not in force an environmental permit authorising such a deposit.

    2. Mark Greenhalgh, between 13 September 2018 and 10 July 2023, did knowingly cause or knowingly permit the deposit of controlled waste on land at the north side of Bow Brickhill Road, Woburn Sands, registered under title number BM146933, when there was not in force an environmental permit authorising such a deposit.

    Sentence:

    Mark Greenhalgh was ordered to pay a total of £20,864.23 within 12 months, after which the debt will be enforced. This total consists of:

    • Fines: £720 (£360 fine for each charge)
    • Victim surcharges: £288 (£144 for each charge)
    • Prosecution costs: £19,856.23

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: The UK’s Department of Business and Trade assists British companies in Guatemala’s Infrastructure Trade Mission

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    On February 4-5, the Department of Business and Trade (DBT) organized an Infrastructure Trade Mission aimed at increasing UK’s private sector participation in Guatemalan projects.

    Seven UK infrastructure companies are participating in this two-day event which will allow them to meet with government, municipal and private sector representatives; with a focus on multiple areas, which are critical to improving Guatemala’s infrastructure delivery and sustainable development. 

    The visit aims to better understand the Guatemalan authorities’ plans for infrastructure projects delivery at national and municipal levels, including mobility, water sanitation, hospitals and private sector led construction. It also seeks to create business opportunities between local and the UK companies participating, these are: 

    1. Andrade Gutierrez (engineering and construction) 
    2. Arup (design, planning and engineering) 
    3. Biwater (water treatment and solutions) 
    4. Gleeds (construction consultancy) 
    5. JCB (construction machinery) 
    6. QGMI UK (engineering) 
    7. Steer (infrastructure consultancy) 

    Whilst in Guatemala, the delegation wants to explore opportunities presented by the country’s plans to improve its critical infrastructure, including updated legislation, the use of Private Public Partnerships and the desire to continue building the UK-Guatemala economic relationship. This highlights the British government’s commitment to opening new overseas markets for UK firms, driving up prosperity and deliver national renewal.   

    The UK is committed to supporting viable green enterprises which help to promote green recoveries in urban transport, renewable energy and water and sanitation to help countries across the world pursue green and sustainable growth and economic development. 

    To mark the visit, the British Ambassador to Guatemala, Juliana Correa, said: 

    I am delighted to welcome the visit of some of the leading UK infrastructure companies that will explore the great potential of Guatemala. President Arevalo has put infrastructure delivery as a priority for his administration, and the UK is a global leader in this sector. This is a great opportunity to provide a platform to develop key partnerships that are useful to create cities that lead economic and social development.

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Acting Director Brian Driscoll’s Statement on Recent FBI Achievements

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News

    I’m Brian Driscoll, and it’s my honor to be representing the men and women of the FBI as acting director.

    I want to take a few minutes to share with you some of the important work those men and women have been doing across the country and around the world—every day—to keep the American people safe.

    I’ll start with our Top Ten list.

    The Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list has been helping the FBI apprehend dangerous criminals for 75 years. In that time, we’ve located or arrested nearly 500 fugitives on the list, including two in just the past week:

    Donald Eugene Fields II, who was arrested in Florida on charges of child sex trafficking and child rape; and Arnoldo Jiminez, who was taken into custody in Mexico on murder charges.

    I’m grateful to both of these case teams for their work and to our partners for their support in bringing these violent criminals to justice.

    You’ve heard the FBI always gets its man, but our work is never done.

    Today, we’re announcing the addition of Fausto Isidro Meza-Flores to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

    Known as El Chapo Isidro, he’s accused of spending the last 20 years flooding the U.S. with fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, and other deadly drugs, first as an independent drug trafficker and later as the head of the Meza-Flores cartel.

    In addition to the scourge of illicit drugs Meza-Flores and his organization have unleashed into the United States from across our southern border, they’re also accused of heinous crimes ranging from kidnapping and extortion to torture and murder.

    The U.S. government is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his arrest and conviction, and we encourage anyone with information about his whereabouts to contact the FBI and help us add Meza-Flores to the list of dangerous fugitives we’ve brought to justice together.

    But that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the exceptional work the FBI’s been doing lately.

    Every day, our men and women are working hard to be there for our partners and keep our communities safe.

    That includes all the work we’ve been doing to support the Department of Homeland Security in its immigration enforcement efforts. We’ve got special agents, intelligence analysts, and more supporting DHS teams across the country, from New York and Chicago to El Paso, Newark, and Denver. So far, this work has led to the arrest of dangerous criminals and terrorists all across the country, and we’ve taken illegal firearms off the streets and out of our communities.

    At the same time, our people are hard at work with our local, state, and federal partners in the run-up to this Sunday’s Super Bowl. In addition to our team in New Orleans, we’ve deployed scores of FBI employees to surge in support of this effort—from bomb techs to SWAT operators to intelligence analysts—and each one of them is focused on keeping the event safe for everyone.

    Our teams have also been working around the clock to respond to the tragic plane crashes in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., in support of recovery efforts.

    All of that work is critically important to our partners and to the American people, but it doesn’t even scratch the surface of the work the men and women of the FBI are doing every single day, across the country and around the world, to keep people safe. 

    We will never take our eyes off of our mission: protecting the American people and upholding the Constitution.

    Because at the Bureau, we’re focused on the work, the people we do the work with—our partners—and the people we do the work for—the American people.

    Thank you.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: Click announced the CEO Statement

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Hong Kong, Feb. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, Click Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: CLIK) (“Click” or the “Company” or “we” or “our”), a fast-growing human resources solutions provider based in Hong Kong, would like to share the joy and happiness of the Lunar Chinese New Year with all our shareholders, customers and business partners. As we drew a close to the Year of Dragon, our CEO, Mr. Chan Chun Sing, Jeffrey would like to report to you our numerous key achievements in 2024 and share his visions for the year ahead.

    “2024 was a remarkable year for Click.” said Jeffrey, founder and CEO of Click. “Not only did we accomplish the historical public listing by raising US$5.6 million on Nasdaq, we also achieved countless breakthroughs in our business.”

    “We experienced significant growth across all segments. As for the seniors nursing solution services, we achieved a record of over 170,000 service hours in calendar year 2024, expecting a growth of 60% as compared to that of 2023. In particular, we project our logistic solution services would record a spectacular growth of 90%. To further extend our coverage, in December 2024, we entered a cooperation agreement with Care U Professional Nursing Service Limited, one of the leading nursing service providers in Hong Kong, in order to tap into the prominent government-sponsored CCSV scheme aiming to provide community care services to senior citizens in Hong Kong.”

    Key 2024 Achievements

    – Strong growth in revenue – projected 40% surge in overall revenue in calendar year 2024 compared to that of 2023. We project both our nursing and logistics solutions segment recorded strong growth of 30% and 90% respectively.

    – Successfully raised US$5.6M of capital from listing

    – Tapping into home seniors nursing service through government-sponsored CCSV scheme

    Outlook for 2025 and Beyond

    “While unemployment rate in Hong Kong stays low at around 3%, a change in working habit such as freelancers and slashers, is believed to be permanent. Therefore, we continue to expect high demand of human resources outsourcing services in the market. Meanwhile, as aging population becomes a global phenomenon, we will continue to invest big in the seniors nursing solution sector. We will expand our collaboration with business partners and may consider M&A options when opportunities arise.”

    “Furthermore, embracing technology has always been a key to our success. Our CTO, Nixon Chau, former GM of SenseTime Group, a leading AI software company, will lead our team to expand into the smart home solutions market for seniors in Hong Kong. Needless to say, we will continue to invest in expanding our talent pool which has been the bedrock to our business, and will extend services to cover property management, food and beverages, and retailing, sectors all currently facing labour shortages in Hong Kong. We are currently the only Nasdaq-listed company focusing on seniors nursing HR solution in Hong Kong and will continue to sustain strong growth by providing a convenient platform to connect our talents with our clients’ HR shortfall.”

    “Looking ahead, I remain fully confident in all our business developments and I hope you feel the same. Last but not least, on behalf of Click, I would like to extend our warmest greetings to all our shareholders, customers and business partners, Kung Hei Fat Choy, wish you Good Health and Good Fortune in the Year of Snake ahead.” said Jeffrey.

    About Click Holdings Limited

    We are a fast-growing human resources solutions provider based in Hong Kong, aiming to match our client’s human resources shortfall through our proprietary AI-empowered talent pool by one “click”. Our key businesses primarily include nursing solution (mainly seniors) services, logistics solution services and professional solution services.

    For more information, please visit https://clicksc.com.hk.

    Safe Harbor Statement

    Certain statements in this announcement are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on the Company’s current expectations and projections about future events that the Company believes may affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. Investors can identify these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “is/are likely to,” “potential,” “continue” or other similar expressions. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances, or changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results and encourages investors to review other factors that may affect its future results in the Company’s registration statement and other filings with the SEC, which are available for review at www.sec.gov.

    For enquiry, please contact:

    Click Holdings Limited
    Unit 709, 7/F., Ocean Centre
    5 Canton Road
    Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
    Hong Kong
    Email: jack.wong@jfy.hk
    Phone: +852 2691 8200

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Digital Tails Group, LLC. Released New Type of AI Assistant.

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, NY, Feb. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — bowmo™, Inc. (OTC: BOMO), a New York City–based company powered by AI and XR/VR technologies aiming to provide fully customizable SaaS Platforms to multiple industries (https://bowmo.com ) (“bowmo,” “the Company”) and its recent merger partner OWNverse/Digital Tails Group (“DTG”), are pleased to announce that Digital Tails Group has released a new AI Assistant. This new DTG AI Assistant is smarter and faster than competing AI assistants and will act as a person’s everyday ally.

    In the modern technological landscape, there is hardly anyone who hasn’t encountered an AI assistant when reaching out to customer support; it’s becoming commonplace these days. But not all assistants are created equal – each model comes with unique capabilities and levels of sophistication.

    In essence, all AI assistants have the same requirements. They should:

    • understand you – using Natural Language Processing (NLP), they get what you’re saying, even if it’s nuanced
    • learn with you – thanks to machine learning, they get smarter over time, and adapt to your preferences and patterns
    • know you – they use context like past interactions or location (if allowed) to create tailored responses

    known AI assistants can be:

    1. Voice-activated – Think Siri or Alexa, ready to respond when you speak
    2. Task masters – Handling specific jobs, like organizing emails or setting up meetings
    3. Predictive – Anticipating what you need before you even ask

    The DTG AI assistant, named Aurora, can help with online shopping, customer support and personalized search, but her intelligence is wide and versatile. She can be trained to support any business, to help automate its operations.

    Aleksey Shestakov, Chairman of the Board of OWNverse/Digital Tails and the Chief Technical Officer of bowmo, Inc. summarized, “Our company focuses on the point-to-point application of advanced technologies in the interests of real business, manufacturing, and electronic commerce. That is why we are developing solutions that increase the efficiency of business operations and create additional business value.”

    Michael R. Neece, Chief Product Officer of bowmo, Inc. added, “Offering the Digital Tails Group’s AI assistant, which constantly learns each user’s preferences and supports any business process, is a significant value addition we can now deliver to customers.”

    You can learn more about Aurora at: https://digital-tails.group/ai-assistant. Try it now at work or home to streamline your day-to-day operations and life.

    About bowmo, Inc.
    Bowmo Inc., (OTC: BOMO) is a New York City–based AI-powered software and services company that incorporates a novel set of technologies to build a platform that will deliver solutions for multiple industries. Bowmo’s flagship product seamlessly integrates AI and extended reality (XR) technologies to revolutionize recruitment and human resource (HR) processes.

    Building upon our multi-vertical platform, bowmo is poised to introduce a suite of future products catering to the cybersecurity, retail, sports, media/entertainment, and real estate sectors. This expansion underscores bowmo’s commitment to diversifying revenue streams and addressing diverse industry needs through advanced technological solutions.

    bowmo’s platform harnesses AI, machine learning (ML), deep learning (DL), blockchain, and process orchestration.

    About OWNverse, LLC.
    OWNverse is a virtual platform company that develops unique tools for creating targeted products and services for virtual spaces (“Metaverses”) by using the technology stack available through widely used Web2 platforms driven by AI.

    OWNverse allows for the integration of such tools to elevate the dimensionality of products and services, while offering such products and services within the spatially immersive 3D Internet—Web3.

    OWNverse aims to empower all users to become co-creators of the content. The main OWNverse ideology is to supply proven tools to users to provide real value for businesses and create virtual communities in numerous business sectors.

    About Digital Tails Group, LLC.
    Digital Tails Group (“DTG,” the “Company”) is an IT company specializing in software development using 3D technology, extended reality (XR) and artificial intelligence (AI).

    The DTG expertise in advanced technologies ranges from virtual reality (VR) experiences to smart AI algorithms, enabling us to help our clients improve their competitive strength through the application of advanced UI and knowledge technologies.

    Additional Information and Where to Find It
    Additional information is available on the Company’s website: https://www.bowmo.com. In addition, other information related to the Company is available at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to: bowmo, Inc., 99 Wall Street, Suite 891, New York, NY 10005; or by phone at 212-398-0002.

    Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
    This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these statements by the use of the words “may,” “will,” “should,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “continue,” “estimates,” “projects,” “intends,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, BOMO’s ability to successfully execute its expanded business strategy, including by entering into definitive agreements with suppliers, commercial partners and customers; general economic and business conditions, effects of continued geopolitical unrest and regional conflicts, competition, changes in technology and methods of marketing, delays in completing various software programs, changes in future customer order patterns, changes in product mix, continued success in technical advances and delivering technological innovations, regulatory requirements and the ability to meet them, government agency rules and changes, and various other factors beyond BOMO’s control. Except as may be required by law, bowmo, Inc. undertakes no obligation, and does not intend, to update these forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

    Contact:
    Michael E. Lakshin
    Chairman of the Board and President
    Michael.Lakshin@bowmo.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Sudan malnutrition crisis: Millions face emergency levels of food insecurity story Feb 03, 2025

    Source: Doctors Without Borders –

    International donors, the UN, Sudan’s warring parties, and their allies must act now to prevent even more avoidable deaths from malnutrition in Sudan, as an already catastrophic situation is expected to worsen this year, according to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). 

    Half of Sudan’s population faces high levels of acute food insecurity (24.6 million people), among whom more than 8 million people face an emergency and more than 600,000 people are experiencing a catastrophe described by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report as a famine.

    A health worker screens a child for malnutrition in Tawila, North Darfur. | Sudan 2024 © MSF

    Exponential increase in aid is essential to address extreme hunger

    “Despite this new wake-up call, robust humanitarian and diplomatic mobilization to act on aid deliveries has fallen far short of the needs,” said Stephane Doyon, MSF operations manager. “To provide only those in the most extreme situation with monthly food rations, 2,500 aid trucks per month would be required, whereas only about 1,150 crossed into Darfur in the last six months.” 

    MSF has released data showing horrific rates of malnutrition in multiple locations, both at the height of Sudan’s lean season last year and as recently as December 2024. The conflict-driven malnutrition crisis has been exacerbated by the continued obstruction of aid by both of Sudan’s warring parties and by the neglectful inertia of the UN and aid system in Darfur. With the seasonal hunger gap coming in May, decisive action must be taken now.

    People displaced from flighting in El Fasher arrive in Tawila, North Darfur. | Sudan 2024 © MSF

    The failure to act is a choice, and it’s killing people

    “Parts of Sudan are difficult to work in, but it is certainly possible, and this is what humanitarian organizations and the UN are supposed to do,” said Marcella Kraay, MSF emergency coordinator, speaking from Nyala, South Darfur state. 

    To provide only those in the most extreme situation with monthly food rations, 2,500 aid trucks per month would be required, whereas only about 1,150 crossed into Darfur in the last six months.

     Stephane Doyon, MSF operations manager

    “In places that are easier to access, as well as in the hardest-to-reach areas like North Darfur, options like air routes remain unexplored. The failure to act is a choice, and it’s killing people,” Kraay continued. 

    The malnutrition crisis has been acknowledged for some time, with the UN in October warning that “never in history have so many people faced starvation and famine as in Sudan today.”

    MSF staff conduct a food distribution in a South Darfur. | Sudan 2025 © Abdoalsalam Abdallah

    The upcoming rainy season creates a race against time

    Moving supplies will become an even more difficult task during the upcoming rainy and lean season, when flooded dirt roads become impossible to navigate. A wide-scale humanitarian response must be launched now, including by drastically increasing available funding and logistical capacities, securing food pipelines and prepositioning food stocks in Chad and neighboring countries. 

    MSF is calling for UN agencies, international organizations, donor countries, and governments with leverage to pursue all options, including air routes, to complement and even replace road access where necessary. 

    Bureaucratic requirements from the warring parties have long been an obstacle to international organizations’ ability to reach and provide services to people. Rather than reacting to critical needs in a timely manner, permissions to respond are either delayed or denied altogether by the warring parties. This is impeding MSF’s work in South Darfur, with aid trucks stuck in Chad waiting for permissions to move from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their offices. A food distribution in South Darfur was also recently postponed as MSF was refused the necessary travel permits.

    Warring parties must grant unhindered access for humanitarian organizations. Access must be defined by lifesaving aid reaching people who need it, not by announcements celebrating piecemeal measures that fall far short. MSF calls on the warring parties, their allies, and influential states to use their leverage to ease the obstacles that are causing deaths and suffering.

    Food baskets, cooling oil, and bags of grain are laid out before a food distribution begins in South Darfur. | Sudan 2025 © Abdoalsalam Abdallah

    MSF data shows depth of the malnutrition crisis

    North Darfur

    An ongoing RSF siege on the state capital El Fasher is starving people and depriving them of lifesaving assistance, while malnutrition also affects people in surrounding areas. MSF teams screened over 9,500 children under 5 years old while conducting a therapeutic food distribution in Tawila locality in December 2024. They found a staggering global acute malnutrition estimate of 35.5 percent, with 7 percent of the screened children suffering from severe acute malnutrition. 

    In September 2024, 34 percent of the 29,300 children screened by MSF during a vaccination campaign in Zamzam camp were found to be suffering from acute malnutrition. Since the beginning of December, repeated shelling has made it impossible for our team to carry out further assessments in the camp and has most likely exacerbated the levels of malnutrition.

    Khartoum

    MSF teams also see concerning rates of malnutrition outside of Darfur, in areas where displaced people have sought shelter, or in areas closer to the conflict. In Omdurman, Khartoum state, a conflict zone under control of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), MSF carried out a nutritional screening while assisting with a vaccination campaign for children in October 2024, finding 7.1 percent of children screened were severely acutely malnourished.

    South Darfur 

    Even those far from the front lines still face the risk of malnutrition. In October 2024, 23 percent of children under five screened at MSF-supported facilities in Nyala, South Darfur’s capital, and nearby locations were suffering from severe acute malnutrition. In two MSF-supported facilities, 26 percent of the pregnant and breastfeeding women seeking care were acutely malnourished. With World Food Programme (WFP) food distributions lacking, MSF launched a targeted food distribution in South Darfur in December 2024, providing two months’ food to about 30,000 people.

    Zahra Abdullah holds her child inside her kitchen after receiving their food distribution in South Darfur. | Sudan 2025 © Abdoalsalam Abdallah

    Not the first war for many, but the most devastating 

    Zahra Abdullah received food for her and her son. They live together in the Al Salam displacement camp outside of Nyala city. 

    “This is not the first war I have experienced, but it is definitely the most devastating to my life,” said Abdullah. “The living conditions here are harsh, and everything is a daily struggle. The aid we receive has somewhat improved our situation. At least now, we finally have a meal in the morning.”

    “But even so, the suffering never ends. It starts with finding clean water to drink, continues with trying to provide enough food, and ends with finding a place to sleep. Sometimes I sit alone and think: is this the life I will live forever?” she said.

    For millions of people like Abdullah, the time is now to act to prevent the situation from becoming ever more dire. MSF will continue to do what it can, but the scale is well beyond the organization’s capacity to respond. We need to see a massive response now to prevent more death and starvation.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: DRC: history is repeating itself in Lubumbashi as the world scrambles for minerals to go green

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Brandon Marc Finn, Research Scientist at the School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan

    Lubumbashi is a city in the mineral-rich Katanga region in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

    Many people might not have heard of it, but Lubumbashi and its surrounding region have been at the centre of global geopolitics since the start of the 20th century. The area provided immense sources of copper, a metal that helped electrify the planet in the 1900s. It was also the source of all the uranium for the atom bombs used in the second world war.

    The global demand for these minerals came at a great price. Lubumbashi grew as a divided city where housing and labour were spatially and racially segregated. Congolese workers were exploited, abused and taxed as urban and mining strategies were used to reshape society.

    History is repeating itself. Neocolonialism now shapes the extraction of DRC resources.

    Read more: DRC is the world’s largest producer of cobalt – how control by local elites can shape the global battery industry

    Today, the southern DRC produces over 70% of the world’s cobalt. Cobalt is a mineral essential to decarbonisation – a strategy to reduce harmful carbon dioxide emissions. Cobalt is present in batteries in electric vehicles, mobile phones, laptop computers and renewable energy storage systems.

    Like copper and uranium before it, cobalt mining has been linked to widescale exploitation and child labour. Corruption and elite capture remain defining features of mining in the DRC.

    We are academics who research urbanisation, mining and sustainability as well as urban planning and environmental management. Our recent paper addresses the fact that African cities like Lubumbashi are at the heart of events that have shaped the modern world, yet they are woefully neglected in global urban theory (thinking about how cities form and develop) and urban geography.

    Focusing on the global north and neglecting the south leads to major data gaps and contributes to mismatched and outdated urban policy.

    Rock containing cobalt. © Brandon Marc Finn

    We also argue that the human rights abuses and perils of today’s cobalt mining are new forms of old colonial practices. They strip the land and people of resources without proper pay. They offer green minerals to the global north at the cost of lives in the global south.

    Sustainable cities and global decarbonisation are essential if we are to reduce cities’ carbon footprints and decarbonise economies in the face of the climate crisis.

    Lubumbashi’s history, therefore, can offer a fuller understanding of the human and historical costs of minerals that shape cities – and the world.

    A brief history of Lubumbashi

    Lubumbashi was originally called Elisabethville. It was established by colonial Belgium in 1910 precisely to extract copper for global markets. This was done through a company named Union Minière du Haut Katanga (UMHK).

    Concessionary companies made enormous profits in the Congo Free State between 1885 and 1908. The entire country stood under the private ownership of King Leopold II of Belgium. These companies were given the right to extract minerals and rubber through taxes imposed on local people.

    A road being built in the Belgian Free State in 1890. PHAS/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

    The Belgian Compagnie du Katanga (which later founded UMHK) had the task of establishing the physical and economic infrastructure of the region. In exchange for laying the groundwork for the extractive industries, soon to be headquartered in Elisabethville, the company was given a third of all unoccupied land in Katanga. The Belgians established a copper smelter and constructed roads. Temporary headquarters were established to supervise Elisabethville’s expansion.

    One initial method of controlling the local rural people was a “hut tax” that had to be paid to live in Lubumbashi. Later, a “head tax” was introduced to raise funds for colonial management. It forced people into labour as the only means to pay off their newly acquired debt to the colonial state.

    Elisabethville served as the device to assert effective occupation. It also staved off the possibility of British occupation of the territory. The Belgians planned Elisabethville by reproducing the urban forms and racial segregation of Bulawayo’s grid in Southern Rhodesia (part of today’s Zimbabwe) and Johannesburg in South Africa.

    Elisabethville’s early plan. F Grevisse/Institut Royal Colonial Belge

    UMHK dominated the colonial economy as demand for copper increased worldwide. UMHK also stipulated which seeds would be planted where for agriculture. It dissolved local markets and whipped labourers.

    Copper was in such high demand because it is a non-corrosive material that conducts electricity well. It lined telegraph and electrical transmission cables across the globe.

    Copper mining acted as a springboard from which UMHK could spread its influence. It developed railways, cities, labour camps and mining sites throughout Katanga.

    Spatial segregation in Elisabethville. P Vandenbak

    This allowed UMHK access to the extraction of another resource that would shape the global geopolitical landscape: uranium – extracted from the Shinkolobwe mine in Katanga.

    It was the Belgian colonial presence that allowed the US to have access to uranium deposits as they sought to beat Germany in the race to build atomic weapons. All the uranium used in the two nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki came from Katanga.

    This highlights the global significance of, but a neglected focus on, the impacts of mineral supply chains in the global south. Control over Lubumbashi’s minerals cannot be underplayed in this global historical event.

    Katanga seceded from the Congo for three years, 11 days after the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960. The fight to gain control over Katanga’s resources led to the US and Belgian-backed assassination of the first independence leader, Patrice Lumumba. He was intent on reunifying Congo.

    Mobutu Sese Seko became president of Zaire (today’s DRC) after a coup in 1965. He nationalised UMHK a year later. Mobutu served as president for almost 32 years, and his regime was characterised by autocratic corruption and economic exploitation.

    Cobalt and global decarbonisation

    The growth of modern technology relies, at least in part, on the extraction of cobalt in the DRC before it is shipped, mainly to China.

    Cobalt is extracted as a byproduct of copper mining. Artisanal and small-scale mining and child labour remain a salient feature of cobalt extraction in the DRC. These miners receive little to no support and reflect the historical structural marginalisation created in the region.

    Europeans settled in the city centre and locals in camps and informal areas. Junior Kannah/AFP/Getty Images

    Lubumbashi serves as the mining headquarters of the southern DRC, and other cities, like Kolwezi, have grown rapidly in response to the surge in cobalt demand. Spatial and labour-related inequalities from the past are being replicated and expanded on in the present.

    The DRC’s impoverishment continues apace as South African, Kazakh, Swiss and, with increasing influence, Chinese mining companies maintain their practice of exclusionary extraction, social displacement and political corruption.

    Why this matters

    Our research shows the importance of understanding the history of extraction and urban settlement in the region to shed light on new forms of old practices associated with decarbonisation. We see this as a continuing form of colonial power – as neocolonialism.

    Contemporary debates around global inequalities associated with decarbonisation highlight how African populations must endure poor living conditions while the global north transitions to low-carbon technologies. We must find ways to move away from carbon-based economies that do not reproduce colonial inequalities.

    Read more: Patrice Lumumba’s tooth represents plunder, resilience and reparation

    Lubumbashi demonstrates the importance of African cities and resources in understanding critical global developmental and geopolitical issues.

    For decarbonisation to be socially and environmentally just, it must contend with the people, places, and environments on which the future of low-carbon technology is based. Lubumbashi’s history shows how challenging this task will be.

    – DRC: history is repeating itself in Lubumbashi as the world scrambles for minerals to go green
    – https://theconversation.com/drc-history-is-repeating-itself-in-lubumbashi-as-the-world-scrambles-for-minerals-to-go-green-248571

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: NAVWAR at WEST 2025: The Future of Multi-Domain Warfare Demands Agility and Audacious Innovation

    Source: United States Navy

    As the premier naval conference and exposition on the West Coast, WEST offered industry and academia experts the valuable opportunity to engage with U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard leaders. Co-sponsored by Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association (AFCEA) International and the U.S. Naval Institute (USNI), thousands of people attended at the San Diego Convention Center Jan. 28-30 to discuss the landscape of increasingly complex challenges in alignment with the theme: the future is now, are we advancing operational capabilities that pace the threat?

    NAVWAR Commander Rear Adm. Seiko Okano, representing the command for the first time at WEST, highlighted her organization’s commitment to supporting the Fleet with next-generation capability. On a panel with other military and industry experts, they discussed how the Department of Defense (DOD) is accelerating software development in support of the Replicator initiative, a DOD-wide effort to fast-track the acquisition of thousands of all-domain attritable autonomous systems.

    She highlighted the need for a shift in both culture and the development ecosystem, emphasizing that transformative change is essential for driving progress. “This isn’t a technology problem; this is a culture problem. The faster we figure out how to shift this together, I think we win,” she said. “The Navy has always prided itself on having brilliant technologists at our research labs, but we should also embrace the really fantastic solutions from industry that we can leverage to help us innovate at speed.”

    On another panel with systems commanders from the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard on acquisitions, Okano continued to speak about the unique role NAVWAR has in delivering innovative capability to the Fleet. “NAVWAR is at the center of a significant shift in warfare—where traditional domains are blurring, and the fight is increasingly multi-domain and multi-spectral. Our role is to deliver a decisive information advantage, requiring speed, agility and adaptability,” she said. “The challenge is breaking down silos, fostering collaboration and instilling a culture that embraces rapid change to meet the demands of modern conflict.”

    During an informational brief about NAVWAR and its needs, John Pope, executive director of NAVWAR, reiterated the importance of rapid and easy adoption of new technologies. “In our world of information warfare, we need to be the ones who are the quickest to respond to what the Fleet needs,” he said. “To achieve that, we’re asking our workforce and our industry and academic partners to embrace our core values of audacious innovation and radical ownership to get after what we need to fix any outdated equipment until we can find modern solutions.”

    At the Navy’s Information Warfare pavilion, experts from across the NAVWAR enterprise had a significant presence, interfacing with industry at engagement zones and presenting cutting-edge technology. From Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific; Program Executive Office (PEO) Digital and Enterprise Services (Digital); PEO Manpower, Logistics and Business Solutions (MLB); and PEO Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (C4I), NAVWAR’s wide-ranging program offices were represented on the exhibit floor.

    The tech demonstrations from NIWC Pacific showcased the latest and greatest from their labs, ranging from cloud development to cryogenic probes to a robot dog designed to assist in ship maintenance. One of the demos featured a Rapid Recreation into Modeling and Simulations (R2MS) tool, spearheaded by the Integrated Fires Team. This platform uses real-world data to create live virtual simulations at rapid speed, an invaluable tool for training and mission planning. “We’re exploring how AI and ML can take R2MS’ capabilities even further,” said Nadil Lopez, project manager for the Integrated Fires team. “There is a lot of untapped potential with this tool in creating complex and realistic environments for the Fleet.”

    All of NAVWAR’s PEOs also had significant industry engagement throughout the course of WEST. Through PEO C4I’s annual Engagement Event and the joint PEO Digital/MLB Industry Open house, around 250 individual companies met government representatives and leaders for insightful and collaborative conversations across all three PEOs. NIWC Pacific program managers and technical leads also met with industry through the engagement zones to discuss their needs in an informal one-on-one discussion.

    “As underscored by several of the leadership keynotes this year, the rapid pace of both technological and global change demand stronger partnerships across government, industry and academia,” said Michael McMillan, executive director of NIWC Pacific. “WEST 2025 provides NIWC Pacific the opportunity to showcase our latest innovations while forging connections that accelerate the transition of critical technologies from research and prototyping to operational capability. By strengthening collaborations today, we ensure our Navy remains ahead of tomorrow’s threats.”

    Efforts from PEO Digital were also acknowledged at the Department of Navy (DON) Information Technology Excellence Awards, held Monday, Jan. 27 prior to WEST. In honor of leading Flank Speed Zero Trust, the DOD’s first zero trust compliance pilot, Darren Turner received the Person of the Year award for his exceptional leadership and dual roles for both DON Chief Information Officer (CIO) and PEO Digital’s technical director office. Zero trust is a network security philosophy that states no one inside or outside the network should be trusted unless their identification has been thoroughly checked. The Navy’s Flank Speed service currently delivers enhanced collaboration, productivity and robust zero trust security to more than half a million users worldwide, completed three years before the DON CIO’s 2027 deadline.

    Rodrick Adams, the Marine Corps Logistics Integrated Information Systems (LI2S-MC) security manager at PEO MLB, was also recognized with a Fiscal Year 2024 Copernicus Award from AFCEA International and USNI. This award honors individual contributions to C4I, information systems, cyber operations and information warfare. Adams’ efforts in leading the planning, development and implementation of the Naval Identity Services effort for Global Combat Support System-Marine Corps led to greatly enhanced financial transaction security for its users.

    In continuing its commitment to helping the Navy reach new heights in cybersecurity and information warfare capabilities, NAVWAR leverages next-generation tools like AI/ML and industry partnerships to further drive innovation. As the battlefield becomes more complex, their role in the future fight demands a culture shift driven by collaboration, adaptability and agility.

    About NAVWAR:

    NAVWAR identifies, develops, delivers and sustains information warfighting capabilities and services that enable naval, joint, coalition and other national missions operating in warfighting domains from seabed to space and through cyberspace. NAVWAR consists of more than 11,000 civilian, active duty and reserve professionals located around the world.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Council takes steps towards a firm financial footing

    Source: City of Derby

    Derby City Council will take the next step towards putting its finances on a firm footing when two reports go to Cabinet next week.

    Budget proposals for 2025/26 have been refreshed since they went to public consultation, with money being put back into services and more going back into reserves. This is due to an additional £8.6 million of resources, over and above that which was assumed at the time of the budget report being issued for consultation following the Government’s finance settlement.

    The Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP), which will go to Cabinet on Wednesday 12 February, also sets out a plan to replenish the Council’s reserves over the next three years to bring them back to a healthy and sustainable level.

    Nationally, the local government financial settlement put more money into social care, introduced a new recovery grant which favoured areas like Derby with high deprivation and a low Council Tax base, and gave a boost to areas in need of investment such as support for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The new Government has also said it’s committed to multi-year funding settlements but has not yet confirmed when this will happen.

    For Derby City Council, this has meant an increase in core spending power by £22.6 million, which is an above average increase for the local government sector, along with continued investment into social care, a new prevention grant of £2 million to support children’s social care reform, and the recovery grant which resulted in £6.7 million for the city. 
     
    Some of the new things that have been added to the budget proposals as a result include:

    • Additional provision for areas where demand continues to grow, such as homelessness
    • Investment into SEND services, including two SEND officers
    • £250,000 for Cultural Recovery, to support partners in the cultural industries facing significant financial challenges
    • And additional £200,000 for the Council Tax hardship fund, to support households experiencing financial hardship
    • An extra £100,000 to support the Market Hall in its first year of re-opening
    • A neighbourhood manager, covering the city centre, to co-ordinate safety, vibrancy & partnership work.
    • Investment into waste minimisation  
    • Additional capital investment for a new depot at Stores Road.

    Councillor Kathy Kozlowski, Cabinet Member for Governance and Finance, said:

    “After years of lobbying, the new Government is listening to councils and promising much-needed reform. We welcome the additional funding, which help us get on a stable footing for the future so we can continue to provide the services that our citizens need and want.

    “While it is assumed in our funding settlement that Council Tax will increase in line with previous years, which is 4.99%, we’re committed to investing into services that matter the most to our residents, protecting the most vulnerable and putting the Council on the way to financial sustainability.

    “We’re listening to the public about what they want in their city, and our proposed budget for 2025/2026 will prioritise tidier streets and green spaces, help our city centre feel safer and become more vibrant, and support children and adults who need our care.”  

    An update on the Council’s position at the end of Quarter 3 also goes to Cabinet on 12 February.

    The pressure on the revenue budget is now at £6.37 million, a fall of £2.59 million since halfway through the financial year. Mitigation continues to reduce this figure even more by the end of March, to limit the use of reserves as much as possible.

    All the savings identified for 2024/25 financial year are expected to be achieved by the end of financial year, leaving £117,000 of unachieved savings from the previous year to be carried over to next year. 

    Pressures remain in some services, such as homelessness, due to continued demand. People’s services, the Council department which looks after social care for adults and children, has a forecast overspend of £5.31m by the end of the year. However this is partly offset by an underspend by an underspend of £3.41 million in children’s services, which is due to the success of strategies developed in recent years to manage demand starting to see results.  
     

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Construction starts on new solar array at Weeton Barracks

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Construction is starting on a new solar array at Weeton Barracks in Lancashire that will generate over one third of the site’s energy needs.

    Maj Peter Reid, 1 LANCS Quartermaster, Lt Col Ed Brooks from the army’s basing and infrastructure team, and Cpl Adam Meekle at the groundbreaking. (Crown Copyright)

    The work has been funded under the British Army’s Project Prometheus, a scheme that is increasing renewable energy across the army estate through installation of solar arrays on suitable military sites. The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) contracted the work to Mitie & Custom Solar on behalf of the army. 

    The 1,638 panels will cover an area of approximately 3,600 m2 of land, which had previously been used for hangars until they were demolished a number of years ago. Once complete later this year, the array will generate 648 Mwh per year of environmentally-friendly energy. This is anticipated to provide 35% of the site’s energy needs, saving energy costs for the taxpayer and reducing the proportion of energy used at Weeton Barracks generated by fossil fuels.   

    Lieutenant Colonel Jamie Walkworth RE, Assistant Head of the Army’s Sustainability, Efficiency and Exploitation team, said: 

    We are delighted to see work getting underway to deliver a new solar installation at Weeton Barracks.  

    By increasing the supply and availability of renewable energy on army sites, we are building a more sustainable estate that will enhance our energy resilience and support operational capability, while protect the environments where our people live, work and train.

    Maj Peter Reid, 1 LANCS Quartermaster, said: 

    It is excellent to see the significant investment in renewable energy here at Weeton Barracks, which will reduce our impact on the environment through on-site electricity generation. The new solar farm will also bring additional benefits to the site by protecting and enhancing the local wildlife and providing us with a platform for local engagement and learning.

    Katie Owen, DIO’s Project Manager, said:

    This is the first ground-mounted array to be started under the second phase of Project Prometheus and follows from the success of the first phase of the work. Once complete, a significant proportion of Weeton Barracks energy needs will be met by electricity generated on site.

    Gary Sucharewycz, Sales Director for Solar and Storage, Custom Solar, part of Mitie, said:

    We’re proud to be supporting the Defence Infrastructure Organisation on this major step on its path to decarbonising the British Army’s estate. Strengthening our existing partnership with the DIO, we look forward to bringing our expertise in large-scale solar infrastructure on this latest project towards developing more high-performing places for military personnel to live and work.

    The site surrounding the solar array will also be planted with a variety of plants including grasses, shrubs and bushes in an effort to improve the biodiversity and available habitats. 

    The army’s first solar farm opened at the Defence School of Transport in Leconfield in 2021 under the first phase of Project Prometheus. A further 3 arrays have since been delivered at Baker Barracks on Thorney Island, Rock Barracks in Suffolk and Duke of Gloucester Barracks. 

    Under the second phase of the project, over 1200 roof-mounted solar panels have already been fitted to buildings at army garrisons across Salisbury Plain Training Area. In addition, solar arrays are being considered for other military sites as well as Weeton Barracks in the coming years. The potential locations include Kinloss Barracks and Glencorse Barracks in Scotland, Bassingbourn Barracks in Cambridgeshire, the Military Corrective Training Centre in Colchester, Larkhill Garrison in Wiltshire and the Army Air Corps Centre in Hampshire.

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: New Horizons for International Tourism Education: GUU and RIAT Sign Cooperation Agreement

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    On February 4, 2024, an agreement was signed between the State University of Management and the Russian International Academy of Tourism.

    On behalf of GUU, the agreement was signed by Rector Vladimir Stroyev, on behalf of RIAT – by Rector Evgeny Trofimov. Also present at the meeting were Vice-Rector of our university Maria Karelina, Director of the Institute of Personnel Management, Social and Business Communications of GUU Alexey Chudnovsky, Vice-Rector and Dean of the Faculty of Tourism Management of RIAT Elena Aliluyko, Vice-Rector for Development of Master’s and Postgraduate Programs of the Academy of Tourism Tatyana Rassokhina and Director of the Center for International Educational Programs, Projects and Public Relations of RIAT Alexey Ryabov.

    Welcoming the guests, Vladimir Stroyev noted that the Russian International Academy of Tourism has always been one of the leaders in its specialized sector. Now the state pays special attention to this area. Despite the fact that the key area for the State University of Management is industry management, tourism disciplines in the Institute of Management and Budgetary Culture are also in demand, so it makes sense to strengthen work in this area. Speaking about the international activities of the State University of Management, the rector reported that our university has a secretariat of the Eurasian Network University, which has recently been joined by educational institutions in Transnistria and Cuba, and Iran is showing increasing interest.

    “In addition to love and friendship, ESU also has material contours: 345 places for additional professional education, a budgetary master’s program, the Eurasian Olympiad,” Vladimir Vitalyevich shared. The rector also spoke about the university’s work within the BRICS Business School and the foreign internships organized by the State University of Management for graduates of the Presidential Program for the Training of Management Personnel for the Organization of the National Economy of the Russian Federation – “also entrepreneurial tourism.”

    Rector of the Russian Academic Materiel Union Evgeny Trofimov briefly spoke about the 55-year history of the academy, complained about the objective difficulties in developing international cooperation related to the geopolitical situation in the world, but at the same time noted the successes in maintaining business ties with the largest European universities and international tourism organizations, which warmly congratulated the Russian Academic Materiel Union on its anniversary in May. Some joint programs were successfully defended and will continue to operate. In addition, new agreements were signed with universities in India and the Philippines. Evgeny Nikolaevich reported that during the crisis in relations, the academy added new programs to its portfolio of educational services: customs, law, logistics, design and architecture. In total, the Russian Academic Materiel Union currently trains students in 28 areas. The academy has six branches: in Yerevan, Kazan, Pskov, two in the Moscow region and one in Moscow, at the Izmailovo hotel complex. Secondary vocational education is growing rapidly; the number of graduates has recently increased from 60 to 750 people per year.

    Vladimir Stroyev specifically focused on the development of network educational programs at the State University of Management: “We clearly understood that no university, even a large and state-owned one, can advance its agenda alone. Universities now face so many important tasks that it is very difficult to cope with them on their own. Only together are we strong.”

    Vice-Rector of the State University of Management Maria Karelina told the guests that Vladimir Stroyev and Alexey Chudnovsky were awarded the state prize in the field of education for organizing and conducting the “University Shifts” program, which is also related to tourism.

    Alexey Chudnovsky thanked his colleagues for the visit and noted their long-term joint work on international programs. It is natural that our universities came to sign a cooperation agreement. First of all, the emphasis will be on combining efforts to develop international educational programs.

    “They are of interest to your and our students, so we are taking the first step towards network agreements that will expand coverage and provide an opportunity to use each other’s network programs. Tourism is a messenger of peace, it must be taken seriously. We have something to offer each other, we are opening a second wind to international relations in the field of education and will work on additional agreements to give more opportunities to our common students,” Alexey Danilovich summed up the meeting.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 02/04/2025

    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.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: State Arts Council opens arts grant applications with April 1 deadline

    Source: US State of Rhode Island

    The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) announced today that applications are now open for selected arts and culture grant programs to organizations, arts educators, artists, folk and traditional artists, and arts and health projects. The deadline to submit a grant application is April 1 at 11:59 p.m.

    RISCA staff members spent last summer and early fall holding public meetings with R.I.’s arts and culture community to update the state agency’s applications and evaluation criteria. The purpose of the meetings was to ensure that applications are simpler and easier to use.

    “After seeking much input from the community during in-person and online meetings, we proudly open our grant programs newly streamlined and simplified. We listened, answered questions, and heard your suggestions,” said Todd Trebour, Executive Director of RISCA. “Because of your feedback, applying for a grant from RISCA is less time-consuming and easier to navigate. Rest assured our core values, which are to provide all Rhode Island residents with access to arts and culture programming, have stayed the same.”

    Grants are being offered in the following categories:

    � Project Grants for Organizations offer support to arts and culture projects that are relevant and meaningful to our communities.

    � Project Grants in Education support schools, nonprofit organizations, arts educators and teaching artists. Recipients engage students in rich and meaningful artistic experiences in dedicated learning environments.

    � Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeships are designed to foster artistic skills between a mentor and an apprentice. The program creates an opportunity specifically for individuals who share a common cultural heritage.

    � Folk and Traditional Arts Fellowships support individual artists who demonstrate the highest level of skill and accomplishments in their craft.

    � Arts and Health Grants fund both non-clinical arts engagements that promote and facilitate individual health and public arts activities that provide a public health benefit in Rhode Island communities.

    � A Community Engaged Project Grant is funding for artists or groups of artists to create arts and culture projects that are directly and actively engaged residents.

    � Make Art Grant provides grants to artists or groups of artists to create or continue specific artwork in any discipline.

    To learn more about RISCA’s grants, click here.

    To help with the application process, the staff will host three information sessions, one online and two in-person. Additionally, the grants staff will offer application walk-throughs and drop-in office hours throughout February and March.

    Rhode Island State Council on the Arts is a state agency supported by appropriations from the Rhode Island General Assembly and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. RISCA provides grants, technical assistance and staff support to arts organizations and artists, schools, community centers, social service organizations and local governments to bring the arts into the lives of Rhode Islanders. Visit www.arts.ri.gov for more information. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: UN – Appointment of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Libya and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (4 Feb. 2025)

    Source: Republic of France in English
    The Republic of France has issued the following statement:

    France congratulates Hanna Tetteh on her appointment as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Libya. We assure her of our full support for her new position as the head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).

    France encourages UNSMIL to pursue its mandate and continue its mediation efforts in order to ensure political unity in Libya. The revival of the political process led by and for Libyans is vital to the formation of a new unified government capable of holding presidential and legislative elections in a timely fashion in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions and the demands of the Libyan people.

    France stands with UNSMIL as it carries out its mission to guarantee Libya’s stability and sovereignty. On the security front, it supports UNSMIL’s efforts to ensure the withdrawal of all foreign forces, foreign combatants and mercenaries from Libyan territory. On the economic front, it calls for strengthening transparency at Libya’s economic and financial institutions and for a fair allocation of resources, for the benefit of the Libyan people.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: DRC: history is repeating itself in Lubumbashi as the world scrambles for minerals to go green

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Brandon Marc Finn, Research Scientist at the School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan

    Lubumbashi is a city in the mineral-rich Katanga region in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

    Many people might not have heard of it, but Lubumbashi and its surrounding region have been at the centre of global geopolitics since the start of the 20th century. The area provided immense sources of copper, a metal that helped electrify the planet in the 1900s. It was also the source of all the uranium for the atom bombs used in the second world war.

    The global demand for these minerals came at a great price. Lubumbashi grew as a divided city where housing and labour were spatially and racially segregated. Congolese workers were exploited, abused and taxed as urban and mining strategies were used to reshape society.

    History is repeating itself. Neocolonialism now shapes the extraction of DRC resources.



    Read more:
    DRC is the world’s largest producer of cobalt – how control by local elites can shape the global battery industry

    Today, the southern DRC produces over 70% of the world’s cobalt. Cobalt is a mineral essential to decarbonisation – a strategy to reduce harmful carbon dioxide emissions. Cobalt is present in batteries in electric vehicles, mobile phones, laptop computers and renewable energy storage systems.

    Like copper and uranium before it, cobalt mining has been linked to widescale exploitation and child labour. Corruption and elite capture remain defining features of mining in the DRC.

    We are academics who research urbanisation, mining and sustainability as well as urban planning and environmental management. Our recent paper addresses the fact that African cities like Lubumbashi are at the heart of events that have shaped the modern world, yet they are woefully neglected in global urban theory (thinking about how cities form and develop) and urban geography.

    Focusing on the global north and neglecting the south leads to major data gaps and contributes to mismatched and outdated urban policy.

    We also argue that the human rights abuses and perils of today’s cobalt mining are new forms of old colonial practices. They strip the land and people of resources without proper pay. They offer green minerals to the global north at the cost of lives in the global south.

    Sustainable cities and global decarbonisation are essential if we are to reduce cities’ carbon footprints and decarbonise economies in the face of the climate crisis.

    Lubumbashi’s history, therefore, can offer a fuller understanding of the human and historical costs of minerals that shape cities – and the world.

    A brief history of Lubumbashi

    Lubumbashi was originally called Elisabethville. It was established by colonial Belgium in 1910 precisely to extract copper for global markets. This was done through a company named Union Minière du Haut Katanga (UMHK).

    Concessionary companies made enormous profits in the Congo Free State between 1885 and 1908. The entire country stood under the private ownership of King Leopold II of Belgium. These companies were given the right to extract minerals and rubber through taxes imposed on local people.

    The Belgian Compagnie du Katanga (which later founded UMHK) had the task of establishing the physical and economic infrastructure of the region. In exchange for laying the groundwork for the extractive industries, soon to be headquartered in Elisabethville, the company was given a third of all unoccupied land in Katanga. The Belgians established a copper smelter and constructed roads. Temporary headquarters were established to supervise Elisabethville’s expansion.

    One initial method of controlling the local rural people was a “hut tax” that had to be paid to live in Lubumbashi. Later, a “head tax” was introduced to raise funds for colonial management. It forced people into labour as the only means to pay off their newly acquired debt to the colonial state.

    Elisabethville served as the device to assert effective occupation. It also staved off the possibility of British occupation of the territory. The Belgians planned Elisabethville by reproducing the urban forms and racial segregation of Bulawayo’s grid in Southern Rhodesia (part of today’s Zimbabwe) and Johannesburg in South Africa.

    UMHK dominated the colonial economy as demand for copper increased worldwide. UMHK also stipulated which seeds would be planted where for agriculture. It dissolved local markets and whipped labourers.

    Copper was in such high demand because it is a non-corrosive material that conducts electricity well. It lined telegraph and electrical transmission cables across the globe.

    Copper mining acted as a springboard from which UMHK could spread its influence. It developed railways, cities, labour camps and mining sites throughout Katanga.

    This allowed UMHK access to the extraction of another resource that would shape the global geopolitical landscape: uranium – extracted from the Shinkolobwe mine in Katanga.

    It was the Belgian colonial presence that allowed the US to have access to uranium deposits as they sought to beat Germany in the race to build atomic weapons. All the uranium used in the two nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki came from Katanga.

    This highlights the global significance of, but a neglected focus on, the impacts of mineral supply chains in the global south. Control over Lubumbashi’s minerals cannot be underplayed in this global historical event.

    Katanga seceded from the Congo for three years, 11 days after the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960. The fight to gain control over Katanga’s resources led to the US and Belgian-backed assassination of the first independence leader, Patrice Lumumba. He was intent on reunifying Congo.

    Mobutu Sese Seko became president of Zaire (today’s DRC) after a coup in 1965. He nationalised UMHK a year later. Mobutu served as president for almost 32 years, and his regime was characterised by autocratic corruption and economic exploitation.

    Cobalt and global decarbonisation

    The growth of modern technology relies, at least in part, on the extraction of cobalt in the DRC before it is shipped, mainly to China.

    Cobalt is extracted as a byproduct of copper mining. Artisanal and small-scale mining and child labour remain a salient feature of cobalt extraction in the DRC. These miners receive little to no support and reflect the historical structural marginalisation created in the region.

    Lubumbashi serves as the mining headquarters of the southern DRC, and other cities, like Kolwezi, have grown rapidly in response to the surge in cobalt demand. Spatial and labour-related inequalities from the past are being replicated and expanded on in the present.

    The DRC’s impoverishment continues apace as South African, Kazakh, Swiss and, with increasing influence, Chinese mining companies maintain their practice of exclusionary extraction, social displacement and political corruption.

    Why this matters

    Our research shows the importance of understanding the history of extraction and urban settlement in the region to shed light on new forms of old practices associated with decarbonisation. We see this as a continuing form of colonial power – as neocolonialism.

    Contemporary debates around global inequalities associated with decarbonisation highlight how African populations must endure poor living conditions while the global north transitions to low-carbon technologies. We must find ways to move away from carbon-based economies that do not reproduce colonial inequalities.



    Read more:
    Patrice Lumumba’s tooth represents plunder, resilience and reparation

    Lubumbashi demonstrates the importance of African cities and resources in understanding critical global developmental and geopolitical issues.

    For decarbonisation to be socially and environmentally just, it must contend with the people, places, and environments on which the future of low-carbon technology is based. Lubumbashi’s history shows how challenging this task will be.

    Brandon Marc Finn has received funding from the University of Michigan and Harvard University to conduct this research.

    Patrick Brandful Cobbinah has received research funding from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. He is a member of the Planning Institute of Australia.

    – ref. DRC: history is repeating itself in Lubumbashi as the world scrambles for minerals to go green – https://theconversation.com/drc-history-is-repeating-itself-in-lubumbashi-as-the-world-scrambles-for-minerals-to-go-green-248571

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How Donald Trump’s attacks on Canada are stoking a new Canadian nationalism

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Anna Triandafyllidou, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Migration and Integration, Toronto Metropolitan University

    Is the threatened trade war between Canada and the United States igniting a new form of Canadian nationalism? Polls suggest Canadians are overwhelmingly opposed to any notion of becoming the 51st American state as the U.S. anthem is being roundly booed at sporting events in Canada.

    If a new Canadian nationalism is emerging, what will it look like in a country that declared itself in 2015 the first post-national state, stoking envy around the world over Canada’s inclusive nationalism?

    U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to launch 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian exports in a month’s time after weeks of persistently provoking both Canadian leaders and citizens with his repeated calls to make Canada the 51st state.



    Read more:
    Canada, the 51st state? Eliminating interprovincial trade barriers could ward off Donald Trump

    Such calls have led to significant outrage, prompting Canadian leaders that include Justin Trudeau, Chrystia Freeland and Doug Ford to respond that Canada is not for sale and that Canada is a country by choice.

    Opposed to joining the U.S.

    If there was any suggestion that being a “post-national” state would lead to an openness to join the U.S., recent polls show the opposite: 90 per cent of Canadians reject that scenario.

    Two thirds of Canadians polled in 2021 felt that Canada is faring better than the U.S. on most counts, including quality of life, protection of rights, standards of living and opportunities to get ahead.

    This percentage had significantly grown compared to the 1980s or 1990s.

    So how does a feeling of being an inclusive, post-national state reconcile with a firm sentiment of patriotism that is growing stronger by the day? And what are the contradictory currents in Canadian identity today?

    Contemporary Canadian identity

    I have been studying nationalism for 30 years, with a special focus on how immigration, migration and national identity interact. My work suggests there are a few elements that buttress and support Canada’s identity today.

    National identity is not a closed container of cultural elements. It develops interactively. As we’re seeing today, amid uncertainty, geopolitical competition as well as close socio-economic interdependence, national identity can emerge with a renewed force.

    Diversity can lead either to a plural national identity that is open to change or a neo-tribal identity that is reactionary. Plural nationalism acknowledges the changing demographic or political circumstances of the nation, and through a process of tension, conflict and change, it creates something new.

    This nationalism is plural not because it acknowledges diversity as a fact, but because it makes a commitment to engage with diversity.

    But dealing with new challenges and increasing diversity may also lead to rejecting “the other.” I use the term tribal to emphasize that this type of nationalism, regardless of whether the in-group is defined in territorial-civic or blood-and-belonging terms, is predicated on an organic, homogenous conception of the nation.

    In this situation, the nation is represented as a compact unit that does not allow for variation or change. The only way to deal with challenges of mobility and diversity is to close rank, resist and reject it.

    Neo-tribal nationalism is not static. It is dynamic and interactive too — although its reaction to new challenges and to diversity, from within or from outside, involves closure and rejection.

    It is neo-tribal because it develops and thrives in a world that is ever more interconnected. Social media platforms play an important role here as their algorithms create neo-tribal digital ecochambers where everyone is closed within their digital bubble of like-minded people.

    COVID-19 experiences

    Challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, Canada faced important dilemmas. For instance, should temporary residents be encouraged to return home or or stay when the pandemic broke out and borders closed around the world? Canada opted for the latter.

    Unlike Australia — where temporary workers and international students were encouraged to go home — the Canadian government stated that temporary migrants whose “effective residence” was in the country would be supported to stay.

    The term “effective residence” defined membership on the basis of habitual residence; where people lived, worked, sent their kids to school and paid taxes. Living together formed a sense of common fate, reinforcing an expansive and inclusive view of who is a Canadian.

    In addition, recognizing the essential work performed by many temporary residents, such as asylum-seekers employed in senior care homes, Canada introduced special measures to facilitate their transition to permanent status.



    Read more:
    Working more and making less: Canada needs to protect immigrant women care workers as they age

    In August 2020, Marco Mendicino, Canada’s immigration minister at the time, announced a special path to permanent residency (now known as the Guardian Angels program), noting that “they demonstrated a uniquely Canadian quality …in that they were looking out for others, and so that is why today is so special.”

    Mendicino emphasized that the behaviour of these workers qualified them as Canadians; their important contribution in “caring for the other” was defined as a very special element in the national identity.

    National unity bolstered by diversity

    The Canadian patriotism that is emerging today in the face of Trump’s actions — and in the words of almost all Liberal, Conservative and NDP leaders — builds on solid ground.

    Canadian nationalism has not just been about being polite, but rather builds on decades of positive confrontation with challenges.

    A July 2024 Environics poll suggested Canadians do not feel they need to choose among their multiple identities or to exclude others in order to revitalize their sense of identity and belonging.

    National unity is strengthened by internal diversity. The looming trade war and threats of annexation by Trump may be having a beneficial impact in reminding Canadians of the values that unite them and that Canada is indeed “a country by choice.”

    Anna Triandafyllidou receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Tri-Agency Council of Canada.

    – ref. How Donald Trump’s attacks on Canada are stoking a new Canadian nationalism – https://theconversation.com/how-donald-trumps-attacks-on-canada-are-stoking-a-new-canadian-nationalism-247958

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ahead Of Pam Bondi’s Nomination Vote This Week, Durbin Outlines His Concerns About Bondi’s Ability To Serve As An Independent AG

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin

    February 03, 2025

    Durbin’s floor speech comes after the Trump Administration forced out dozens of DOJ and FBI officials this weekend and is now threatening additional action against thousands of employees across the country who worked on investigations related to January 6 and President Trump

    WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, outlined his concerns about Pam Bondi, President Trump’s Attorney General nominee. In his remarks, he cited concerns over her ability to act as an independent Attorney General, refusal to acknowledge President Biden won the 2020 election, and echoing President Trump’s calls for prosecuting his political opponents.

    Durbin’s remarks also highlighted the Trump Administration’s purge of dozens of senior career civil servants at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)—including longtime nonpartisan leaders of the government’s counterterrorism and counterespionage efforts—further exemplifying the need for an independent DOJ.

    “This week, the Senate will vote on the nomination of Pam Bondi to serve as Attorney General. Given the Trump Administration’s ongoing purge of Justice Department officials, I urge my colleagues to look very carefully and closely at Ms. Bondi’s nomination,” Durbin said.

    “President Trump has repeatedly made it clear that he values loyalty above all else in an Attorney General. Don’t take my word for it. Just look at what happened in his first term. He fired his first Attorney General and forced out his second for insufficient loyalty. And President Trump has said time and again that he expects the Justice Department to seek ‘retribution’ on his behalf. With Ms. Bondi, I’m afraid, the President has finally found someone who passes his loyalty test,” Durbin continued.

    Durbin then highlighted his concerns with Ms. Bondi’s nomination.

    “It seems that she [Ms. Bondi] is ready to break with bipartisan tradition when it comes to a nonpartisan Department of Justice —one that upholds the rule of law and is free of undue political influence from the White House. I am unconvinced that she [Ms. Bondi] is dedicated to these ideals. She was a leader in the effort to overturn the 2020 election and to this day, she still clings to the basic loyalty oath. She refuses to acknowledge that Joe Biden won the presidential election in 2020. And she has echoed the President-elect’s calls for prosecuting his political opponents—including a pledge that ‘the prosecutors will be prosecuted, the investigators will be investigated.’”

    Durbin spoke about the Trump Administration forcing out dozens of DOJ and FBI officials this weekend. The Administration is now threatening additional action against thousands of employees across the country who worked on investigations related to the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and President Trump. These career civil servants are responsible for coordinating the Justice Department’s fight against international terrorists and foreign spies that would do us harm. The removals substantially diminish the United States’ ability to respond to national security threats.

    “The Trump Administration’s purge of these officials is a naked political move. In firing a dozen career prosecutors, the Acting Attorney General issued a memo stating, ‘Given your significant role in prosecuting the President, I do not believe the leadership of the Department can trust you.’ Line attorneys and agents are similarly being bullied out simply because they were assigned tasks linked to criminal investigations of the President or the January 6 riots,” Durbin said.

    “Do we expect the Justice Department to do nothing about the hundreds of people who stormed into the Capitol? We saw it on videotape. Nobody is making this up. They were prosecuted for crimes they committed and many of them were sentenced, many of them pled guilty when they saw the videotapes of what they did on that day. Many of them ended up in jail—some of them with serious sentences for their serious misconduct. Now comes the new President, Donald Trump, and absolves them from criminal guilt. Tells them they’re free to go,” Durbin continued.

    Durbin concluded, “The American people deserve an Attorney General who will protect their fundamental rights of this country, demonstrate independence and integrity, and remain faithful to the Constitution, the country, and the rule of law. Ms. Bondi, during the course of her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, was also asked about Kash Patel—the President’s nominee to [lead] the FBI. She made it clear she supports him. I do not… I fear that Ms. Bondi will only protect and remain faithful to one person throughout this whole experience—and that’s the President who has given her this opportunity. I urge my colleagues to look carefully at her record and the record of Kash Patel. They are a team in this effort, and they should be held accountable for what they’ve said and written and positions they’ve taken in support of the President, even when his positions are not consistent, in my mind, with the equal and free administration of justice.” 

    Video of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here.

    Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here.

    Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here for TV Stations.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New UK Permanent Representative to NATO appointed

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Angus Lapsley CMG has been appointed UK Permanent Representative to NATO in succession to Sir David Quarrey KCMG. He will take up his appointment in April 2025.

    Mr Angus Lapsley CMG has been appointed as the UK’s next Permanent Representative to NATO.

    The NATO Alliance is made up of 32 countries in Europe and North America and keeps 1 billion people safe. It is the cornerstone of transatlantic security and key to underpinning prosperity at home and abroad.

    Mr Lapsley has more than 30 years of experience in the Civil Service, with relevant expertise from a variety of previous roles – including most recently as NATO’s Assistant Secretary General for Defence Policy and Planning.

    He is also a member of the Strategic Defence Review Team, advising the UK government as part of the root and branch review of UK defence and making sure Britain is secure for decades to come. Mr Lapsley will remain on the review team until the review is complete.

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Canadian Nuclear Laboratories Expands Clean Energy Siting Invitation to Include Fusion, Hydrogen and Battery Storage

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHALK RIVER, Ontario, Feb. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), Canada’s premier nuclear science and technology organization, is pleased to announce it has expanded the scope of its SMR siting invitation program to help organizations pursue commercial opportunities and seize a leadership position in the development and deployment of other new and innovative clean energy technologies.

    Given the continued development of other novel technologies, and CNL’s growing capabilities and expertise across other clean energy categories, the program is being expanded beyond fission based SMRs and other advanced reactor designs. Now known as CNL’s Clean Energy Siting Program, the new program will also invite vendors and technology developers interested in building prototype solutions that include fusion-based technologies, hydrogen production, battery storage and clean fuel production facilities, among others. Overall, the intent is to support the Government of Canada achieve its net-zero objectives, help Canadians businesses develop new and innovative technologies, and make CNL’s resources available to the private sector.

    “Through CNL’s ongoing engagements with clean energy leaders in Canada and around the world, it was clear there was an opportunity for us to expand and grow our SMR siting program, in order to support prototype construction and testing for other clean energy technologies,” commented Jack Craig, CNL’s President and CEO. “More importantly, Canada has set ambitious domestic targets in clean energy, and if we are to meet them, we must recognize that there is no one solution that will address a challenge of this scale and significance. To fight climate change and realize energy security, it will take all these promising technologies working in tandem with one another. That is at the heart of our renewed program, and it is our belief that we can help to accelerate the deployment of these promising technologies and maximize their full potential.”

    As a federal Crown corporation, AECL owns and oversee the sites under management by CNL. “AECL is pleased to see the expansion of the siting program to include even more approaches to clean energy production, use, and storage,” said Fred Dermarkar, AECL’s President and CEO. “This is another example of the value of Canada’s investment in its national nuclear laboratories. Our model allows us to connect commercial and academic partners with Canada’s unique nuclear science assets. This new, expanded program could not be possible without the innovative collaboration between the federal government and the private sector. AECL is proud to facilitate this new invitation process,” added Dermarkar.

    “CNL will continue to work closely with SMR vendors who are already navigating our siting program, and it is our hope that we will see an SMR sited at one of the sites we manage on behalf of AECL in the very near future,” added Dr. Stephen Bushby, CNL’s Vice-President of Science and Technology. “But given all the advances that have been realized in recent years across a number of different clean energy categories, it only makes sense that we expand our siting program to support the development of these technologies and do everything we can to bring them to the market.”

    Under the renewed program, applicants pursuing a clean energy demonstration project must still proceed through four individual stages, though these phases have been updated to align with the more collaborative approach of the renewed program. Depending on the interest and suitability of the applications, these projects could be located at the Chalk River Laboratories or the Whiteshell Laboratories site. Both sites are located on the traditional lands, waterways and ceded and unceded territories of Indigenous peoples; meaningful engagement with Indigenous peoples will be a key component of any successful project.

    While the invitation process does not include access to CNL’s research facilities or other ancillary programs, CNL is very much open to discussion with proponents regarding collaborative approaches to help advance their individual projects.

    To learn more about CNL, including its new Clean Energy Siting Program please visit www.cnl.ca.

    About CNL

    As Canada’s premier nuclear science and technology laboratory and working under the direction of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), CNL is a world leader in the development of innovative nuclear science and technology products and services. Guided by an ambitious corporate strategy known as Vision 2030, CNL fulfills three strategic priorities of national importance – restoring and protecting the environment, advancing clean energy technologies, and contributing to the health of Canadians.

    By leveraging the assets owned by AECL, CNL also serves as the nexus between government, the nuclear industry, the broader private sector, and the academic community. CNL works in collaboration with these sectors to advance innovative Canadian products and services towards real-world use, including carbon-free energy, cancer treatments and other therapies, non-proliferation technologies and waste management solutions.

    To learn more about CNL, please visit www.cnl.ca.

    CNL Contact:
    Philip Kompass
    Director, Corporate Communications
    1-866-886-2325
    media@cnl.ca

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fb2b90fc-6df7-448e-af36-1cb5cfd85ce6

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Cardinal Tagle: Dialogue as an antidote to distrust and hostility towards the religious dimension

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Tuesday, 4 February 2025

    Vatican Media

    Abu Dhabi (Agenzia Fides) – In a world where secularization is advancing more and more, “the only antidote to this is encounter and dialogue marked by friendship and respect between persons of different religious traditions”. This “can help us to overcome a further suspicious attitude which sadly we see increasingly in highly secularized societies, namely the suspicion or even hostility directed not only towards particular religious traditions, but toward the religious dimension as such”, said Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization – Section for the First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches – in his speech in Abu Dhabi at the inauguration of the ceremony for the award of the “Zayed Award for Human Fraternity”. The Award was created in 2019, following the signing of the Document on “Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together”, signed on 4 February of that year in Abu Dhabi by Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb.Six years after this historic signature, in the “Abrahamic Family House”, a structure also born following the publication of the document, Cardinal Tagle, as representative of the Holy See, assured those present that the Catholic Church recognizes and upholds the “value of promoting friendship and respect among men and women of different religious traditions ” and, at the same time, how important these elements are today, “since, on the one hand, in a certain sense the world has become “smaller” than ever before, and, on the other, because the phenomenon of migration has increased contact between persons and communities from various traditions, cultures and religions”.”In various parts of the world”, said the Pro-Prefect of the Missionary Dicastery, “there are situations in the world where coexistence is difficult, to say the least, where political or economic motives exploit cultural or religious differences, playing upon past misunderstandings or mistakes, and resulting in a climate of suspicion and fear”. Hence the invitation to reflect on dialogue as “the only antidote to this”.”Indeed, whenever we take that route, the path outlined by the Document on Human Fraternity, we become ever more authentically human”, emphasized the Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, recalling that in secularized societies, where “religion is looked upon as something useless or even dangerous, and it is frequently thought that coexistence is only possible if people relegate their own religious affiliation to the purely private sphere or meet in “neutral” spaces, devoid of any reference to the transcendent” dialogue is in fact the only viable solution.“It is impossible to think of fraternity as being “born in a laboratory”. Naturally, it is necessary that everyone respect the sincere convictions of others, including unbelievers, but we must have the courage and patience to do so by holding true to who we are and what we believe,” concluded the cardinal, stressing how “the recognition and proclamation of the fundamental right of religious freedom in all its dimensions is essential for world peace and living together ”.Since its inception (2019), the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity, has so far been awarded to 16 recipients, including 11 individuals and 5 organizations. Moreover, 66 countries have been involved in the nomination process. This year’s winner was the World Central Kitchen, a humanitarian organization that provides food to communities affected by crises and conflicts. The Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, was also honored for her commitment to the fight against climate change. Another award went to the Ethiopian-American inventor Heman Bekele, who, at the age of just fifteen, developed a low-cost soap that prevents and cures early-stage skin cancer. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 4/2/2025)
    Share:

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI: CORRECTION – ACNB Corporation Announces Completion of Traditions Bancorp, Inc. Acquisition

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    GETTYSBURG, Pa., Feb. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In a release issued under the same headline on February 3, 2025 by ACNB Corporation please note that in the third paragraph of the release, the deposit amount has been corrected to $2.54 billion instead of $2.04 billion. The corrected release follows:

    ACNB Corporation (NASDAQ: ACNB), the parent financial holding company of ACNB Bank, a Pennsylvania state-chartered, FDIC-insured community bank, headquartered in Gettysburg, PA, announced the completion of the acquisition of Traditions Bancorp, Inc. (“Traditions”) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Traditions Bank, headquartered in York, PA, effective February 1, 2025. Traditions was merged with and into a wholly-owned subsidiary of ACNB Corporation immediately followed by the merger of Traditions Bank with and into ACNB Bank. ACNB Bank will operate the former Traditions Bank branches as “Traditions Bank, A Division of ACNB Bank”. In connection with the close of the acquisition, Traditions stockholders received 0.7300 shares of ACNB Corporation common stock for each share of Traditions common stock that they owned as of the closing date, with cash paid in lieu of fractional shares.

    In addition, at the close of the acquisition, three former Traditions directors, Eugene J. Draganosky, Elizabeth F. Carson, and John M. Polli, joined the Boards of Directors of ACNB Corporation and ACNB Bank. Mr. Draganosky has nearly 40 years of banking experience, and is the former CEO and Chair of the Board of Traditions and Traditions Bank, having held those roles since 2017 and 2023, respectively. Ms. Carson, Lead Independent Director of Traditions, joined the Traditions Bank Board in 2015, after over 30 years of banking experience in a variety of leadership roles with community and regional banks. Mr. Polli was a member of the Traditions Bank board of directors since its founding in 2002, and has nearly 40 years of diverse business expertise, from serving as a public accountant to owning, managing, and advising businesses in the transportation, real estate, and insurance industries.

    With the combination of the two organizations, and based on financial information for each organization as of December 31, 2024, ACNB Corporation will have approximately $3.26 billion in assets, $2.54 billion in deposits, and $2.36 billion in loans, and will serve its customers throughout 35 community banking offices in south central Pennsylvania and northern Maryland.

    “We are pleased to announce the completion of our strategic acquisition of Traditions Bancorp, and excited to unite our teams of dedicated local bankers who are committed to their customers and communities,” stated ACNB Corporation President & Chief Executive Officer James P. Helt. “This combination brings together organizations that are unified by a shared vision, values, and a customer-centric approach to banking, to create an even stronger community bank. Importantly, our customers will benefit from expanded products and services delivered by the familiar faces they have come to know and trust. This merger positions us well to continue to grow in the attractive York and Lancaster County markets, and enhances ACNB Bank’s mortgage operations, which will now serve customers throughout our footprint as ‘Traditions Mortgage, A Division of ACNB Bank.’ Together, we look forward to continuing to deliver on our vision of being the financial services provider of choice in the communities we serve.”

    Alan J. Stock, Chair of the Board of ACNB, stated “We welcome Mr. Draganosky, Ms. Carson, and Mr. Polli to the ACNB Boards of Directors, and are confident that their expertise, skills, and strong connections to the York and Lancaster market areas will enhance and complement ACNB’s current Boards of Directors. We are committed to enhancing value for our shareholders and are poised to deliver on that commitment with an experienced and knowledgeable board, a seasoned management group, and a team of bankers and professionals dedicated to a successful integration and customer experience.”

    Bybel Rutledge LLP served as legal counsel and Piper Sandler served as financial advisor to ACNB Corporation for the transaction. Pillar + Aught served as legal counsel and Stephens Inc. served as financial advisor to Traditions Bancorp, Inc.

    About ACNB Corporation
    ACNB Corporation, headquartered in Gettysburg, PA, is the $3.26 billion financial holding company for the wholly-owned subsidiaries of ACNB Bank, Gettysburg, PA, and ACNB Insurance Services, Inc., Westminster, MD. Originally founded in 1857, ACNB Bank serves its marketplace with banking and wealth management services, including trust and retail brokerage, via a network of 35 community banking offices and two loan offices located in the Pennsylvania counties of Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, Lancaster and York and the Maryland counties of Baltimore, Carroll and Frederick. ACNB Insurance Services, Inc. is a full-service insurance agency with licenses in 46 states. The agency offers a broad range of property, casualty, health, life and disability insurance serving personal and commercial clients through office locations in Westminster and Jarrettsville, MD, and Gettysburg, PA. For more information regarding ACNB Corporation and its subsidiaries, please visit investor.acnb.com.

    FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS – In addition to historical information, this press release may contain forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, (a) projections or statements regarding future earnings, expenses, net interest income, other income, earnings or loss per share, asset mix and quality, growth prospects, capital structure, and other financial terms, (b) statements of plans and objectives of Management or the Board of Directors, and (c) statements of assumptions, such as economic conditions in the Corporation’s market areas. Such forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “believes”, “expects”, “may”, “intends”, “will”, “should”, “anticipates”, or the negative of any of the foregoing or other variations thereon or comparable terminology, or by discussion of strategy. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties such as national, regional and local economic conditions, competitive factors, and regulatory limitations. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Such risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results and experience to differ from those projected include, but are not limited to, the following: short-term and long-term effects of inflation and rising costs on the Corporation, customers and economy; banking instability caused by bank failures and financial uncertainty of various banks which may adversely impact the Corporation and its securities and loan values, deposit stability, capital adequacy, financial condition, operations, liquidity, and results of operations; effects of governmental and fiscal policies, as well as legislative and regulatory changes; effects of new laws and regulations (including laws and regulations concerning taxes, banking, securities and insurance) and their application with which the Corporation and its subsidiaries must comply; impacts of the capital and liquidity requirements of the Basel III standards; effects of changes in accounting policies and practices, as may be adopted by the regulatory agencies, as well as the Financial Accounting Standards Board and other accounting standard setters; ineffectiveness of the business strategy due to changes in current or future market conditions; future actions or inactions of the United States government, including the effects of short-term and long-term federal budget and tax negotiations and a failure to increase the government debt limit or a prolonged shutdown of the federal government; effects of economic conditions particularly with regard to the negative impact of any pandemic, epidemic or health-related crisis and the responses thereto on the operations of the Corporation and current customers, specifically the effect of the economy on loan customers’ ability to repay loans; effects of competition, and of changes in laws and regulations on competition, including industry consolidation and development of competing financial products and services; inflation, securities market and monetary fluctuations; risks of changes in interest rates on the level and composition of deposits, loan demand, and the values of loan collateral, securities, and interest rate protection agreements, as well as interest rate risks; difficulties in acquisitions and integrating and operating acquired business operations, including information technology difficulties; challenges in establishing and maintaining operations in new markets; effects of technology changes; effects of general economic conditions and more specifically in the Corporation’s market areas; failure of assumptions underlying the establishment of reserves for credit losses and estimations of values of collateral and various financial assets and liabilities; acts of war or terrorism or geopolitical instability; disruption of credit and equity markets; ability to manage current levels of impaired assets; loss of certain key officers; ability to maintain the value and image of the Corporation’s brand and protect the Corporation’s intellectual property rights; continued relationships with major customers; and, potential impacts to the Corporation from continually evolving cybersecurity and other technological risks and attacks, including additional costs, reputational damage, regulatory penalties, and financial losses; and, the other factors detailed in ACNB’s publicly-filed documents, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2024, June 30, 2024 and September 30, 2024, and its other filings with the SEC. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements only speak as of the date hereof, and ACNB does assume any obligation to revise, update or clarify forward-looking statements to reflect events or conditions after the date of this press release.

    ACNB #2025-5
    February 3, 2025

    Contact:    Kevin Hayes
    SVP/ General Counsel,
    Secretary, and Chief
    Governance Officer
    717.339.5161
    khayes@acnb.com
         

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Grenada: 2024 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for Grenada

    Source: International Monetary Fund

    Summary

    Through end-June 2024, Grenada’s economy was experiencing sustained strong growth supported by buoyant tourism, moderating inflation, and a narrowing current account deficit. A surge in Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenue supported a strong improvement in budget balances, a build-up of government deposits, and a reduction in public debt. On July 1, Hurricane Beryl caused damage in excess of 16 percent of GDP on the Grenadian islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, as well as in the northern parishes of the main island, affecting around 15 percent of the population. In response, the authorities triggered the suspension of fiscal rules to permit temporary deficit spending in support of the recovery and reconstruction.

    Subject: Credit bureaus, Debt sustainability, Economic sectors, Environment, External debt, Financial institutions, Financial markets, Imports, Insurance, International trade, Labor, Labor markets, Natural disasters, Public debt, Tourism

    Keywords: Credit bureaus, Debt sustainability, Fiscal stance, Imports, Insurance, Insurance companies, Labor markets, Natural disasters, Tourism

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: IMF Executive Board Concludes 2024 Article IV Consultation with Grenada

    Source: International Monetary Fund

    February 4, 2025

    Washington, DC: On January 24, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation[1] with Grenada.

    Through end-June 2024, Grenada’s economy was experiencing sustained strong growth supported by buoyant tourism, moderating inflation, and a narrowing current account deficit. A surge in Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenue supported a strong improvement in the fiscal position and reduction in public debt. The financial system remained stable. On July 1, Hurricane Beryl caused damage in excess of 16 percent of GDP on the Grenadian islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, as well as in the northern parishes of the main island. The authorities responded swiftly with a package of fiscal measures, including suspension of fiscal rules to permit temporary deficit spending in support of the recovery and reconstruction.

    Grenada’s near-term economic growth is projected to remain resilient at 3.9 percent in 2025, buoyed by limited hurricane damages to tourism infrastructure and the authorities’ large recovery and reconstruction spending. Sizable government savings and triggering of disaster-contingent instruments create fiscal space for these spending needs. Assuming a subsequent timely return to the fiscal rules, public debt is projected to continue falling and reach the debt target of 60 percent of GDP by 2030.

    Over the medium-term GDP growth is projected to slow given the tourism sector operates near its peak-season capacity. Key downside risks include the threat of further natural disasters, potential shocks to tourism demand, and the uncertain scale of future CBI inflows, while the domestic non-bank financial system faces rising vulnerabilities from the continued rapid expansion of credit unions and the rising costs of property insurance. Prospective hotel developments and public investment projects represent upside risks to the medium-term growth outlook.

    Executive Board Assessment[2]

    Executive Directors agreed with the thrust of the staff appraisal. They welcomed Grenada’s robust economic performance in 2023 and the first half of 2024, buoyed by strong tourism. Directors also commended the authorities’ swift and prudently tailored response to Hurricane Beryl, which supported disaster-relief and helped mitigate the impact on economic growth. Noting that the medium-term outlook remains subject to risks from natural disasters, uncertain Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) flows, and other external shocks, they encouraged the authorities to exercise continued fiscal prudence and to pursue structural reforms to boost long-term growth and enhance resilience, while leveraging Fund technical assistance.

    Directors welcomed Grenada’s commitment to fiscal prudence and debt sustainability and emphasized the importance of a timely return to the suspended fiscal rules. In that context, they noted the need for continued expenditure prioritization and revenue mobilization to create fiscal space for future investment needs, including for climate resilience. Further strengthening public investment management and budget planning processes would also be important. Directors also saw merit in developing a more uniform framework for managing all CBI resources and encouraged continued progress in resolving outstanding official arrears.

    Directors welcomed the banking system’s resilience despite repeated shocks. They emphasized the need for vigilance and strengthened oversight in the rapidly expanding credit union sector. Directors encouraged strengthening data collection and regional collaboration in the property insurance sector, given rising premiums. They also agreed that further enhancements in the AML/CFT frameworks are essential, including to safeguard correspondent banking relationships.

    Directors commended the authorities’ implementation of Grenada’s Disaster Resilience Strategy including investments in a risk-layering framework of disaster-contingency insurance and financing instruments. Moving forward and noting the risk of future natural disasters, they emphasized the importance of further advancing the energy transition and investment in disaster resilient infrastructure, with support from private financing.

    Directors also encouraged sustained structural reform efforts to foster long-term growth, including investing in active labor market policies and continuing efforts to support off-season and niche tourism. Addressing data gaps is also important.

    It is expected that the next Article IV Consultation with Grenada will be held on the standard 12-month consultation cycle.

    Table 1. Grenada: Selected Social and Economic Indicators, 2019–29

     

    Rank in UNDP Human Development Index

    73

    Infant mortality rate per ‘000 births (2021)

    14.4

    out of 189 countries (2021)

    Adult illiteracy rate in percent (2014)

    1

    Life expectancy at birth in years (2021)

    75

    Poverty rate in percent of population (2019)

    25

    GDP per capita in US$ (2021)

    10,449

    Population in millions (2021)

    0.13

    Unemployment rate (2021 Q2)

    11.1

     

    2019

    2020

    2021

    2022

    2023

    2024

    2025

    2026

    2027

    2028

    2029

    Est.

    Proj.

    National income and prices

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    GDP at constant prices

    0.7

    -13.8

    4.7

    7.3

    4.7

    3.6

    3.9

    3.3

    2.7

    2.7

    2.7

    GDP deflator

    3.3

    -0.3

    2.8

    2.2

    2.7

    1.4

    1.4

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    Consumer prices, end of period

    0.1

    -0.8

    1.9

    2.9

    2.2

    1.2

    1.9

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    Money and credit, end of period

    Credit to private sector

    1.4

    3.1

    3.8

    2.1

    3.8

    3.8

    4.2

    4.4

    4.6

    4.5

    4.5

    Broad money (M2)

    2.9

    9.1

    8.5

    9.9

    1.4

    3.7

    5.2

    5.4

    4.8

    4.8

    4.8

    Central government balances (accrual)

    Revenue and grants

    26.6

    28.1

    31.5

    32.7

    36.9

    44.1

    30.5

    29.3

    29.2

    28.9

    28.8

    Expenditure

    21.6

    32.7

    31.2

    31.8

    28.9

    39.5

    39.4

    33.1

    29.6

    29.2

    28.9

    o.w. Capital expenditure

    2.6

    9.6

    8.6

    10.2

    9.3

    11.7

    12.2

    8.7

    6.2

    5.8

    5.6

    Primary balance

    6.8

    -2.6

    2.1

    2.6

    9.5

    8.0

    -5.1

    -1.2

    1.5

    1.5

    1.5

    Overall balance

    5.0

    -4.5

    0.3

    1.0

    8.0

    4.7

    -8.9

    -3.8

    -0.4

    -0.3

    -0.1

     

    Central government debt (incl. guaranteed) 1/

    58.5

    71.4

    70.0

    62.8

    60.5

    59.3

    58.1

    53.9

    53.2

    51.4

    49.6

    Domestic

    14.6

    16.2

    15.3

    12.8

    11.3

    11.1

    9.7

    7.8

    7.1

    6.9

    7.0

    External

    44.0

    55.2

    54.7

    50.0

    49.2

    48.2

    48.5

    46.1

    46.0

    44.5

    42.6

    Public debt (incl. debt of SOEs and SBs)

    62.7

    89.5

    86.6

    78.8

    75.2

    73.3

    71.4

    66.5

    65.2

    62.9

    60.6

    Savings-Investment balance

    -10.4

    -16.1

    -14.5

    -11.0

    -9.1

    -13.1

    -13.8

    -10.6

    -9.9

    -9.1

    -9.1

    Savings

    14.6

    16.3

    15.6

    18.0

    30.8

    28.3

    18.1

    17.8

    15.8

    15.3

    14.9

    Investment

    24.9

    32.4

    30.1

    29.1

    39.9

    41.5

    31.9

    28.4

    25.7

    24.5

    24.0

    External Sector

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Gross international reserves (millions of dollars)

    234.1

    290.9

    324.2

    352.6

    389.1

    435.1

    364.5

    364.8

    390.3

    405.6

    424.6

    (in months of imports)

    5.2

    5.6

    4.9

    5.0

    4.8

    5.2

    4.3

    4.2

    4.3

    4.3

    4.3

    Current account balance, o/w:

    -10.4

    -16.1

    -14.5

    -11.0

    -9.1

    -13.1

    -13.8

    -10.6

    -9.9

    -9.1

    -9.1

    Exports of goods and services

    54.6

    41.1

    47.9

    57.8

    62.8

    63.8

    62.5

    62.8

    63.0

    62.6

    62.3

    Imports of goods and services

    55.8

    52.2

    55.4

    64.3

    63.7

    69.9

    68.5

    65.6

    65.0

    63.8

    63.4

    External debt (gross)

    64.7

    92.5

    94.8

    90.0

    86.9

    85.4

    85.4

    82.6

    82.3

    80.5

    78.4

    Sources: Ministry of Finance; Eastern Caribbean Central Bank; United Nations, Human Development Report; World Bank WDI; and IMF staff estimates and projections.

    1/ Includes the impact of the debt restructuring agreement for the 2025 bonds.

    [1] Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF holds bilateral discussions with members, usually every year. A staff team visits the country, collects economic and financial information, and discusses with officials the country’s economic developments and policies. On return to headquarters, the staff prepares a report, which forms the basis for discussion by the Executive Board.

    [2] At the conclusion of the discussion, the Managing Director, as Chairman of the Board, summarizes the views of Executive Directors, and this summary is transmitted to the country’s authorities. An explanation of any qualifiers used in summings up can be found here: http://www.IMF.org/external/np/sec/misc/qualifiers.htm.

    IMF Communications Department
    MEDIA RELATIONS

    PRESS OFFICER: Meera Louis

    Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Ending Violence Against Women and Girls Council inviting applications for Change Fund (Tier three)

    Source: Northern Ireland – City of Derry

    Ending Violence Against Women and Girls Council inviting applications for Change Fund (Tier three)

    4 February 2025

    In September 2024, the Northern Ireland Executive, led by the Executive Office (TEO) launched the Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) Strategic Framework 2024-2031. The Strategic Framework has been co-designed with people and organisations from right across government and society, representing different backgrounds and perspectives, including those with lived experiences.

    The Change Fund is a fundamental part of delivering the EVAWG Strategic Framework and also focuses on the Prevention Outcomes;

    • Challenging attitudes, behaviours and culture
    • Education on healthy and respectful relationships and
    • Ensuring Women and Girls feel safe and are safe everywhere

    It’s part of a wider £3.2m investment for Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) Local Change Fund announced by the First Minister and deputy First Minister last month in which £2m has been made available across the 11 Councils in Northern Ireland, of which £165k has been allocated to Derry and Strabane.

    Derry City and Strabane District Council has announced that its Ending Violence Against Women and Girls Change Fund 2025-26 (Tier three) is now open for applications.

    As part of the allocation to Derry City and Strabane District Council £50,000 has been allocated to Tier three Change Fund Grants Grant between £15,001 and up to £25,000 to support significant programme of activity which include collaboration with and/or mentoring/ support to other community-based organisations.

    Derry City and Strabane District Council is inviting applications from not-for-profit community and voluntary organisations across the Council area who can deliver significant programmes of activity aimed at ending violence against women and girls.

    Applications will be open at 10:00am on Monday 3rd February 2025 and close at 3:00pm on Friday 21st February 2025

    Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Cllr Lilian Seenoi Barr said the funding is vital to support Community & Voluntary organisations working at grassroots level to play their part in helping to end the epidemic of violence against women and girls.

    “I am very pleased that the Local Change Fund grant aid provided by The Executive Office will provide funding to our local community organisations to play a proactive role in educating communities and promoting safe and healthy relationships and environments for women and children to feel safe.”

    For more information on the fund and to apply for the grant visit – https://www.dcsdcgrantaid.com/

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: IXCHIQ vaccine approved to protect adults against Chikungunya

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has today, 4 February 2025, approved the vaccine chikungunya vaccine (live) (brand name IXCHIQ) to protect adults against chikungunya disease, caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV).

    CHIKV is found in the subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa, Southeast Asia, India, and the Pacific Region, and is spread to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito (Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus). It cannot be passed from human to human.  

    The majority of people infected with CHIKV develop a sudden fever and severe pain in multiple joints. Other symptoms may include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling, or rash. These symptoms typically resolve within 7 to 10 days, and most patients make a full recovery. However, in some cases joint pain and arthritis may persist for several months or even years. Occasional cases of eye, neurological and heart complications have been reported, as well as gastrointestinal complaints.  

    Chikungunya vaccine has been approved for use as a prophylaxis against chikungunya disease. The vaccine contains a form of the virus that has been weakened in the laboratory so it cannot multiply. The vaccine works by training the immune system (the body’s natural defences) to recognise CHIKV and it is then able to produce specific antibodies which attack the virus. 

    Julian Beach, MHRA Interim Executive Director of Healthcare Quality and Access, said:

    Patient safety is our top priority, which is why I am pleased to confirm approval of the first vaccine in the UK to protect adults 18 years and older against Chikungunya disease.  It is given as a single dose. 

    While mostly endemic to tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Southeast Asia, and parts of the Americas, the virus has been detected in small numbers in new geographical areas including parts of Europe. It is therefore important we are prepared for potential further spread.  

    This approval is another demonstration of our commitment to supporting the UK in its efforts toward global pandemic preparedness.  

    As with all products, we will keep its safety under close review.

    The recommended dose of chikungunya vaccine (live) can only be obtained via a prescription. 
     
    The benefits of chikungunya vaccine (live) were assessed in two main studies involving around 4,500 adults. In one main study, over 4,000 people were given the vaccine or a placebo (a dummy treatment).

    The aim of the study was to determine whether the vaccine would trigger the immune system to produce a level of antibodies that, based on pre-clinical studies and information from people previously exposed to the virus who had developed immunity, is expected to provide protection.

    Results showed that 99% of participants who received chikungunya vaccine (live) had the required level of antibodies after one month, compared with none of those who received placebo. Follow-up data showed that two years after vaccination, this target level was maintained in 97% of people who received the vaccine.  

    During clinical studies, the most common side effects with   chikungunya vaccine (live) (which may affect more than 1 in 10 people) include leucopenia, neutropenia and lymphopenia (low levels of white blood cells, including neutrophils and lymphocytes, as seen in blood tests), headache, fatigue, myalgia (muscle pain),  joint pain (arthralgia), elevated liver enzymes as seen in blood tests, fever, nausea (feeling sick), and tenderness, pain, erythema (redness), induration (hardening) or swelling at the site of injection.

    As with any medicine, the MHRA will keep the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine under close review.   

    Anyone who suspects they are having a side effect from this vaccine are encouraged to talk to their doctor, pharmacist or nurse and report it directly to the Yellow Card scheme, either through the website (https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/) or by searching the Google Play or Apple App stores for MHRA Yellow Card.    

     ENDS    

    Notes to editors    

    • The new marketing authorisation was granted on 4 February 2025 to VALNEVA AUSTRIA GMBH

    • The vaccine has been approved by the MHRA under the International Recognition Procedure, after confirming it meets the UK regulator’s standards of safety, quality, and effectiveness. 

    • More information can be found in the Summary of Product Characteristics and Patient Information leaflets which will be published on the MHRA Products website within 7 days of approval.  

    • The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe.  All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks.  

    • The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care.  

    For media enquiries, please contact the newscentre@mhra.gov.uk, or call on 020 3080 7651.

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Jury finds local man guilty of crimes involving 2 local drug-related murders

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    CINCINNATI – A jury found a local man guilty on all counts for crimes related to two murders in Cincinnati during the summer of 2021. 

    Jamal Binford, 33, of Dallas and Cincinnati, was convicted of five counts as charged in a second superseding indictment. The verdict was announced yesterday afternoon following a trial that began on Jan. 15 before Senior U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett.

    According to court documents and trial testimony, Binford purported to manage two co-defendants as boxers, presenting himself as a boxing manager helping young men he wanted to help off the streets. Instead, he directed them to sell fentanyl and marijuana and, after assisting the coconspirators following one murder, he directed a second murder.

    Co-defendants Antwan Coach, Jr., 22, of Cincinnati, and Markel Hardy, 23, of Cincinnati, robbed and murdered Kamar Williams on July 5, 2021, in North College Hill. It is alleged Coach and Hardy robbed Mr. Williams of marijuana and a firearm and shot him to death.

    In August 2021, all three defendants conspired to murder a second victim, Deonte Nuckols, in St. Bernard in connection with a narcotics conspiracy involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl and five kilograms or more of cocaine.

    As the government outlined at trial, Binford paid the two other men to kill Mr. Nuckols, who had had been texting Binford that day about Binford paying a drug debt.

    Binford was arrested in February 2023 at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.

    The narcotics conspiracy in this case includes 400 grams or more of fentanyl, five kilograms or more of cocaine, and 100 kilograms or more of marijuana.

    Binford faces a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 20 years and up to life in prison for participating in the narcotics conspiracy, being an accessory after the fact, murder in connection with the drug trafficking conspiracy, use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and use of a firearm to commit murder.

    Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Daryl S. McCormick, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF); Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa A. Theetge; North College Hill Police Chief Ryan Schrand; and St. Bernard Police Chief Michael Simos announced the verdicts. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division also aided during the investigation.

    Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley N. Brucato and OCDETF Deputy Criminal Chief Frederic C. Shadley represented the United States in this case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: New York City Resident Sentenced to Six Years of Prison for Role in Interstate Methamphetamine Trafficking Operation

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Queens, New York, was sentenced in federal court to six years of imprisonment on his conviction for violating federal narcotics laws related to a six-month Title III wiretap investigation into drug trafficking in and around Blair, Cambria, Centre, and Clearfield counties of Pennsylvania, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

    United States District Judge Stephanie L. Haines imposed the sentence on Timothy Paz, 32, on January 21, 2025, also ordering that Paz serve three years of supervised release following his incarceration.

    According to information presented to the Court, Paz was a courier who transported approximately seven pounds of methamphetamine from the New York City area to Altoona, Pennsylvania, on behalf of a large-scale narcotics supplier.  Paz also transported large amounts of United States currency representing payment for the methamphetamine from an Altoona-based narcotics distributor to the supplier.

    Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan D. Lusty prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

    Acting United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Service – Office of Inspector General, United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, and Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Paz.  

    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Psychology in democratic South Africa: new book explores a post-apartheid journey

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Liezille Jacobs, Associate Professor, Rhodes University

    Dr Liezille Jacobs’ book explores the experiences of South Africa’s first generation of post-apartheid Black psychologists. Photo by Dirk Pieters/cover concept Antonio Erasmus, CC BY-NC-ND

    When apartheid ended in 1994, South Africa underwent significant social and political transformation. A key aspect of this shift was the push for greater inclusion and representation of Black South Africans across all sectors – including psychology.

    Dr Liezille Jacobs was part of a pioneering generation of Black psychologists who started their training in 1995. Now she has written a book, Rocklands: On becoming the first generation of Black psychologists in post-apartheid South Africa. In it she explores the barriers she and her colleagues faced and unpacks misconceptions around what psychology is and does. She also argues that critical (and African) psychology can both “address the legacies of apartheid and heal the relational traumas caused by systemic oppression”. The Conversation Africa asked her about the book and her work.

    What is the book about?

    I wrote Rocklands to address the widespread misconceptions that both first-year psychology students and the general public often hold about what it truly means to be a psychologist. It’s common for people to oversimplify the profession. They view it merely as talking to people or offering quick-fix solutions to problems. The reality is far more complex.

    I wanted to challenge these superficial ideas and provide a more layered and accurate representation of the field. The process of becoming a psychologist is not just about acquiring theoretical knowledge. It’s also about developing emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and a strong ethical foundation. Psychologists must balance empathy with objectivity, personal insight with professional boundaries, all while navigating the vast complexities of human emotions, relationships, and societal influences.

    The goal of the book is to make psychological knowledge and expertise more accessible to the public.

    Rocklands is also an account of resilience and personal growth in the face of adversity. The first chapter reflects on my early experiences growing up in Rocklands, Mitchell’s Plain. Rocklands was established during apartheid as part of a government plan to segregate communities. Non-white South Africans were moved to areas like Mitchell’s Plain under the Group Areas Act. Over time, Rocklands grew into a working-class neighborhood, shaped by its apartheid-era history.

    The ensuing chapters provide a detailed account of my unique and often difficult journey. I’ve traversed a path less travelled but it’s ultimately led to personal and professional fulfilment.

    Why did you decide to study psychology?

    I initially dreamed of becoming a journalist. However, my parents encouraged me to explore other career options. The results of a career assessment suggested I should consider social work, occupational therapy or psychology.

    Psychology truly caught my attention. As someone with an introverted personality I was drawn to the idea of understanding human behaviour and thought processes on a deeper level. At the time, I envisioned myself working as a clinical psychologist, helping individuals one-on-one.

    Everything shifted when I began my formal studies in 1995. I quickly realised that the field of psychology in South Africa – especially in the context of its history – had much more work to do. I saw the gaps in the system and became acutely aware of how psychology had, in many ways, been complicit in perpetuating social injustices. In 1995, as a first year psychology student, I was made aware of the field’s struggle with its apartheid legacy and psychology’s unfinished business.

    Hendrik Verwoerd was the architect of the racist policies and segregation system that became known worldwide as “grand apartheid”. He was also a psychologist by training.

    Psychology in South Africa has made efforts to adapt to a diverse society. But there are still challenges. These include a disconnect between academic training and professional practice, and the lingering effects of apartheid-era inequalities.



    Read more:
    Being black in the world: a tribute to pioneering South African psychologist Chabani Manganyi

    South Africa desperately needed (and still does today) Critical Psychologists. Critical psychology challenges traditional psychological theories by examining the social, political, and historical contexts that shape psychological issues. It critiques mainstream psychology for overlooking power structures. And it aims to use psychology as a tool for social change and addressing inequalities.

    Critical psychologists challenge the dominant narratives of the past, address the legacies of apartheid, and have access to the tools to heal the relational traumas caused by systemic oppression. I knew I wanted to contribute to the transformation of the profession – to make it more inclusive, socially responsible, and oriented towards healing the wounds left by historical injustices. This shift in perspective has shaped my entire career. It’s guided my studies, research and teaching practice.

    Have South Africa’s universities changed how they teach psychology?

    The academic transformation project continues and universities are striving to adapt to a more diverse student body. But the pace and extent of this change can vary between institutions.

    There has been a growing recognition globally that psychology, as a discipline, needs to move beyond its traditional western-centric, individualistic frameworks. It must engage more deeply with local contexts and diverse ways of knowing and experiencing the world.

    I was the head of the Psychology Department at Rhodes University in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province from 2022 to 2024. The department has incorporated indigenous knowledge systems such as African philosophical perspectives and non-western psychological practices into our teaching.

    For example, community-based service-learning strategies are emphasised in the undergraduate courses I teach. Community-based service-learning combines community service with academic learning. This gives students the opportunity to engage in real-world problems and contribute to the community while applying psychological theories, concepts and methods. Students learn how to become engaged citizens.

    We also use a variety of teaching materials – case studies, texts by African scholars, multimedia – that resonate with students’ lived experiences.



    Read more:
    Decolonising psychology creates possibilities for social change

    In a society as culturally and racially diverse as South Africa it is crucial for people to see themselves reflected in the professionals they turn to for help. This can play a role in lowering barriers to mental health services.

    South Africa has a legacy of collective struggle and community resilience. Psychology stands to gain from a greater understanding of collective identities, community dynamics and social justice. Psychologists from diverse backgrounds can offer more nuanced, holistic interventions that address systemic issues rather than focusing solely on individual pathology.

    Liezille Jacobs receives funding from the Future Professors Programme for the Book publication.

    – ref. Psychology in democratic South Africa: new book explores a post-apartheid journey – https://theconversation.com/psychology-in-democratic-south-africa-new-book-explores-a-post-apartheid-journey-247699

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: IMF Executive Board Concludes 2024 Article IV Consultation with Grenada

    Source: IMF – News in Russian

    February 4, 2025

    Washington, DC: On January 24, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation[1] with Grenada.

    Through end-June 2024, Grenada’s economy was experiencing sustained strong growth supported by buoyant tourism, moderating inflation, and a narrowing current account deficit. A surge in Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenue supported a strong improvement in the fiscal position and reduction in public debt. The financial system remained stable. On July 1, Hurricane Beryl caused damage in excess of 16 percent of GDP on the Grenadian islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, as well as in the northern parishes of the main island. The authorities responded swiftly with a package of fiscal measures, including suspension of fiscal rules to permit temporary deficit spending in support of the recovery and reconstruction.

    Grenada’s near-term economic growth is projected to remain resilient at 3.9 percent in 2025, buoyed by limited hurricane damages to tourism infrastructure and the authorities’ large recovery and reconstruction spending. Sizable government savings and triggering of disaster-contingent instruments create fiscal space for these spending needs. Assuming a subsequent timely return to the fiscal rules, public debt is projected to continue falling and reach the debt target of 60 percent of GDP by 2030.

    Over the medium-term GDP growth is projected to slow given the tourism sector operates near its peak-season capacity. Key downside risks include the threat of further natural disasters, potential shocks to tourism demand, and the uncertain scale of future CBI inflows, while the domestic non-bank financial system faces rising vulnerabilities from the continued rapid expansion of credit unions and the rising costs of property insurance. Prospective hotel developments and public investment projects represent upside risks to the medium-term growth outlook.

    Executive Board Assessment[2]

    Executive Directors agreed with the thrust of the staff appraisal. They welcomed Grenada’s robust economic performance in 2023 and the first half of 2024, buoyed by strong tourism. Directors also commended the authorities’ swift and prudently tailored response to Hurricane Beryl, which supported disaster-relief and helped mitigate the impact on economic growth. Noting that the medium-term outlook remains subject to risks from natural disasters, uncertain Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) flows, and other external shocks, they encouraged the authorities to exercise continued fiscal prudence and to pursue structural reforms to boost long-term growth and enhance resilience, while leveraging Fund technical assistance.

    Directors welcomed Grenada’s commitment to fiscal prudence and debt sustainability and emphasized the importance of a timely return to the suspended fiscal rules. In that context, they noted the need for continued expenditure prioritization and revenue mobilization to create fiscal space for future investment needs, including for climate resilience. Further strengthening public investment management and budget planning processes would also be important. Directors also saw merit in developing a more uniform framework for managing all CBI resources and encouraged continued progress in resolving outstanding official arrears.

    Directors welcomed the banking system’s resilience despite repeated shocks. They emphasized the need for vigilance and strengthened oversight in the rapidly expanding credit union sector. Directors encouraged strengthening data collection and regional collaboration in the property insurance sector, given rising premiums. They also agreed that further enhancements in the AML/CFT frameworks are essential, including to safeguard correspondent banking relationships.

    Directors commended the authorities’ implementation of Grenada’s Disaster Resilience Strategy including investments in a risk-layering framework of disaster-contingency insurance and financing instruments. Moving forward and noting the risk of future natural disasters, they emphasized the importance of further advancing the energy transition and investment in disaster resilient infrastructure, with support from private financing.

    Directors also encouraged sustained structural reform efforts to foster long-term growth, including investing in active labor market policies and continuing efforts to support off-season and niche tourism. Addressing data gaps is also important.

    It is expected that the next Article IV Consultation with Grenada will be held on the standard 12-month consultation cycle.

    Table 1. Grenada: Selected Social and Economic Indicators, 2019–29

     

    Rank in UNDP Human Development Index

    73

    Infant mortality rate per ‘000 births (2021)

    14.4

    out of 189 countries (2021)

    Adult illiteracy rate in percent (2014)

    1

    Life expectancy at birth in years (2021)

    75

    Poverty rate in percent of population (2019)

    25

    GDP per capita in US$ (2021)

    10,449

    Population in millions (2021)

    0.13

    Unemployment rate (2021 Q2)

    11.1

     

    2019

    2020

    2021

    2022

    2023

    2024

    2025

    2026

    2027

    2028

    2029

    Est.

    Proj.

    National income and prices

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    GDP at constant prices

    0.7

    -13.8

    4.7

    7.3

    4.7

    3.6

    3.9

    3.3

    2.7

    2.7

    2.7

    GDP deflator

    3.3

    -0.3

    2.8

    2.2

    2.7

    1.4

    1.4

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    Consumer prices, end of period

    0.1

    -0.8

    1.9

    2.9

    2.2

    1.2

    1.9

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    2.0

    Money and credit, end of period

    Credit to private sector

    1.4

    3.1

    3.8

    2.1

    3.8

    3.8

    4.2

    4.4

    4.6

    4.5

    4.5

    Broad money (M2)

    2.9

    9.1

    8.5

    9.9

    1.4

    3.7

    5.2

    5.4

    4.8

    4.8

    4.8

    Central government balances (accrual)

    Revenue and grants

    26.6

    28.1

    31.5

    32.7

    36.9

    44.1

    30.5

    29.3

    29.2

    28.9

    28.8

    Expenditure

    21.6

    32.7

    31.2

    31.8

    28.9

    39.5

    39.4

    33.1

    29.6

    29.2

    28.9

    o.w. Capital expenditure

    2.6

    9.6

    8.6

    10.2

    9.3

    11.7

    12.2

    8.7

    6.2

    5.8

    5.6

    Primary balance

    6.8

    -2.6

    2.1

    2.6

    9.5

    8.0

    -5.1

    -1.2

    1.5

    1.5

    1.5

    Overall balance

    5.0

    -4.5

    0.3

    1.0

    8.0

    4.7

    -8.9

    -3.8

    -0.4

    -0.3

    -0.1

     

    Central government debt (incl. guaranteed) 1/

    58.5

    71.4

    70.0

    62.8

    60.5

    59.3

    58.1

    53.9

    53.2

    51.4

    49.6

    Domestic

    14.6

    16.2

    15.3

    12.8

    11.3

    11.1

    9.7

    7.8

    7.1

    6.9

    7.0

    External

    44.0

    55.2

    54.7

    50.0

    49.2

    48.2

    48.5

    46.1

    46.0

    44.5

    42.6

    Public debt (incl. debt of SOEs and SBs)

    62.7

    89.5

    86.6

    78.8

    75.2

    73.3

    71.4

    66.5

    65.2

    62.9

    60.6

    Savings-Investment balance

    -10.4

    -16.1

    -14.5

    -11.0

    -9.1

    -13.1

    -13.8

    -10.6

    -9.9

    -9.1

    -9.1

    Savings

    14.6

    16.3

    15.6

    18.0

    30.8

    28.3

    18.1

    17.8

    15.8

    15.3

    14.9

    Investment

    24.9

    32.4

    30.1

    29.1

    39.9

    41.5

    31.9

    28.4

    25.7

    24.5

    24.0

    External Sector

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Gross international reserves (millions of dollars)

    234.1

    290.9

    324.2

    352.6

    389.1

    435.1

    364.5

    364.8

    390.3

    405.6

    424.6

    (in months of imports)

    5.2

    5.6

    4.9

    5.0

    4.8

    5.2

    4.3

    4.2

    4.3

    4.3

    4.3

    Current account balance, o/w:

    -10.4

    -16.1

    -14.5

    -11.0

    -9.1

    -13.1

    -13.8

    -10.6

    -9.9

    -9.1

    -9.1

    Exports of goods and services

    54.6

    41.1

    47.9

    57.8

    62.8

    63.8

    62.5

    62.8

    63.0

    62.6

    62.3

    Imports of goods and services

    55.8

    52.2

    55.4

    64.3

    63.7

    69.9

    68.5

    65.6

    65.0

    63.8

    63.4

    External debt (gross)

    64.7

    92.5

    94.8

    90.0

    86.9

    85.4

    85.4

    82.6

    82.3

    80.5

    78.4

    Sources: Ministry of Finance; Eastern Caribbean Central Bank; United Nations, Human Development Report; World Bank WDI; and IMF staff estimates and projections.

    1/ Includes the impact of the debt restructuring agreement for the 2025 bonds.

    [1] Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF holds bilateral discussions with members, usually every year. A staff team visits the country, collects economic and financial information, and discusses with officials the country’s economic developments and policies. On return to headquarters, the staff prepares a report, which forms the basis for discussion by the Executive Board.

    [2] At the conclusion of the discussion, the Managing Director, as Chairman of the Board, summarizes the views of Executive Directors, and this summary is transmitted to the country’s authorities. An explanation of any qualifiers used in summings up can be found here: http://www.IMF.org/external/np/sec/misc/qualifiers.htm.

    IMF Communications Department
    MEDIA RELATIONS

    PRESS OFFICER: Meera Louis

    Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

    https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/02/03/pr25026-grenada-imf-executive-board-concludes-2024-article-iv-consultation

    MIL OSI

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