NewzIntel.com

Category: Politics

  • MIL-OSI Global: Bouncing between war-torn countries: Displacement in Lebanon and Syria highlights cyclical nature of cross-border refuge

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jasmin Lilian Diab, Assistant Professor of Migration Studies; Director of the Institute for Migration Studies, Lebanese American University

    Displaced people crossing a hole on the road caused by an Israeli airstrike near the Masnaa crossing. Bilal Jawich/Xinhua via Getty Images

    The escalation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah since September 2024, and Israel’s bombing of civilian areas across Lebanon, have unleashed a profound humanitarian disaster.

    The mass displacement of over 1 million people, including Lebanese citizens, migrant workers and Syrian and Palestinian refugees, has created a crisis within Lebanon. Yet an equally significant phenomenon is occurring away from Lebanon’s southern border with Israel: the movement of people who have been displaced within Lebanon into Syria.

    An estimated 400,000 Lebanese and Syrians have reportedly fled into Syria through overcrowded border crossings.

    Not to be confused with return, this movement represents a reversal of the refugee flow that followed the descent of Syria into civil war in 2011. It is also emblematic of a broader pattern of cyclical displacement crises in the region.

    The complex and intertwined histories of Lebanon and Syria – where each has at various points been a refuge for citizens of the other – challenge the simple binaries often associated with the refugee experience.

    The exchange of roles between Lebanon and Syria highlights not only the fragility of regional stability but the fluidity of displacement – and the deeper implications that cross-border movement has on the sociopolitical dynamics of both countries.

    A history of reciprocal refuge

    The relationship between Lebanon and Syria has long been complex, oscillating between cooperation and tension. Despite Syria’s official withdrawal from Lebanon in 2005 after decades as an occupying force, the two countries remain connected due to shared borders, economic ties and security concerns. Cooperation exists in areas such as trade, but there is significant tension, especially over the presence of over 1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon.

    Yet, throughout their modern histories, one of the most enduring bonds has been the shared experiences of displacement and refuge, dating back to Lebanon’s civil war. From 1975 to 1990, thousands of Lebanese fled to Syria to escape the sectarian-driven conflict that engulfed their homeland.

    The post-war period, however, was marked by a shift in the dynamics between the two countries. The 2005 withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon marked a new chapter in their relations.

    Tensions rose as Lebanon sought to rebuild and assert its sovereignty after nearly 30 years of Syrian occupation. Yet, the region’s tendency for upheaval soon saw the roles reversed again decades later, when an estimated 180,000 Lebanese took refuge in Syria during the 2006 July war.

    With the onset of the Syrian civil war in 2011, it was Lebanon’s turn to serve as a refuge. By 2015, 1 million Syrians fleeing violence made the journey into Lebanon.

    Despite being one of the 44 countries never to have signed the 1951 Refugee Convention, Lebanon is the country hosting the largest number of refugees per capita globally.

    Because Lebanon didn’t sign the convention, it doesn’t formally recognize refugee status, which gives the country what it views as more control over its refugee policies. While Lebanon receives humanitarian support from the United Nations’ refugee agency, refugees remain in a precarious legal status, with limited rights.

    For many Lebanese, this most recent influx of fleeing Syrian refugees has rekindled memories of their own displacement, while for others, it has fueled anti-refugee sentiments.

    Bouncing between 2 war-torn countries

    With the latest escalation of the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, history is again repeating itself. Lebanese citizens, primarily from Hezbollah strongholds in South Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley, are seeking refuge in Syria, a country still grappling with its own economic collapse, violence and internal strife.

    While the conflict on Lebanese territory has gone on for more than a year, movements into Syria only picked up in late September 2024 as people have become more desperate to flee.

    As one displaced person forced to flee from Beirut explained to me: “Syria was certainly not a ‘better’ option than Lebanon six months ago, but in the last week, since the attacks on Beirut and political assassinations, Syria is safer – despite everything it is going through. That’s how unsafe we feel in Beirut – we are bouncing between one war-torn country and another.”

    Implications for refugee-host dynamics

    The cyclical nature of displacement between Lebanon and Syria overturns the prevailing political narrative of host-refugee dynamics being fixed and unidirectional.

    Syrian displacement to Lebanon has been portrayed by some Lebanese politicians as one-directional. This appears to be in order to frame Syrian refugees as the sole recipients of aid – as opposed to Lebanese citizens – as well as burdens on Lebanon.

    When displacement occurs in both directions, however, this narrative begins to break down.

    Syrian refugees who once sought safety in Lebanon now see their home country as a safer haven – albeit a fragile and temporary one. Meanwhile, Lebanese citizens face the same kinds of vulnerability and desperation that their Syrian counterparts experienced over the past decade.

    Importantly, testimonies from those who are making the trip from their ‘temporary’ home in Lebanon back to Syria highlight that these movements should not be mistaken for return. Rather, they are in themselves a temporary solution.

    As one Syrian who had fled his Lebanese home explained to me: “No, I am not returning. I am rather leaving one foot in Lebanon and one in Syria. Syria is in no way a safe place. As men, we are at risk of arrest and forced conscription. However, Lebanon is momentarily, at this point in history, much less safe. We do this assessment week by week. I sent my wife and my children first. I will follow.”

    For their part, internally displaced Lebanese entering into Syria insist that these movements are “absolutely temporary.” One told me: “Syria is not foreign to us. It feels close and familiar. But most importantly, it feels temporary and is the right proximity to Lebanon. As soon as things calm down we will come back to our homes. Many of us have nothing to go back to, but even in this case, we will not remain in Syria.”

    The strain of displacement

    Both Lebanon and Syria are, in many ways, ill-equipped to handle the new wave of displacement.

    Syrian children at a refugee camp in Lebanon’s frontier town of Arsal on Feb. 18, 2014.
    Ratib Al Safadi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

    By 2023, Lebanon’s economic collapse had driven 80% of its population into poverty, making it nearly impossible to absorb the additional strain of mass internal displacement.

    Government paralysis, compounded by political deadlock, leaves internally displaced people with little to no state support, mostly relying on aid and community networks to survive.

    Syria, though in the position of “host” in this current migratory flow, is similarly constrained. The country’s infrastructure remains devastated from more than a decade of civil war. Basic services are stretched thin, and the economy has not recovered. Humanitarian organizations coordinating the response are working amid overextended resources and dwindling support.

    A region in perpetual chaos

    As the armed conflict between Israel and Hezbollah escalates, the displacement crisis in Lebanon and Syria will, I fear, likely worsen.

    The recent wave of Syrian refugees and Lebanese into Syria reveals the cyclical nature of refuge in the region. Ultimately, the ongoing displacement crisis in Lebanon and Syria serves as a reminder that refuge is often temporary, contingent on the shifting geopolitics of the region.

    The histories of these two countries, where both have served as havens for the other’s displaced populations, underscore the complexity of displacement in the Middle East.

    The fact that Lebanese citizens are now seeking shelter in Syria, a country from which over 1 million refugees fled just over a decade ago, underscores the volatility of regional displacement patterns. It also raises critical questions about the sustainability of international refugee systems that too often rely on static, one-directional models of migration and don’t account for the fluid and often reversible nature of displacement.

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

    – ref. Bouncing between war-torn countries: Displacement in Lebanon and Syria highlights cyclical nature of cross-border refuge – https://theconversation.com/bouncing-between-war-torn-countries-displacement-in-lebanon-and-syria-highlights-cyclical-nature-of-cross-border-refuge-241168

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Overseas US voters get ignored by political campaigns − but could be crucial supporters

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels, Honorary Reader in MIgration and Politics, University of Kent

    Election workers prepare to mail absentee ballots to Americans, including those living overseas. Allison Joyce/Getty Images

    One group of American voters is being largely ignored in the closely watched polling leading up to the Nov. 5 elections: U.S. citizens living abroad, whether as civilians or as members of the military. We know from governmental data that the number of ballots cast by overseas Americans has been greater than the margin of victory in races in the past – and may be again in 2024.

    But that one potentially crucial group of American voters – U.S. citizens living abroad – does not get much attention, from pollsters or campaigns.

    We are scholars of political science whose research shows that overseas voters can make a difference in elections – and that there is potential for campaigns to mobilize these voters, despite a more complex process of voting than for domestic voters.

    Who are overseas Americans?

    Though there is not an exact count of American citizens living abroad, we do know they number in the millions. Estimates from the Federal Voter Assistance Program and the Association of Americans Resident Overseas placed this number between 4.4 million and 5.3 million in 2023.

    But those are likely undercounts. It’s almost impossible to account fully for dual citizens, naturalized U.S. citizens who have returned to the country of their birth or people who split their time between the U.S. and other countries.

    Research that we and others have conducted indicates that Mexico and Canada are home to the largest numbers of Americans outside the U.S., followed by the U.K., France, Israel and Germany. The three most common reasons Americans move abroad are family connections, employment and quality of life, although there are others.

    Overseas Americans tend to be highly educated: More than three-quarters have a college degree, double the percentage within the U.S. Most overseas Americans do not move from country to country but rather stay in one country, often for a decade or more. But our surveys have found they remain interested in U.S. politics – not least because they pay U.S. income taxes, whether they work for a U.S. or foreign employer. IRS data shows that the vast majority are not ultra-wealthy.

    Voting from abroad

    Military members and U.S. citizens living abroad have had the right to vote in federal elections since 1976. This right was further consolidated in the 1986 Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, while the right for Americans living abroad to vote in local and state elections depends on state law.

    Some people have recently expressed concern that overseas voting could be used to cast fraudulent ballots, but there is no evidence of illegal voting by noncitizens abroad.

    Overseas voters’ absentee ballot requests and their returned ballots are carefully scrutinized by local officials in the state where they last lived in the U.S., making abuse very unlikely. But it is complex for overseas voters to vote: The paperwork is complicated, and there is comparatively little outreach from political parties and candidates.

    Barriers to voting from overseas

    In 2020, the Federal Voting Assistance Program, which is supposed to help overseas voters exercise their voting rights, estimated that just shy of 8% of eligible American voters overseas cast ballots in that year’s presidential election. Using program numbers to calculate a percentage another way finds that no more than 20% of overseas Americans cast ballots in the 2020 election.

    That’s far lower than the 67% national turnout rate that year.

    Federal law requires local election officials in the U.S. to mail absentee ballots 45 days before an election to overseas Americans who request them. Poor mail service in the U.S. and elsewhere can mean that voters don’t always get the ballots in time, and the ballots mailed back to election officials face similar delays.

    Some states allow voters to receive or return their ballots electronically, which is faster; an overseas voter casting a ballot in Massachusetts can request a ballot, receive a blank ballot and return it all by email, while an overseas voter from Pennsylvania must return it by mail or courier, following exact procedures for enclosing their ballot in multiple envelopes.

    In 2023, the Federal Voting Assistance Program estimated that as many as 150,000 U.S. citizens overseas did not cast ballots in the 2022 elections because of administrative hurdles, such as slow or irregular mail service and difficulties in communicating procedural changes to prospective voters abroad.

    Interest in US politics

    Another possible reason Americans abroad don’t vote is that they have lost interest in U.S. politics. But our own research, and the work of others, finds that not to be true.

    Even given the logistical challenges, U.S. citizens living in Canada, as one example, have very similar levels of interest in American politics compared with citizens back home.

    During the 2020 and 2022 campaign seasons, two of us surveyed American citizens who had moved north of the border. In 2020, 55% indicated they were very interested in American politics, as did 44% in the midterm year of 2022. This is comparable with levels of attention to politics within the U.S. during those campaigns, as gauged by the Cooperative Election Study.

    So although Americans in Canada indicated interest levels as high as those in the U.S. during the past two national election cycles, the vast majority of them did not cast a vote. Administrative barriers play a role, but they’re not enough to explain such low turnout among citizens overseas.

    Ignored by campaigns

    Another key factor driving low turnout from abroad is a lack of communication from campaigns and parties. Research demonstrates that contacts by campaigns and parties significantly increase a person’s likelihood of voting.

    In the U.S., parties and campaign organizations can help streamline the voter registration process, reinforce the stakes of an election and bolster a sense of camaraderie among citizens.

    U.S. citizens living abroad are unlikely to hear from campaigns, even in nearby Canada. When asked in 2020 or 2022 whether they had been contacted by American political campaigns, most potential voters in the U.S. had. But our surveys of Americans living in Canada show less than one-third reported contact from parties or candidates.

    Because overseas citizens vote in their last state of residence in the U.S. but are not physically resident there, campaigns find it harder to identify them as swing-state residents or members of favorable demographic groups.

    Overall, Americans living overseas are as eligible to vote as citizens in the U.S. They are as attentive to politics as Americans living in the U.S. On the other hand, they face major administrative hurdles and are generally not contacted by American parties or campaigns.

    James A. McCann has received support for his research on migration from Purdue University, the US Fulbright Program, the Russell Sage Foundation, and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

    Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels and Ronald Rapoport do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Overseas US voters get ignored by political campaigns − but could be crucial supporters – https://theconversation.com/overseas-us-voters-get-ignored-by-political-campaigns-but-could-be-crucial-supporters-240184

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: 4 ways AI can be used and abused in the 2024 election, from deepfakes to foreign interference

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Barbara A. Trish, Professor of Political Science, Grinnell College

    The American public is on alert about artificial intelligence and the 2024 election.

    A September 2024 poll by the Pew Research Center found that well over half of Americans worry that artificial intelligence – or AI, computer technology mimicking the processes and products of human intelligence – will be used to generate and spread false and misleading information in the campaign.

    My academic research on AI may help quell some concerns. While this innovative technology certainly has the potential to manipulate voters or spread lies at scale, most uses of AI in the current election cycle are, so far, not novel at all.

    I’ve identified four roles AI is playing or could play in the 2024 campaign – all arguably updated versions of familiar election activities.

    1. Voter information

    The 2022 launch of ChatGPT brought the promise and peril of generative AI into public consciousness. This technology is called “generative” because it produces text responses to user prompts: It can write poetry, answer history questions – and provide information about the 2024 election.

    Rather than search Google for voting information, people may instead ask generative AI a question. “How much has inflation changed since 2020?” for example. Or, “Who’s running for U.S. Senate in Texas?”

    Some generative AI platforms such as Google’s AI chatbot Gemini, decline to answer questions about candidates and voting. Some, such as Facebook’s AI tool Llama, respond – and respond accurately.

    AI’s response to an election query on Facebook.
    Screenshot from Facebook, CC BY-SA

    But generative AI can also produce misinformation. In the most extreme cases, AI can have “hallucinations,” offering up wildly inaccurate results.

    A CBS news account from June 2024 reported that ChatGPT had given incorrect or incomplete responses to some prompts asking how to vote in battleground states. And ChatGPT didn’t consistently follow the policy of its owner, OpenAI, and refer users to CanIVote.org, a respected site for voting information.

    As with the web, people should verify the results of AI searches. And beware: Google’s Gemini now automatically returns answers to Google search queries at the top of every results page. You might inadvertently stumble into AI tools when you think you’re searching the internet.

    2. Deepfakes

    Deepfakes are fabricated images, audio and video produced by generative AI and designed to replicate reality. Essentially, these are highly convincing versions of what are now called “cheapfakes” – altered images made using basic tools such as Photoshop and video-editing software.

    The potential of deepfakes to deceive voters became clear when an AI-generated robocall impersonating Joe Biden before the January 2024 New Hampshire primary advised Democrats to save their votes for November.

    After that, the Federal Communication Commission ruled that AI-generated robocalls are subject to the same regulations as all robocalls. They cannot be auto-dialed or delivered to cellphones or landlines without prior consent.

    The agency also slapped a US$6 million fine on the consultant who created the fake Biden call – but not for tricking voters. He was fined for transmitting inaccurate caller-ID information.

    While synthetic media can be used to spread disinformation, deepfakes are now part of the creative toolbox of political advertisers.

    One early deepfake aimed more at persuasion than overt deception was an AI-generated ad from a 2022 mayoral race contest portraying the then-incumbent mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana, as a failing student summoned to the principal’s office.

    Blink and you’ll miss the disclaimer that this campaign ad is a deepfake.

    The ad included a quick disclaimer that it was a deepfake, a warning not required by the federal government, but it was easy to miss.

    Wired magazine’s AI Elections Project, which is tracking uses of AI in the 2024 cycle, shows that deepfakes haven’t overwhelmed the ads voters see. But they have been used by candidates across the political spectrum, up and down the ballot, for many purposes – including deception.

    Former President Donald Trump hints at a Democratic deepfake when he questions the crowd size at Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign events. In lobbing such allegations, Trump is attempting to reap the “liar’s dividend” – the opportunity to plant the idea that truthful content is fake.

    Discrediting a political opponent this way is nothing new. Trump has been claiming that the truth is really just “fake news” since at least the “birther” conspiracy of 2008, when he helped to spread rumors that presidential candidate Barack Obama’s birth certificate was fake.

    3. Strategic distraction

    Some are concerned that AI might be used by election deniers in this cycle to distract election administrators by burying them in frivolous public records requests.

    For example, the group True the Vote has lodged hundreds of thousands of voter challenges over the past decade working with just volunteers and a web-based app. Imagine its reach if armed with AI to automate their work.

    Such widespread, rapid-fire challenges to the voter rolls could divert election administrators from other critical tasks, disenfranchise legitimate voters and disrupt the election.

    As of now, there’s no evidence that this is happening.

    4. Foreign election interference

    Confirmed Russian interference in the 2016 election underscored that the threat of foreign meddling in U.S. politics, whether by Russia or another country invested in discrediting Western democracy, remains a pressing concern.

    Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the 2016 U.S. election concluded that Russia had worked to get President Donald Trump elected.
    Jonathan Ernst/Pool via AP

    In July, the Department of Justice seized two domain names and searched close to 1,000 accounts that Russian actors had used for what it called a “social media bot farm,” similar to those Russia used to influence the opinions of hundreds of millions of Facebook users in the 2020 campaign. Artificial intelligence could give these efforts a real boost.

    There’s also evidence that China is using AI this cycle to spread malicious information about the U.S. One such social media post transcribed a Biden speech inaccurately to suggest he made sexual references.

    AI may help election interferers do their dirty work, but new technology is hardly necessary for foreign meddling in U.S. politics.

    In 1940, the United Kingdom – an American ally – was so focused on getting the U.S. to enter World War II that British intelligence officers worked to help congressional candidates committed to intervention and to discredit isolationists.

    One target was the prominent Republican isolationist U.S. Rep. Hamilton Fish. Circulating a photo of Fish and the leader of an American pro-Nazi group taken out of context, the British sought to falsely paint Fish as a supporter of Nazi elements abroad and in the U.S.

    Can AI be controlled?

    Acknowledging that it doesn’t take new technology to do harm, bad actors can leverage the efficiencies embedded in AI to create a formidable challenge to election operations and integrity.

    Federal efforts to regulate AI’s use in electoral politics face the same uphill battle as most proposals to regulate political campaigns. States have been more active: 19 now ban or restrict deepfakes in political campaigns.

    Some platforms engage in light self-moderation. Google’s Gemini responds to prompts asking for basic election information by saying, “I can’t help with responses on elections and political figures right now.”

    Campaign professionals may employ a little self-regulation, too. Several speakers at a May 2024 conference on campaign tech expressed concern about pushback from voters if they learn that a campaign is using AI technology. In this sense, the public concern over AI might be productive, creating a guardrail of sorts.

    But the flip side of that public concern – what Stanford University’s Nate Persily calls “AI panic” – is that it can further erode trust in elections.

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

    – ref. 4 ways AI can be used and abused in the 2024 election, from deepfakes to foreign interference – https://theconversation.com/4-ways-ai-can-be-used-and-abused-in-the-2024-election-from-deepfakes-to-foreign-interference-239878

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: What is Temporary Protected Status? A global migration expert why the US offers some foreign nationals temporary protection

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Karen Jacobsen, Henry J. Leir Chair in Global Migration, Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University

    Haitian students use mobile phones to record an exercise during an English class in Springfield, Ohio, on Sept. 13, 2024. Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

    Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance, have criticized the Biden administration’s decision to allow Haitian nationals who are in the U.S. to apply for permission to stay under a legal classification called Temporary Protected Status. Here is what this designation means and how it’s made:

    TPS permits foreign nationals who are already in the United States – even if they did not enter the country through an official or legal means – to remain for six, 12 or 18 months at a time if the situation in their home country is deemed too dangerous for them to return. Threats that prompt TPS designations include ongoing armed conflict, natural disasters, epidemics and other extraordinary and temporary conditions.

    The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security designates a foreign country for TPS when conditions there meet requirements spelled out in federal law. Once the secretary determines that the foreign country is safe for its nationals to return, their protected status expires and people who have been granted it are expected to return to their home country.

    Congress created TPS as part of the Immigration Act of 1990. Since then, administrations have used it to protect thousands of people from dozens of countries. The first nations to be designated, in March 1991, were Kuwait, Lebanon and Liberia.

    As of March 2024, there were 863,880 people from 16 countries under Temporary Protected Status in the U.S. Another 486,418 people had initial or renewal applications pending. An estimated 316,000 people may also be eligible under two new extensions since that date.

    TPS beneficiaries may not be detained by federal officials over their immigration status or deported from the United States. They can obtain work permits and apply for authorization to travel outside the U.S. and return to it.

    People who receive TPS don’t automatically become legal permanent residents. But they can petition for an adjustment of their immigration status, such as applying for permanent residency, a student visa or asylum. Applying for a change of immigration status does not necessarily mean their application will be approved.

    Humanitarian measures

    TPS is not the only tool administrations can use to protect people from countries facing disaster or conflict.

    For example, a Haitian person currently living in the U.S. is eligible for TPS under a designation that lasts through Feb. 3, 2026. In contrast, a Haitian who travels through Mexico and applies for entry to the U.S. at the border is not likely to be admitted.

    However, there is a third possibility for Haitians, known as parole. The federal government can give certain groups permission to enter or remain in the U.S. if it finds “urgent humanitarian or significant public benefit reasons” for doing so.

    People who enter through parole programs must have an approved financial supporter in the U.S., undergo a robust security vetting and meet other eligibility criteria. They typically can stay for one to two years, and may apply for authorization to work.

    One current parole program is for people from Latin American countries that are TPS designates. The U.S. government can grant advance permission to enter the U.S. to up to 30,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans each month. People fleeing these countries – all of which have been designated for Temporary Protected Status – can seek authorization to travel from their homes to the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons, and then stay for a temporary period of parole for up to two years.

    Immigrant rights groups rally at the U.S. Capitol following a federal court ruling that threatened the legal standing of thousands with Temporary Protected Status, Sept. 15, 2020.
    Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

    I’ve studied global migration and asylum policy for 25 years. I see both TPS and parole as legal and carefully considered ways to support people from countries experiencing wrenching conflict, disorder and disaster who are seeking safety in the U.S. Doing away with these programs, as Trump sought to do during his term in office, would make it extremely difficult for people in great danger to escape.

    Neither TPS nor parole programs are automatic roads to citizenship or permanent residence. They are ways to provide humanitarian assistance to people in appalling circumstances, such as rampant gang violence in Haiti and economic hardship and political repression in Venezuela and Nicaragua.

    Certainly, cities need more resources to support large numbers of immigrants. But offering temporary protection to people whose home countries are not safe places to live is a long-standing – and, in my view, crucial – element of U.S. immigration policy.

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

    – ref. What is Temporary Protected Status? A global migration expert why the US offers some foreign nationals temporary protection – https://theconversation.com/what-is-temporary-protected-status-a-global-migration-expert-why-the-us-offers-some-foreign-nationals-temporary-protection-240525

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Coastal cities have a hidden vulnerability to storm-surge and tidal flooding − entirely caused by humans

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Philip M. Orton, Research Associate Professor in Ocean Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology

    A consequence of dredging deep channels is that water also enters more easily with tides and storm surge. Google Earth

    Centuries ago, estuaries around the world were teeming with birds and turbulent with schools of fish, their marshlands and endless tracts of channels melting into the gray-blue horizon.

    Fast-forward to today, and in estuaries such as New York Harbor, San Francisco Bay and Miami’s Biscayne Bay – areas where rivers meet the sea – 80% to 90% of this habitat has been built over.

    The result has been the environmental collapse of estuary habitats and the loss of buffer zones that helped protect cities from storm surge and sea-level rise. But the damage isn’t just what’s visible on land.

    Below the surface of many of the remaining waterways, another form of urbanization has been slowly increasing the vulnerability of coastlines to extreme storms and sea-level rise: Vast dredging and engineering projects have more than doubled the depths of shipping channels since the 19th century.

    Some of these oceanic highways enable huge container ships, with drafts of 50 feet below the waterline and lengths of nearly a quarter mile, to glide into formerly shallow areas. An example is New Jersey’s Newark Bay, which was as little as 10 feet (3 meters) deep in the 1840s but is 50 feet (15 meters) deep today.

    A consequence of dredging deep channels is that water also enters and exits the estuaries more easily with each tide or storm. In these dredged channels, the natural resistance to flow created by a rough and shallow channel bottom is reduced. With less friction, that can lead to larger high tides and storm surge.

    As coastal engineers and oceanographers, we study coastal ocean physics and storm surge. There are solutions to the problems “estuary urbanization” is causing, if people are willing to accept some trade-offs.

    An unintended side effect of dredging

    The effects of dredging are most visible in the daily tides, which have grown larger over the past century in many estuaries and aggravated nuisance flooding in many cities, as our research shows.

    Tide range – the average variation between high and low tide – has doubled in multiple estuaries and changed significantly in others. As a result, high-tide levels are often rising faster than sea-level rise, worsening its consequences.

    The most common culprit for these larger tides is estuary urbanization.

    For example, in Miami, where the tide range has almost doubled, a major contributor is the construction and dredging of a nearly 50-foot-deep (15 meter), 500-foot-wide (150 meter) harbor entrance channel beginning in the early 20th century.

    In New York City, some neighborhoods in southern Queens see 15 minor tidal floods per year today. Computer modeling shows that these floods are caused in about equal measure by sea-level rise and landscape alterations, including dredging and wetland reclamation projects that fill in wetlands to build industrial sites, airports and neighborhoods.

    Evidence and computer modeling show that any hurricane storm surge affecting parts of New York City, Jacksonville, Wilmington, Philadelphia, Southeast Florida and Southwest Louisiana, among other locations, will likely produce higher water levels due to estuary urbanization, potentially causing more damage in unprotected regions.

    These costs have gone largely unnoticed, since changes have occurred gradually over the past 150 years. But as sea-level rise and turbo-charged storms increase flooding frequency and severity, the problem is becoming more visible.

    Building solutions to the flooding problem

    In response to rising sea levels, a different form of estuary urbanization is attracting new attention as a possible solution.

    Gated storm-surge barriers or tide gates are being built across estuaries or their inlets so they can be closed off during storm-surge events. Some examples include barriers for New Orleans; London; Venice, Italy; and the Netherlands. Such barriers are increasingly being proposed alongside levee systems for coastal protection of urbanized estuary shorelines.

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently recommended surge barriers for 11 additional estuaries, including near Miami, Jamaica Bay in Queens and Galveston, Texas.

    Surge barriers are not long-term solutions to flooding driven by sea-level rise, and their negative impacts remain poorly understood.

    Venice’s rising flood wall includes 58 gates, each about the size of two tennis courts, that rise to block the inlet from storm surge.

    Natural solutions

    Wetlands and mangroves have also emerged as a popular nature-based solution.

    Communities and government funding have focused on attempts to restore or create new wetlands as buffers in shoreline areas. But this solution is ineffective for flood protection in most harbor cities, such as New York, due to the lack of available space.

    A storm surge crossing over a mile of marsh can be reduced by several inches, depending on the site’s characteristics. But typical urban estuary waterfronts have only tens of feet of open space to work with, if that much. In a narrow space, the best that vegetation can do is reduce wave action, which often isn’t the the most pressing problem for cities on estuaries that are typically sheltered from wind-driven storm waves.

    As a result, engineered wetlands, while attractive, may be ineffective, especially if trends in ship sizes and estuarine urbanization continues.

    Better ways to put nature back to work

    Our research reveals an opportunity for scientists, engineers and broader society to think bigger – to consider a more comprehensive reshaping and restoration of the natural features of estuaries that once mitigated or absorbed flooding.

    Possible solutions include halting the maintenance dredging of underutilized shipping channels, gradually retreating from vulnerable – and now often waterlogged – landfill industrial sites and neighborhoods, and restoring these larger expanses to wetlands.

    These approaches can sharply reduce flooding and provide years of protection against sea-level rise. Restoration to historical channel and wetland configurations, however, is rarely given serious consideration in coastal storm risk management studies because of the perceived economic cost, but also because the cumulative effect of deeper channel depths is often unrecognized.

    Renaturing urbanized estuaries in these ways could be paired with buyout programs to also reclaim the floodplain, reducing risk in more sustainable ways. Or it could be paired with seawalls to protect existing neighborhoods in a more ecologically beneficial way. These approaches should be considered as alternatives to further urbanizing our cities’ few remaining natural areas – their estuaries.

    Philip M. Orton receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, pertaining to the assessment of coastal flooding from storms, high tides, sea level rise and estuary urbanization.

    Stefan Talke receives funding from the National Science Foundation, the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, the California Department of Transportation, Pacific Northwest National Labs, and the California Delta Stewardship Council. The research pertains to the effect of sea-level rise and anthropogenic change on tides and floods in the past, present, and future.

    – ref. Coastal cities have a hidden vulnerability to storm-surge and tidal flooding − entirely caused by humans – https://theconversation.com/coastal-cities-have-a-hidden-vulnerability-to-storm-surge-and-tidal-flooding-entirely-caused-by-humans-231374

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Presidential elections provide opportunities to teach about power, proportions and percentages

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Liza Bondurant, Associate Professor of Secondary Math Education, Mississippi State University

    The complex voting system in the U.S. requires a sophisticated understanding of math. bamlou/DigitalVision Vectors

    To American voters, the process of electing a president and other officials may be difficult to explain and understand. For America’s math teachers, the system represents a gold mine for real-life lessons on ratios, statistics and data.

    And by basing the lessons on elections, teachers can help put students on the path to becoming informed and engaged voters later in life, according to a 2020 survey of 2,232 young adults ages 18-21.

    Americans don’t vote directly for the president. Instead, a group of electors vote for the candidate who wins the popular vote in that state. In most states, whoever wins the most votes wins all the state’s electors, or “electoral votes.”

    Not all states have the same number of electors. Each state starts with two electoral votes, based on the two U.S. senators in each state. States receive additional electors based on the number of representatives they have in the House of Representatives, which depends on a state’s population. The number of representatives in the House, however, has been set at 435 since 1929, despite a huge and varied increase in the population. This means the number of people represented by each member of the U.S. House – the ratio of people to representative – varies considerably, as shown in a table from the U.S. Census Bureau.

    Armed with this background, math teachers can use the census data on population and ratios to teach students the following math – and voting – topics.

    Topic 1: Ratio

    To calculate a state’s representative ratio, the number of people for every one representative, divide the population by the number of the state’s representatives in the U.S. House. In 2020, for example, Montana had two congressional representatives and a population of 1,085,407. The representative ratio was 542,704:1 – 1,085,407 divided by 2 – or 542,704 residents for each representative.

    Topic 2: Minimum and maximum

    In any set of numbers, the minimum is the smallest number in the set and the maximum is the largest number. For example, using the representative ratios from the 2020 census data, Montana’s ratio of 542,704:1 is the smallest – the minimum – and Delaware’s ratio of 990,837:1 is the largest, or the maximum.

    Topic 3: The shape, center and spread of data

    Shape means how data, such as the ratios of residents to representatives, looks on a chart or graph. Teachers can use a histogram, a kind of graph used to illustrate how data is distributed: evenly, skewed to one side, or with some numbers as outliers, at a distance from the other numbers.

    The ratios can also be used to explain how to find the “center” of data, its mean or median. The mean is the average, found by adding all the numbers in the set and dividing by how many there are. For example, adding the ratios for all the states and dividing by 50. The median is the middle number when all numbers are placed in order from minimum to maximum. Simple spreadsheet formulas are available online to help students find both.

    Students can examine ratios of residents to representatives for all 50 states.
    iofoto via Getty Images

    The “spread” of a set of numbers tells how much the numbers are different from the center. One measure of spread is called the range, which is the difference between the maximum and the minimum. For example, the range in representative ratios among the states is 448,133: the maximum, Delaware’s 990,837, minus the minimum, Montana’s 542,704.

    When students understand how ratios – and elections – work, teachers can ask questions such as, “Montana has fewer people per representative than Delaware. Where would your vote count more?” Answer: Montana, because fewer people per representative means each vote counts more.

    Topic 4: Gerrymandering

    Each state is divided into districts; residents of each district vote for their state and federal representatives. Gerrymandering occurs when the borders of voting districts are drawn to favor one party at the expense of another. The political party in power often draws these district lines to make it easier for that party to win in the future.

    Imagine a state has 10 representatives, and Party X gets 60% of the votes. With 60% of the votes, it seems fair that Party X should get 6 of the state’s 10 seats for representatives.

    There is no rule that says the percentage of votes cast for a party in a state has to line up with the number of seats the party wins. And Party X wants more. To keep control of as many seats as possible, the politicians in Party X would like to manipulate – or gerrymander – each of 10 districts to make sure it would win 60% of the vote in each. With a majority in each district, Party X would win all 10 seats. Gerrymandering to this extreme is not always possible because districts must consist of adjoining areas, and voters who favor one party might not live in areas that can be easily connected.

    Lessons on gerrymandering can vary by grade level. For example, elementary students can get hands-on experience manipulating borders with the Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival “puzzles” tool. The puzzle, which can be tied to lessons about shapes, percents and area, allows children to change boundaries on a graph to increase or decrease the number of yellow or green squares – representing voters – in each “district.” There are fewer green squares than yellow squares in each puzzle. Students win when they successfully gerrymander, changing the borders so the green voters are in the majority in most, or all, of the districts.

    High school students, who already understand the basics of gerrymandering, can use a tool called Districtr to draw real voting districts. The site uses actual data about where voters live and which political party won in which area. Using this tool, students cannot only try to gerrymander districts, they can also try to create districts that are more fairly balanced. After trying to draw their own “fair” districts, students might be interested in some states’ use of independent groups to draw fairer district lines.

    By using elections as a learning tool, students can gain a better understanding of ratios, means and range, and they might also start thinking about what they can do to improve the process.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Presidential elections provide opportunities to teach about power, proportions and percentages – https://theconversation.com/presidential-elections-provide-opportunities-to-teach-about-power-proportions-and-percentages-238152

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: International Women Empowerment at the Law Library of Congress

    Source: US Global Legal Monitor

    The following is a guest post by Jai-Len Williams, a foreign law intern in the Global Legal Research Directorate of the Law Library of Congress.

    In 2021, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) and Taiwan celebrated their 40th anniversary of years of diplomatic relations.

    On January 26, 2023, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed for the Women’s Empowerment Project (WEP) International Programme. WEP was sponsored by the Government of Taiwan in collaboration with the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Nine participating organizations were selected to participate in the WEP. They were the Kingdom Life Tabernacle, Vincyklus Inc., Caribbean Women in Leadership (CIWiL), Bequia Threadworks, RedRoot SVG Inc., SVG Girl Guides Association, National Council of Women, WAM/Vincyklus Inc. and Generation Next.

    According to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of National Mobilization, Catherine De Freitas, the Project is about assisting small businesses, mostly owned by females, that were adversely affected after the 2021 explosive eruptions of the La Soufriere volcano and the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines welcomes the program as it supplements other social protection initiatives by the Government. Ambassador of Taiwan, His Excellency Peter Sha Li-Lan also pledged Taiwan’s continued assistance to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and urged the participating organizations to continue the hard work as WEP “is all about empowerment.”

    In continuing the journey of empowering women and the young generation, on March 26, 2024, the Taiwanese Embassy hosted a WEP showcase in Kingstown, St. Vincent, where more than 50 female entrepreneurs participated. The Taiwanese Ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Her Excellency Fiona Fan, expressed her delight with the progress made with the WEP. She stated that through 16 vocational courses, the WEP empowered 306 female bakers with a diverse set of skills ranging from hotel hospitality to beauty treatments, sewing, and computer maintenance. According to Minister of National Mobilization Dr. Orando Brewster, the display exhibited many success stories, including start-up businesses and the valuable skills gained especially in the hotel and tourism industry.

    Coincidentally, in September 2024, two foreign female legal interns situated next to each other met at the Law Library of Congress, Global Legal Research Directorate: Jai-Len Williams from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Yu Chen Tsai of Taiwan. Their friendship has blossomed into a thriving one.

    Cheers to International Relations and the Global Research Directorate!

    Subscribe to In Custodia Legis – it’s free! – to receive interesting posts drawn from the Law Library of Congress’s vast collections and our staff’s expertise in U.S., foreign, and international law.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Territorial Bancorp Says Blue Hill Has Provided No Basis to Deem Its Preliminary Indication of Interest Superior

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    No Proof of Committed Financing and/or Information to Validate Its Claims that a Transaction Could Receive Regulatory Approval and Be Completed

    Hope Bancorp Merger Is the Only Opportunity that Provides Tangible Value, has a Clear Path to Close and Creates a Stronger Territorial

    Territorial Urges Shareholders to Vote FOR Hope Bancorp Merger in Advance of Special Meeting on November 6, 2024 at 8:30 a.m. Hawai‘i Time

    HONOLULU, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Territorial Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: TBNK) (“Territorial” or the “Company”) is mailing the following letter to Territorial shareholders in connection with the Company’s upcoming Special Meeting of Stockholders (the “Special Meeting”) to vote on the proposed merger with Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: HOPE) (“Hope Bancorp”) and related proposals. The Special Meeting is scheduled for November 6, 2024 at 8:30 a.m., Hawai‘i Time. Territorial shareholders of record as of August 14, 2024 are entitled to vote at or before the meeting. Other important information related to the Special Meeting can be found at http://www.TerritorialandHopeCombination.com.

    Dear Fellow Territorial Bancorp Shareholders,

    On November 6, 2024, Territorial Bancorp is holding a Special Meeting of Stockholders (the “Special Meeting”) to vote on our pending merger with Hope Bancorp. Failure to approve the merger could have significant negative consequences for the value of your investment and Territorial’s continued success.

    Don’t be misled: Blue Hill Advisors LLC (“Blue Hill”) has only issued press releases and presentations. Blue Hill has warned that its indication of interest is “non-binding” and has provided no evidence that it would – or could – actually pay for the Company. Moreover, there are very real concerns that Blue Hill could complete a transaction at all.

    Protect your investment: The Territorial Bancorp Board of Directors strongly recommends that all Territorial shareholders vote “FOR” the Hope Bancorp merger and related proposals TODAY. Your vote is important, no matter how many, or few, shares you own.

    The Territorial Board of Directors is Committed to Doing What is in the Best Interest of Territorial Shareholders and Pursuing the Most Value Creating Path

    Blue Hill Has Provided No Information that Would Enable the Territorial Board to Deem Its Preliminary Indication of Interest Superior or Likely to Lead to a Superior Proposal

    In negotiating the Hope Bancorp merger agreement, the Territorial Board obtained important protections for our shareholders – namely a superior proposal provision. This provision enables the Board to have discussions with parties who present an alternative to the Hope Bancorp merger so long as the alternative proposal is real, fully financed and actually or likely “superior” to the Hope transaction. To meet this standard, the alternative proposal must, among other things, be more favorable to our shareholders from a financial point of view and be reasonably likely to close. Blue Hill has not met these and other thresholds.

    • No verifiable evidence Blue Hill can actually pay for your shares and fund the likely additional capital infusion into Territorial Savings Bank required with its acquisition. Blue Hill has only referenced “capital support” and pointed to its assets under management (“AUM”), neither of which are committed financing. Proving committed financing is easy so long as you have it, but Blue Hill has not provided any such evidence, which compounds doubts about its credibility and the credibility of its preliminary indication of interest. Assets under management are assets that belong to other people and Blue Hill has not shown it has any authority to access those funds to pay for Territorial.  
    • No confidence that its proposed transaction is reasonably likely to close.
      • Lack of M&A and regulatory experience: Blue Hill has made vague references to having M&A experience. However, Territorial has found no information to prove that Blue Hill has previously applied for – or secured – regulatory approvals for any transaction of this size and complexity. If Blue Hill has such a track record, where is it? 
      • Evasive about obtaining required regulatory approvals or simply ignoring them: The takeover of an entire bank, as Blue Hill is seeking, is likely a controlled acquisition under banking law. The coordinated efforts of six “discrete” investors per Blue Hill’s proposal would likely be viewed as a group that is “acting in concert,” increasing regulatory scrutiny and requirements – none of which Blue Hill has acknowledged or addressed. Nor have they offered even a guess as to how long these approvals will take.
      • Rejected by regulators: Blue Hill has refused to disclose the identity of its “discrete investors” and replacement Board and management. What is Blue Hill hiding? In addition, no information has been provided on how it would address safety and soundness issues regarding interest rate risk, liquidity, capital and earnings, which are paramount to regulators. Blue Hill’s lack of information all but ensures that regulatory applications would be rejected as soon as they were submitted.
      • Failed tender offer: Territorial has an approximately 50% retail shareholder base and a fragmented institutional investor base. Given these facts, it is highly unlikely that Blue Hill would be able to complete the 70% tender offer it has proposed.
    • No assurances that Blue Hill will stand by its price and not reduce it if the Hope Bancorp merger agreement was terminated or following its unspecified “due diligence.” Keep in mind – Hope Bancorp reduced its proposal for Territorial after conducting due diligence, and Blue Hill has explicitly stated that its indication of interest is conditioned on due diligence and is non-binding.
    • No assurances that Blue Hill won’t put its interests before your own: Blue Hill has entered into secret side agreements with its “discrete” investors. The terms of these agreements have not been disclosed and Blue Hill has not offered any governance structure, much less one that protects your interests.

    On four occasions we have publicly provided Blue Hill with a roadmap of the basic elements that need to be addressed before we would be able to engage in discussions with them under the terms of the Hope Bancorp merger agreement. Despite this, Blue Hill has repeatedly failed to provide credible and verifiable information as to these basic elements.

    Given these and other factors, the Territorial Board has not concluded that the Blue Hill proposal constitutes or is reasonably likely to lead to a superior proposal, as defined by the Hope Bancorp merger agreement. As a result, the only way to unilaterally engage in discussions with Blue Hill would be to break our obligations under the Hope Bancorp merger agreement, which would expose Territorial and our shareholders to substantial, costly litigation risk and the possibility of no transaction at all.

    Territorial Shareholders Are at Great Risk If the Hope Bancorp Merger is Terminated and the Only Strategic Alternative is Blue Hill

    The Value of Your Shares Could Decline Substantially

    • Hope Bancorp addresses Territorial’s business challenges. Blue Hill does not: While the overall market may have changed, Territorial’s business fundamentals have not. As a standalone, monoline, one- to four-family loan focused bank, Territorial faces substantial business and regulatory risks – even in a declining interest rate environment. The Company has been operating at a loss over multiple quarters; loan growth is flat; and revenues are declining.

      These and other factors led to the Board’s decision to cut Territorial’s dividend to essentially $0 and enter into the Hope Bancorp merger agreement. While our challenges would be addressed by Hope Bancorp’s larger, stronger, more diversified platform, Blue Hill offers nothing to benefit the business if the Hope Bancorp agreement is terminated. Indeed, with Blue Hill, Territorial would have the same standalone hurdles that it does today and potentially much worse.

    • With Blue Hill, the value of your shares and protection of your rights could be substantially diminished: If Blue Hill is unable to complete a 100% tender, the remaining Territorial shareholders would be left with an illiquid, stub minority investment in a controlled company and with limited rights. Stub stocks generally trade at a lower price and valuation and can be highly volatile.
    • A Blue Hill transaction would be taxable; the Hope Bancorp merger is not. Blue Hill’s tax consequences could potentially leave shareholders with less – in some cases substantially less – than the per share value Blue Hill has proposed.
    • Territorial shareholders will not immediately receive any payment for their shares while any transaction with Blue Hill is sitting in regulatory limbo. Given the time-value-of-money, delays mean that the net value of Blue Hill’s preliminary indication of interest, if completed, would be substantially less than what it has proposed. Meanwhile, your stock would remain tied up during the Blue Hill tender and could not be sold.

    The Hope Bancorp Merger Is the Best, Most Value-Creating Opportunity for Territorial Shareholders at Close and Over the Long-term

    Unlike the illusion that Blue Hill is promoting, the value creation and other benefits from the Hope Bancorp merger are real and achievable.

    • 100% tax free, stock-for-stock transaction: 0.8048 shares of Hope Bancorp for each Territorial share owned
    • ~25% premium to Territorial’s closing stock price just prior to merger announcementi
    • 1,000%+ increase to Territorial’s standalone dividend (from $0.01 to $0.11 per share)ii
    • Upside value opportunity by being invested in larger, more diversified company with a strong capital position and larger investment platform that is better positioned to navigate varying market environments
    • $10.5M of incremental value from annual merger enabled cost savings and synergies
    • Proven management team with strong record of superior value creation – total shareholder returns (“TSR”) outperforming peers
    • Choice as shareholders could also choose liquidity now if they prefer not to stay invested in the combined organization

    The merger will also create significant benefits for our customers, employees and local Hawai‘i communities. Hope Bancorp values the relationships we have established and wants to build on them.

    • We will continue to operate under the Territorial name.
    • Our local branches and operations will be led by local teams – Territorial’s customers can benefit from additional choices and rely on the same people they know and respect.
    • Employees will continue to receive competitive compensation and benefits and will have additional career opportunities.
    • We will continue to support and invest in our local communities.

    The Territorial Board Continues to Recommend that Shareholders Vote FOR the Hope Bancorp Merger

    The Territorial Board takes its fiduciary responsibilities seriously. Absent more information from Blue Hill, there is no basis to engage with Blue Hill or reach a determination that their illusory, non-binding, highly conditional preliminary indication of interest is superior, likely to lead to a superior proposal, or is in Territorial shareholders’ best interests.

    In contrast, with Hope Bancorp, we will become part of a larger, more diversified regional bank, unlocking new value creation opportunities for shareholders while building on our more than 100-year legacy of serving and supporting our local Hawai‘i communities.

    We are on a path to complete the Hope Bancorp transaction by the end of this year, subject to the condition that a majority of our shares are voted in favor of it. Your vote is important – no matter how many, or how few, shares you own. Every vote counts.

    So please, join me and the entire Territorial Board and management team by voting FOR the Hope Bancorp merger by internet, phone or mail today.

    Sincerely

    Allan S. Kitagawa
    Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer

    Your Vote Is Important, No Matter How Many or How Few Shares You Own!
    Please take a moment to vote FOR the proposals set forth on the enclosed proxy card — by Internet, telephone toll-free or by signing, dating and returning the enclosed proxy card or voting instruction form. Vote well in advance of the Special Meeting on November 6, 2024 at 8:30 a.m. Hawaiʻi Time. 

    If you have questions about how to vote your shares, please contact: 
    Laurel Hill Advisory Group 

    Call toll-free: (888) 742-1305
    Banks and brokers should call: (516) 933-3100
    Email: info@laurelhill.com


    About Us

    Territorial Bancorp Inc., headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, is the stock holding company for Territorial Savings Bank. Territorial Savings Bank is a state-chartered savings bank which was originally chartered in 1921 by the Territory of Hawaiʻi. Territorial Savings Bank conducts business from its headquarters in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, and has 28 branch offices in the state of Hawaiʻi. For additional information, please visit https://www.tsbhawaii.bank/.

    Additional Information about the Hope Merger and Where to Find It

    In connection with the proposed Hope Merger, Hope has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a Registration Statement on Form S-4, containing the Proxy Prospectus, which has been mailed or otherwise delivered to Territorial’s stockholders on or about August 29, 2024, as supplemented September 12, 2024. Hope and Territorial may file additional relevant materials with the SEC. INVESTORS AND STOCKHOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY PROSPECTUS, AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT ARE FILED OR FURNISHED OR WILL BE FILED OR FURNISHED WITH THE SEC, AS WELL AS ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO THOSE DOCUMENTS, CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN OR WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND RELATED MATTERS. You may obtain any of the documents filed with or furnished to the SEC by Hope or Territorial at no cost from the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Some statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, expectations regarding the low-cost core deposit base, diversification of the loan portfolio, expansion of market share, capital to support growth, strengthened opportunities, enhanced value, geographic expansion, and statements about the proposed transaction being immediately accretive. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements preceded by, followed by or that include the words “will,” “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “estimates” or similar expressions. With respect to any such forward-looking statements, Territorial Bancorp claims the protection provided for in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties. Hope Bancorp’s actual results, performance or achievements may differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements. The closing of the proposed transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, the approval of Territorial Bancorp stockholders, and other customary closing conditions. There is no assurance that such conditions will be met or that the proposed merger will be consummated within the expected time frame, or at all. If the transaction is consummated, factors that may cause actual outcomes to differ from what is expressed or forecasted in these forward-looking statements include, among things: difficulties and delays in integrating Hope Bancorp and Territorial Bancorp and achieving anticipated synergies, cost savings and other benefits from the transaction; higher than anticipated transaction costs; deposit attrition, operating costs, customer loss and business disruption following the merger, including difficulties in maintaining relationships with employees and customers, may be greater than expected; and required governmental approvals of the merger may not be obtained on its proposed terms and schedule, or without regulatory constraints that may limit growth. Other risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: possible further deterioration in economic conditions in Hope Bancorp’s or Territorial Bancorp’s areas of operation or elsewhere; interest rate risk associated with volatile interest rates and related asset-liability matching risk; liquidity risks; risk of significant non-earning assets, and net credit losses that could occur, particularly in times of weak economic conditions or times of rising interest rates; the failure of or changes to assumptions and estimates underlying Hope Bancorp’s or Territorial Bancorp’s allowances for credit losses; potential increases in deposit insurance assessments and regulatory risks associated with current and future regulations; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Hope Bancorp or Territorial Bancorp; the risk that any announcements relating to the proposed transaction could have adverse effects on the market price of the common stock of either or both parties to the proposed transaction; and diversion of management’s attention from ongoing business operations and opportunities. For additional information concerning these and other risk factors, see Hope Bancorp’s and Territorial Bancorp’s most recent Annual Reports on Form 10-K. Hope Bancorp and Territorial Bancorp do not undertake, and specifically disclaim any obligation, to update any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of events or circumstances after the date of such statements except as required by law.

    Investor / Media Contacts:
    Walter Ida
    SVP, Director of Investor Relations
    808-946-1400
    walter.ida@territorialsavings.net

                                                                    

    i Based on Territorial and Hope Bancorp’s closing prices as of 4/26/24 (day before merger announcement)
    ii Based on 0.8048 fixed exchange ratio and Hope Bancorp’s $0.14 current per share dividend

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Australia donates 49 Abrams tanks to Ukraine

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

    Defence Department Supplied Photo

    The Albanese government is giving 49 M1A1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, despite earlier this year apparently playing down the prospect of the donation.

    The latest Australian package is worth A$245 million. It brings the total Australian military aid to Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022 to A$1.3 billion, and overall Australian support to A$1.5 billion.

    When asked about a possible gift of the tanks in February, Defence Minister Richard Marles said it was “not on the agenda”.

    Government sources say donating the tanks required US approval since Australia had purchased them from Washington, so there had been a process to go through.

    Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery Pat Conroy, who is on his way to the NATO defence ministers meeting in Brussels, announced the decision in London. In Brussels, Conroy will meet with the Ukraine defence minister.

    Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea form the “Indo-Pacific Four” group of non-NATO countries attending the meeting.

    The 49 tanks are near the end of their life, so a small number will have to be repaired before they are delivered. Alternatively, they could be used as spare parts if Ukraine wants them delivered more quickly. Ukraine will decide which option to pursue.

    The Australian army is retaining a handful of the M1A1 Abrams to help the transition to the M1A2 fleet of tanks.

    Conroy said: “We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine in their fight against Russia’s illegal invasion. These tanks will deliver more firepower and mobility to the Ukrainian armed forces, and complement the support provided by our partners for Ukraine”.

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

    – ref. Australia donates 49 Abrams tanks to Ukraine – https://theconversation.com/australia-donates-49-abrams-tanks-to-ukraine-241485

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: DigiAsia Corp. and Digit9 Announce Strategic Collaboration

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ~ Enhancing Cross Border Payments ~

    ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates and NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — DigiAsia Corp. (NASDAQ: FAAS) (“DigiAsia” or the “Company”), a leading Fintech as a Service (FaaS) ecosystem provider, has announced a strategic collaboration with Digit9, the cross-border payments orchestration platform developed by LuLu Money Singapore, a wholly owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-based LuLu Financial Holdings.

    The partnership with Digit9 will enhance DigiAsia’s offering and competitiveness in servicing the cross-border payments needs for Indonesian consumers and SMEs in Indonesia and the GCC.

    Further, DigiAsia will be able to leverage Digit9’s wide network of partners and the ability to facilitate cross-border payments in more than 150 markets globally, to create efficient and cost-effective cross-border payment rails to further support Indonesian consumers and SMEs.

    DigiAsia estimates that the partnership with Digit9 will generate an estimated US$250mn volume annually in cross-border payments.

    DigiAsia and Digit9 will continue strategic partnership discussions and look to launch innovative products and services in the cross-border payments space in the near future.

    About DigiAsia

    DigiAsia is a leading Fintech as a Service (FaaS) provider operating a B2B2X model offering its complete Fintech solution in emerging markets. DigiAsia’s fintech architecture offers small and medium business enterprises (SMEs) comprehensive embedded finance APIs to streamline processes across the commerce value chain of distributors and customers. DigiAsia’s embedded fintech solutions equally address democratizing digital finance access that supports financial inclusion of underbanked merchants and consumers in emerging markets resulting in growth for enterprise business. The suite of B2B2X solutions provided by DigiAsia include, but are not limited to, cashless payments, digital wallets, digital banking, remittances and banking licenses. DigiAsia has recently established a strategic initiative to develop its embedded FaaS enterprise solution with AI capabilities in Southeast Asia, India, and the Middle East, with plans for global expansion. For more information, please visit DigiAsia’s Corporate website here or Investor Relations website here.

    About Digit9

    Digit9 is a payments orchestration platform tailored to meet the diverse needs of financial institutions. It seamlessly integrates an array of payment methods, banks, and service providers, simplifying the complexities of cross-border payments. Digit9 has been developed by LuLu Money Singapore, a wholly owned subsidiary of LuLu Financial Holdings.

    About LuLu Financial Holdings

    LuLu Financial Holdings is a leading global financial services provider, offering a wide range of services including cross-border payments, currency exchange, and financial technology solutions. With over 350 customer engagement centers in over 10 countries and a commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction, LuLu Financial Holdings continues to set benchmarks in the financial services industry.

    Forward-Looking Statements:

    This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “project”, “targets”, “optimistic”, “confident that”, “continue to”, “predict”, “intend”, “aim”, “will” or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, statements concerning DigiAsia and the Company’s operations, financial performance and condition are based on current expectations, beliefs and assumptions which are subject to change at any time. DigiAsia cautions that these statements by their nature involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially depending on a variety of important factors such as government and stock exchange regulations, competition, political, economic and social conditions around the world including those discussed in DigiAsia’s Form 20-F under the headings “Risk Factors”, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Business Overview” and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. All forward-looking statements are applicable only as of the date it is made and DigiAsia specifically disclaims any obligation to maintain or update the forward-looking information, whether of the nature contained in this release or otherwise, in the future.

    DigiAsia Company Contact:
    Subir Lohani
    Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer
    646-480-0142

    Lulu Financial Holdings Company Contact:
    Ajit Johnson
    Head of Strategic Business Relations
    ajit.johnson@lulufin.com

    Investor Contact:
    MZ North America
    Email: FAAS@mzgroup.us

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Vimeo and the European Film Academy Partner to Celebrate Filmmakers and Bring “Staff Picks” Content to an All-New Audience

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vimeo (NASDAQ: VMEO), the world’s most innovative video platform, is proud to announce its new partnership with the European Film Academy to celebrate the diversity and layered richness of European filmmaking.

    This exciting collaboration builds upon both organizations’ shared mission to celebrate creators as they educate, entertain and inspire audiences worldwide. As part of the partnership, the European Film Academy will provide a new destination for European audiences to discover extraordinary films and filmmakers, including some Vimeo Staff Picks content, on its website. Vimeo will also serve as the exclusive title sponsor of the European Short Film category at the European Film Awards this December, underscoring its dedication to supporting emerging talent and celebrating exceptional creativity within the European film community. The category will be renamed “EUROPEAN SHORT FILM – Prix Vimeo.”

    “We are deeply honored to collaborate with the European Film Academy to celebrate the visionary European filmmakers who are shaping the future of cinema,” said Philip Moyer, CEO of Vimeo. “Europe has been an authentic soul for storytelling for centuries, and the European Short Film Awards is one of the most respected showcases for exceptional new talent within the European film community. Vimeo is committed to supporting European filmmakers with tools, and visibility. We are proud to support the European Film Awards’ short film competition with the EUROPEAN SHORT FILM – Prix Vimeo award, as the organization recognizes and inspires new generations of European filmmakers.”

    The European Film Academy is a long standing customer, using Vimeo’s OTT service to deliver video-on-demand to its members. Vimeo also hosts its European Film Club platform. This expanded partnership introduces exciting new avenues for creative expression and recognition. The European Film Awards’ website will now showcase its weekly selection of European Film Award-nominated short films and Vimeo Staff Picks. This creates an opportunity to celebrate short films all year long and will provide film enthusiasts access to an ever evolving collection of exceptional content.

    Vimeo will also lend its support to the prestigious European short film category of the European Film Awards, taking place on December 7, 2024 in Lucerne, Switzerland.

    “This expanded partnership with Vimeo marks exciting new steps for the European Film Academy,” said Matthijs Wouter Knol, CEO and Director of the European Film Academy. “Together, we can amplify the voices of some of the world’s most talented filmmakers and provide them with an even greater platform for their innovative storytelling to flourish. We are happy to join forces and are particularly thrilled to welcome Vimeo “Staff Picks” to our Awards’ website, offering our members and film enthusiasts a curated selection of exceptional films from the Vimeo community.”

    For more information, please visit: https://www.europeanfilmawards.eu/vimeo/

    About Vimeo

    Vimeo (NASDAQ: VMEO) is the world’s most innovative video experience platform. We enable anyone to create high-quality video experiences to better connect and bring ideas to life. We proudly serve our community of millions of users – from creative storytellers to globally distributed teams at the world’s largest companies – whose videos receive billions of views each month. Learn more at http://www.vimeo.com.

    About the European Film Academy

    The European Film Academy is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and promoting European cinema. Founded in 1988, the Academy seeks to support and connect its 5,000 members and celebrates and promotes their work. Its aims are to share knowledge and to educate audiences of all ages about European cinema. Positioning itself as a leading organisation and facilitating crucial debates within the industry, the Academy strives to unite everyone who loves European cinema, culminating annually in the Month of European Film and the European Film Awards, by including European film heritage in its portfolio and by expanding its focus on young audiences through the European Film Club. Learn more at http://www.europeanfilmacademy.org.

    Contact: 
    Frank Filiatrault
    Director of Communications
    frank.filiatrault@vimeo.co

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: France: Discriminatory algorithm used by the social security agency must be stopped 

    Source: Amnesty International –

    The French authorities must immediately stop the use of a discriminatory risk-scoring algorithm used by the French Social Security Agency’s National Family Allowance Fund (CNAF), which is used to detect overpayments and errors regarding benefit payments, Amnesty International said today.

    On 15 October, Amnesty International and fourteen other coalition partners led by La Quadrature du Net (LQDN) submitted a complaint to the Council of State, the highest administrative court in France, demanding the risk-scoring algorithmic system used by CNAF be stopped.  

    “From the outset, the risk-scoring system used by CNAF treats individuals who experience marginalization – those with disabilities, lone single parents who are mostly women, and those living in poverty – with suspicion. This system operates in direct opposition to human rights standards, violating the right to equality and non-discrimination and the right to privacy,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General at Amnesty International.

    In 2023, La Quadrature du Net (LQDN) got access to versions of the algorithm’s source code – a set of instructions written by programmers to create a software – thereby exposing the discriminatory nature of the system.

    Since 2011, CNAF has used a risk-scoring algorithm to identify people who are potentially committing benefits fraud by receiving overpayments. The algorithm assigns a risk score between zero and one to all recipients of family and housing benefits. The closer the score is to one, the higher the probability of being flagged for investigation.

    Overall, there are 32 million people in France living in households that receive a benefit from CNAF. Their sensitive personal data, as well as that of their family, is processed periodically, and a risk score is assigned.

    The criteria that increase one’s risk score include parameters which discriminate against vulnerable households, including being on a low income, being unemployed, living in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, spending a significant portion of income on rent, and working while having a disability. The details of those who are flagged due to having a high-risk score are compiled into a list that is investigated further by a fraud investigator.

    “While authorities herald the rollout of algorithmic technologies in social protection systems as a way to increase efficiency and detect fraud and errors, in practice, these systems flatten the realities of people’s lives. They work as extensive data-mining tools that stigmatize marginalized groups, and invade their privacy,” said Agnès Callamard.

    Amnesty International did not investigate specific cases of people flagged by the CNAF system. However, our investigations in Netherlands and Serbia suggest that using AI-powered systems and automation in the public sector enables mass surveillance: the amount of data that is collected is disproportionate to the purported aim of the system. Moreover, evidence by Amnesty International also exposed how many of these systems have been quite ineffective at actually doing what they purport to do—whether it be identifying fraud or errors in the benefits system.

    While authorities herald the rollout of algorithmic technologies in social protection systems as a way to increase efficiency and detect fraud and errors, in practice, these systems flatten the realities of people’s lives. They work as extensive data-mining tools that stigmatize marginalized groups, and invade their privacy.

    Agnès Callamard, Secretary General, Amnesty International

    It has also been argued that the scale of errors or fraud in benefits system has been exaggerated to justify the development of such tech systems, often leading to discriminatory or racist or sexist targeting of particular groups, particularly migrants and refugees.

    Over the past year, France has been actively promoting itself internationally as the next hub for artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, culminating in a summit scheduled for February 2025. At the same time, France has also been legalizing mass surveillance technologies and has consistently undermined the EU’s AI Act negotiations.

    “France is relying on a risk-scoring algorithmic system for social benefits that highlights, sustains and enshrines the bureaucracy’s prejudices and discrimination. Instead, France should ensure that it complies with its human rights obligations in the first place that of non-discrimination. The authorities must address current and existing AI-related harms amid the country’s quest to become a global AI hub,” said Agnès Callamard.

    Under the newly adopted European Artificial Intelligence Regulation (AI Act), AI systems used by authorities to determine access to essential public services and benefits are considered to pose high risk to rights, health and safety of people. Therefore, they must meet strict technical, transparency and governance rules, including an obligation on deployers to carry out an assessment of human rights risks and guarantee mitigation measures before deployment.

    In the meantime, certain systems, such as those used for social scoring, are considered to pose unacceptable level of risk and therefore must be banned.

    It is unfortunate that EU lawmakers have been vague in explicitly defining social scoring within the AI Act. The European Commission must ensure that its upcoming guidelines provide a clear and enforceable interpretation of the social scoring ban, especially as it applies to discriminatory fraud detection and risk-scoring systems. 

    Agnès Callamard

    It is currently unclear whether the system used by CNAF qualifies as a social scoring system due to a lack of clarity in the AI Act on what constitutes such a system.

    “It is unfortunate that EU lawmakers have been vague in explicitly defining social scoring within the AI Act. The European Commission must ensure that its upcoming guidelines provide a clear and enforceable interpretation of the social scoring ban, especially as it applies to discriminatory fraud detection and risk-scoring systems,” said Agnès Callamard.

    Regardless of its classification under the AI Act, all evidence suggests that the system used by CNAF is discriminatory. It is essential that authorities stop employing it and scrutinize biased practices that are inherently harmful especially to marginalized communities seeking social benefits.

    Background

    The European Commission will issue guidance on how to interpret the prohibitions in the AI Act prior to their entry into force on 2 February 2025, including what would qualify as social scoring systems.

    In August 2024, the AI Act came into force. Amnesty International, as part of a civil society coalition led by the European Digital Rights Network (EDRi), has been calling for EU artificial intelligence regulation that protects and promotes human rights.

    In March 2024, an Amnesty International briefing outlined how digital technologies including artificial intelligence, automation, and algorithmic decision-making are exacerbating inequalities in social protection systems across the world

    In 2021, Amnesty International’s report Xenophobic Machines exposed how racial profiling was baked into the design of the algorithmic system by the Dutch tax authorities that flagged claims for childcare benefits as potentially fraudulent. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: France: Government must stop using dangerous AI-powered surveillance to tackle benefit fraud

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Authorities must immediately stop using discriminatory algorithm used by the social security agency

    The risk-scoring system treats marginalised individuals with suspicion

    ‘This system operates in direct opposition to human rights standards, violating the right to equality and non-discrimination and the right to privacy’ – Agnès Callamard

    The French authorities must immediately stop the use of a discriminatory risk-scoring algorithm used by the French Social Security Agency’s National Family Allowance Fund (CNAF), which is used to detect overpayments and errors regarding benefit payments, Amnesty International said today. 

    On 15 October, Amnesty and 14 other coalition partners led by La Quadrature du Net (LQDN) submitted a complaint to the Council of State, the highest administrative court in France, demanding the risk-scoring algorithmic system used by CNAF be stopped.

    In 2023, LQDN gained access to versions of the algorithm’s source code – a set of instructions written by programmers to create a software – exposing the discriminatory nature of the system.

    Since 2011, CNAF has used a risk-scoring algorithm to identify people who are potentially committing benefits fraud by receiving overpayments. The algorithm assigns a risk score between zero and one to all recipients of family and housing benefits. The closer the score is to one, the higher the probability of being flagged for investigation.

    Agnès Callamard, Secretary General at Amnesty International, said:

    “From the outset, the risk-scoring system used by CNAF treats individuals who experience marginalisation – those with disabilities, lone single parents who are mostly women, and those living in poverty – with suspicion. This system operates in direct opposition to human rights standards, violating the right to equality and non-discrimination and the right to privacy.

    “While authorities herald the rollout of algorithmic technologies in social protection systems to increase efficiency and detect fraud and errors, in practice, these systems flatten the realities of people’s lives. They work as extensive data-mining tools that stigmatise marginalised groups and invade their privacy.

    “France is relying on a risk-scoring algorithmic system for social benefits that highlights, sustains and enshrines the bureaucracy’s prejudices and discrimination. Instead, France should ensure that it complies with its human rights obligations in the first place that of non-discrimination. The authorities must address current and existing AI-related harms amid the country’s quest to become a global AI hub.”

    Putting people at risk

    There are currently 32 million people in France receiving a benefit from CNAF. Their sensitive personal data, as well as that of their family, is processed periodically, and a risk score is assigned.

    The criteria that increase one’s risk score include parameters which discriminate against vulnerable households, including being on a low income, being unemployed, living in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, spending a significant portion of income on rent, and working while having a disability. The details of those who are flagged due to having a high-risk score are compiled into a list that is investigated further by a fraud investigator. 

    Amnesty did not investigate specific cases of people flagged by the CNAF system. However, its investigations in the Netherlands and Serbia suggest that using AI-powered systems and automation in the public sector enables mass surveillance and the amount of data collected is disproportionate to the purported aim of the system.

    Amnesty has also exposed how many of these systems have been quite ineffective at doing what they purport to do—whether it be identifying fraud or errors in the benefits system. 

    It has also been argued that the scale of errors or fraud in benefits system has been exaggerated to justify the development of such tech systems, often leading to discriminatory or racist or sexist targeting of particular groups – particularly migrants and refugees.

    Over the past year, France has been actively promoting itself internationally as the next hub for  AI technologies, culminating in a summit scheduled for February 2025. At the same time, France has also legalised mass surveillance technologies and consistently undermined the EU’s AI Act negotiations.

    Under the newly adopted European Artificial Intelligence Regulation (AI Act), AI systems used by authorities to determine access to essential public services and benefits are considered to pose high risk to rights, health and safety of people. Therefore, they must meet strict technical, transparency and governance rules, including an obligation on deployers to carry out an assessment of human rights risks and guarantee mitigation measures before deployment. 

    In the meantime, certain systems, such as those used for social scoring, are considered to pose unacceptable level of risk and therefore must be banned.

    It is currently unclear whether the system used by CNAF qualifies as a social scoring system due to a lack of clarity in the AI Act on what constitutes such a system. 

    Regardless of its classification however, all evidence suggests that the system is discriminatory. It is essential that authorities stop employing it and scrutinise biased practices that are inherently harmful – especially to marginalised communities seeking social benefits.

    Regulation and algorithms of discrimination

    The European Commission will issue guidance on how to interpret the prohibitions in the AI Act prior to their entry into force on 2 February 2025, including what would qualify as social scoring systems.

    In August 2024, the AI Act came into force. Amnesty, as part of a civil society coalition led by the European Digital Rights Network, has been calling for EU artificial intelligence regulation that protects and promotes human rights.

    In March this year, an Amnesty briefing outlined how digital technologies including artificial intelligence, automation, and algorithmic decision-making are exacerbating inequalities in social protection systems across the world.

    In 2021, Amnesty’s report Xenophobic Machines exposed how racial profiling was baked into the design of the algorithmic system by the Dutch tax authorities that flagged claims for childcare benefits as potentially fraudulent. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI: Gilat Satellite Networks to Present at the 17th Annual LD Micro Invitational Conference

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PETAH TIKVA, Israel, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ, TASE: GILT), a worldwide leader in satellite networking technology, solutions, and services, announced today that it will be presenting at the 17th annual LD Micro Invitational on Wednesday, October 30, at 8 am PT at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles. Gil Benyamini, Chief Financial Officer, will be giving the Gilat presentation.

    In addition, Mr. Benyamini, Gilat’s CFO and Ms. Mayrav Sher (Head of Finance & IR) will be available for one-on-one meetings with investors throughout the conference days. To schedule a meeting please contact an LD Micro representative or email a request to the Gilat investor relations team at Mayravs@gilat.com.

    We invite interested parties to register to watch the presentation remotely at Here.

    About LD Micro
    LD Micro, a wholly owned subsidiary of Freedom US Markets, was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the micro-cap space. Whether it is the Index, comprehensive data, or hosting the most significant events annually, LD’s sole mission is to serve as an invaluable asset for all those interested in finding the next generation of great companies. For more information on LD Micro, visit http://www.ldmicro.com.

    Please reach out to the company representative below or Dean Summers (dean@ldmicro.com) to register for the event and schedule a meeting with the company.

    To learn more about Freedom US Markets, visit http://www.freedomusmkts.com.

    About Gilat 
    Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ: GILT, TASE: GILT) is a leading global provider of satellite-based broadband communications. With over 35 years of experience, we create and deliver deep technology solutions for satellite, ground, and new space connectivity and provide comprehensive, secure end-to-end solutions and services for mission-critical operations, powered by our innovative technology. We believe in the right of all people to be connected and are united in our resolution to provide communication solutions to all reaches of the world.

    Our portfolio includes a diverse offering to deliver high-value solutions for multiple orbit constellations with very high throughput satellites (VHTS) and software-defined satellites (SDS). Our offering is comprised of a cloud-based platform and high-performance satellite terminals; high-performance Satellite On-the-Move (SOTM) antennas; highly efficient, high-power Solid State Power Amplifiers (SSPA) and Block Upconverters (BUC) and includes integrated ground systems for commercial and defense, field services, network management software, and cybersecurity services.

    Gilat’s comprehensive offering supports multiple applications with a full portfolio of products and tailored solutions to address key applications including broadband access, mobility, cellular backhaul, enterprise, defense, aerospace, broadcast, government, and critical infrastructure clients all while meeting the most stringent service level requirements. For more information, please visit: http://www.gilat.com 

    Certain statements made herein that are not historical are forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “estimate”, “project”, “intend”, “expect”, “believe” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Gilat to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, among others, changes in general economic and business conditions, inability to maintain market acceptance to Gilat’s products, inability to timely develop and introduce new technologies, products and applications, rapid changes in the market for Gilat’s products, loss of market share and pressure on prices resulting from competition, introduction of competing products by other companies, inability to manage growth and expansion, loss of key OEM partners, inability to attract and retain qualified personnel, inability to protect the Company’s proprietary technology and risks associated with Gilat’s international operations and its location in Israel, including those related to the current terrorist attacks by Hamas, and the war and hostilities between Israel and Hamas and Israel and Hezbollah. For additional information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties associated with Gilat’s business, reference is made to Gilat’s reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements for any reason.

    Contact: 
    Gilat Satellite Networks
    Hagay Katz, Chief Products and Marketing Officer 
    hagayk@gilat.com

    Gilat Satellite Networks
    Mayrav Sher, Head of Finance and Investor Relations 
    mayravs@gilat.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: LanzaTech Awarded $3 Million from U.S. Department of Energy to Advance Conversion of Waste CO2 into Valuable Chemicals

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — LanzaTech Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: LNZA) (“LanzaTech” or the “Company”), the carbon recycling company transforming waste carbon into sustainable fuels, chemicals, materials, and protein, has been awarded $3 million by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), as part of a broader $29 million investment program to advance its carbon management priorities. LanzaTech’s Project ADAPT (“Accelerating Decarbonization via Advanced Production Technologies”) was selected to address FECM’s priority of converting carbon dioxide (CO2) into environmentally responsible and economically valuable products.

    LanzaTech’s Project ADAPT builds upon the Company’s existing capabilities of using CO2 as a feedstock to produce isopropanol at a pilot scale and aims to advance the process and platform with the following key focus areas:

    1. Versatility in Feedstock Use: Enhancing the platform’s ability to process a range of gas mixes with CO2
    2. Microbial Strain Optimization: Employing advanced gene-editing techniques to develop tailored microbial production strains for making isopropanol and other prevalent chemicals
    3. Cost and Efficiency Improvements: Refining the end-to-end process to be more cost-effective, efficient, and more robust

    Isopropanol is a common alcohol used in an array of everyday products such as cleaning agents and is also a precursor to the propylene value chain. Propylene, which is a building block for packaging, medical supplies, automotive products, among many other applications, has a thriving demand market that is projected to approach $150 billion and 180 million tons by 2030. Importantly, isopropanol production has the ability to achieve greenhouse gas savings of over 200% when produced from recycled CO2 instead of fossil carbon, and a non-fossil commercial production pathway does not exist today.

    Project ADAPT will primarily be funded by the FECM investment of $3 million and includes a Company funded cost share portion of approximately $0.8 million, totaling an estimated project cost of $3.8 million. Revenue and costs related to this project will be reported as Joint Development Agreement and Contract Research results for LanzaTech, and the majority of revenue is expected to be received and benefit financial results in 2025 and 2026.

    “We are thrilled to receive this support from the U.S. Department of Energy to progress our work around scaling the conversion of waste CO2 to make some of the world’s most needed chemicals,” said Dr. Jennifer Holmgren, CEO of LanzaTech. “CO2 is an essential feedstock of today and the future, and Project ADAPT leverages our expertise and existing operations to accelerate the commercialization of transformational carbon capture and utilization technologies that deliver cleaner and more sustainable energy and products.”

    The projects supported by FECM’s investment program are in keeping with the Biden-Harris Administration’s aggressive climate ambitions of reaching a carbon-neutral power sector by 2035 and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

    About LanzaTech
    LanzaTech Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: LNZA) is the carbon recycling company transforming waste carbon into sustainable fuels, chemicals, materials, and protein for everyday products. Using its biorecycling technology, LanzaTech captures carbon generated by energy-intensive industries at the source, preventing it from being emitted into the air. LanzaTech then gives that captured carbon a new life as a clean replacement for virgin fossil carbon in everything from household cleaners and clothing fibers to packaging and fuels. By partnering with companies across the global supply chain like ArcelorMittal, Zara, H&M Move, Coty, On, and LanzaJet, LanzaTech is paving the way for a circular carbon economy. For more information about LanzaTech, visit https://lanzatech.com.

    Forward Looking Statements
    This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding, among other things, the plans, strategies, and prospects, both business and financial, of LanzaTech. These statements are based on the beliefs, assumptions, projections and conclusions of LanzaTech’s management. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, many of which are outside LanzaTech’s control, that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. LanzaTech cannot assure you that it will achieve or realize these plans, intentions or expectations. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, conditions or results, and you should not rely on forward-looking statements.

    Generally, statements that are not historical facts, including those concerning possible or assumed future actions, business strategies, events or results of operations, are forward-looking statements. These statements may be preceded by, followed by or include the words “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “projects,” “forecasts,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seeks,” “plans,” “scheduled,” “anticipates,” “intends” or similar expressions. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following:

    • Timing delays in the advancement of projects to the final investment decision stage or into construction;
    • Failure by customers to adopt new technologies and platforms;
    • Fluctuations in the availability and cost of feedstocks and other process inputs; • The availability and continuation of government funding and support;
    • Broader economic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, supply chain disruptions, employment conditions, and competitive pressures;
    • Unforeseen technical, regulatory, or commercial challenges in scaling proprietary technologies, business functions or operational disruptions; and
    • Other economic, business, or competitive factors, and other risks and uncertainties, including the risk factors and other information contained in LanzaTech’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as other existing and future filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

    Any forward-looking statement herein is based only on information currently available to LanzaTech and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. LanzaTech undertakes no obligations to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

    LanzaTech Global, Inc.

    Investor Relations
    Kate Walsh
    VP, Investor Relations & Tax
    Investor.Relations@lanzatech.com

    Media Relations
    Kit McDonnell
    Director of Communications
    press@lanzatech.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: NSU presented the program of the upcoming scientific and production forum “Golden Valley” at the TASS press center

    MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

    Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –

    Today, a press conference dedicated to the upcoming Golden Valley forum was held at the TASS press center in Novosibirsk.

    Rector of NSU, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail Fedoruk, speaking about the reasons for holding the forum, noted:

    — Now, due to the development of the university, due to the fact that it has significantly expanded in scale and in the number of faculties, students and the projects that it carries out, it plays the role of a center of attraction on the territory of the Novosibirsk Scientific Center. This is facilitated by the university’s participation in all key federal development programs, such as “Priority 2030”, Advanced Engineering Schools, Creation of a Network of Modern Campuses, etc. The university is beginning to more actively position itself as a leading educational and scientific-technological center. Therefore, we are holding the second forum, which brings together large enterprises and scientific organizations. The goal of the forum is to strengthen and develop the university’s interaction with industrial partners and in the future to attract them to joint developments and technologies already based on the university.

    Next, Alexander Lyulko, Director of the Center for Interaction with Government Authorities and Industrial Partners of NSU, spoke in more detail about the forum program. This year it includes a business part – these are plenary sessions and sections on various topics; an exhibition of projects, technologies and developments; negotiations (a platform for signing agreements and contracts between forum participants); and a cultural and entertainment program with a scientific twist.

    There will be two plenary sessions within the framework of the “Golden Valley”: on the first day – on the topic “Requests of the real sector of the economy for the creation of new technologies”; on the second day – on the topic “Scientific developments for industry”. Within the framework of the second session, developments of NSU and scientific organizations of Akademgorodok, which may be of interest to industrial partners, will be presented.

    The forum will have 8 sections: Aviation; Unmanned systems; Mechanical engineering. Instrument making; Artificial intelligence in industry and robotics; Energy; Smart city technologies. Construction; Agriculture; Medicine; and a round table “Personnel for industry” will also be held.

    Among the key speakers from government and business: Sergey Semka, Deputy Governor of the Novosibirsk Region; Vadim Vasiliev, Minister of Science and Innovation Policy of the Novosibirsk Region; Sergey Tsukar, Minister of Digital Development and Communications of the Novosibirsk Region; Anna Korotchenkova, Vice President for Technology at AFK Sistema; Viktor Slavyantsev, Head of Highest Category Innovative Development Projects at Rostec State Corporation; Evgeny Pavlov, Head of Innovative Development Department at United Engine Corporation; Konstantin Kotlyarov, Head of R&D at AvtoVAZ, etc.

    On behalf of the scientific community: Aleksandr Rumyantsev, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, President of the Dmitry Rogachev National Medical Research Center for Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology of the Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation, State Duma Deputy; Sergey Alekseenko, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Scientific Director of the Institute of Thermophysics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Mikhail Voevoda, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Deputy Chairman of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Federal Research Center for Fundamental and Translational Medicine; Aleksandr Latyshev, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Semiconductor Physics; Dmitry Markovich, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, First Deputy Chairman of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Thermophysics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Sergey Netyosov, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Head of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Virology, NSU Natural Sciences Department; Sergey Abin, Director of the Institute of Automation and Electrometry, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Dmitry Kudlai, Vice President for the Implementation of New Medical Technologies at Generium JSC, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and others.

    This year, the forum program will be expanded with satellite events. This is primarily a technology exhibition, where NSU will present its developments, as well as a tour of the university’s innovation centers and laboratories. Also, over the course of three days, the NSU career forum will be held, which will bring together major employers interested in collaborating with the university.

    The Golden Valley will host strategic sessions on the following topics: “Digital Transformation: Artificial Intelligence in Solving Public Sector Problems”, which will be chaired by Sergey Tsukar, Minister of Digital Development and Communications of the Novosibirsk Region; “Chemical Technologies and Deep Processing of Raw Materials” (organized by the Interregional Association “Siberian Agreement”); “Development of Entrepreneurship Technologies in Universities in the Interests of Industry”.

    The forum is expected to see the signing of a number of agreements between NSU and industrial partners on joint developments, the implementation of projects in the field of introducing new technologies, including artificial intelligence, and the creation of consortiums and associations to solve industry problems.

    We remind you that the forum is held with the support of the Office of the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Siberian Federal District, the Interregional Association “Siberian Agreement”, the Government of the Novosibirsk Region, the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Council of Rectors of Universities of the City of Novosibirsk and the Technopark of the Novosibirsk Akademgorodok.

    The Forum’s Program Committee is headed by the Rector of NSU, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences M.P. Fedoruk. It includes the Chairman of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Academician V.N. Parmon, ministers of the Novosibirsk Region government, heads of leading institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences, directors of industrial enterprises, the Chairman of the Council of Rectors of Universities, representatives of the largest state corporations – Rostec, Rosatom, UEC, government bodies, academic institutes, development institutes of Novosibirsk and other Russian cities.

    All information about the forum, current program, news are presented on the website: http://zd.nsu.ru/

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

    Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    http://vvv.nsu.ru/n/media/nevs/science/ngu-presented-the-program-of-the-upcoming-scientific-production-forum-golden-valley-in-press-ts/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Improving our public realm to boost economic growth

    Source: City of Birmingham

    Published: Wednesday, 16th October 2024

    Improvements to the city centre public realm continues with the completion of groundworks in Victoria Square and pedestrianised zone in Waterloo Street.

    Funding has come from the government’s Transforming Cities Fund via the West Midlands Combined Authority (£4m), as well as money from the city council’s Clean Air Zone revenue (£8.3m) and just under half a million pounds from the city council’s general fund.

    The scheme began with the successful restoration of The River water feature prior to the Commonwealth Games and continued with the wider works with the support of residents and businesses within Colmore Row, Waterloo Street and Victoria Square.

    The scheme aims to provide greater priority for pedestrians and cyclists and enhanced signage and wayfinding in the city centre.

    Cllr Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for transport and environment, said: “This project is really important for economic growth within the area, giving businesses within the pedestrian zone the additional spaces for outdoor hospitality which has become a wonderful asset for the city centre. Prioritising pedestrians is a really important part of our transport strategy and this project creates an attractive, welcoming and safe environment for citizens and visitors to enjoy.”

    The is also protected by ‘hostile vehicle mitigation’, providing security for all events held within the civic spaces.

    Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands and chair of the WMCA, said: “It’s no secret that the hospitality industry has faced some tough challenges since the pandemic – only this week we have seen the loss of one of the city’s best restaurants – Purnells.

    “A more continental-style, alfresco experience, free from passing traffic can help attract more customers to this part of the city and that has to be a good thing for hospitality businesses and the people they employ.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Polytechnicians at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum

    MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Last week, the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum 2024 (SPIGF-2024) was held at the ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre, in the exhibition and scientific-business programme of which the Polytechnic University traditionally takes an active part.

    The forum visitors were able to get to know the university better in the Polytechnic’s unified catalogue. More than eight pages were devoted to the main areas of activity of the Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Materials and Transport.

    SPIGF is one of the key global events in the gas industry. The participation of Polytechnic divisions in the exhibition program of the forum opened up a wide range of opportunities for meeting potential customers and exchanging experience, says Anatoly Popovich, Director of IMMiT.

    Specialists from the Laser and Additive Technologies Research Laboratory (LIAT) at IMMiT presented their developments at the Polytechnic stand: components of the hot tract of gas turbine engines repaired by laser cladding, 7 and 10 mm thick samples welded in one pass without edge preparation using laser welding and hybrid laser-arc welding, and the mobile laser cladding complex “Nomad”, designed to restore large-sized products on the customer’s premises.

    If for some reason the enterprise cannot bring the product to the laboratory, then its specialists go to the site with a mobile complex. At the moment, they have already restored four rotors of the GTK-10-4 gas pumping units. In the laboratory itself, the “Nomad” is also used for laser welding and restoration of smaller products.

    The forum’s rich program brought together all the most advanced and significant areas of the industry. The opportunity to present the developments of the research laboratory at the forum made a significant contribution to determining the optimal scenarios for the further development vector of the division, – shared Mikhail Kuznetsov, head of the Scientific Research Laboratory “LiAT” of IMMIT SPbPU.

    The Institute of Industrial Management, Economics and Trade presented educational programs created and implemented in partnership with PJSC Gazprom and its subsidiaries at the SPbPU exhibition stand: two master’s programs and two programs of additional professional education. The master’s program “IT Economics and Business Analysis” is a corporate master’s program of the university and Gazprom Neft, aimed at training specialists in the field of business analysis. This master’s program is reinforced by modules of specialized focus and project activities within the framework of research work built on business cases of Gazprom Neft. At the forum, we productively discussed with our partners strategic plans for the development of new corporate educational programs and other areas of joint activity taking into account current changes in the economy, – said Irina Rudskaya, Director of the Scientific and Educational Center for Information Technology and Business Analysis of Gazprom Neft.

    The Master’s program “Human Resources Management and Organizational Development”, created and implemented jointly with Gazprom Gazifikatsiya with the information and status support of the presidential platform of the ANO “Russia – Country of Opportunities”, was presented by the Higher School of Industrial Management of IPMEiT. The program was developed based on practical tasks and requests of the university’s corporate partners and is aimed at training specialists capable of implementing organizational design at all stages of the company’s life cycle, forming the company’s HR brand, developing and implementing a human resource management strategy based on building individual personnel development trajectories.

    This year, together with our partners Gazprom Gazifikatsiya, Gazprom Pitanie and the Russia — Land of Opportunities platform, with grant support from Gazprom, we created six online courses that we modularly integrated into the program’s curriculum, explained Olga Kalinina, Director of the Higher School of Industrial Management.

    Based on the created online courses, IPMEiT also presented two continuing education programs on motivation, personnel selection and personnel branding, developed for specialists in the field of HR management and heads of structural divisions of the oil and gas and energy industries. The presentation of the continuing education programs was attended by a student of the master’s program “Digital Business Management”, specialist of the personnel efficiency support group of Gazprom Neft exploration and production Ekaterina Khodarkevich, and a student of the bachelor’s program “Oil and Gas Enterprise Management”, an employee of the marketing department of Gazpromneft-SM Daniil Guryev.

    Professor of the Higher School of Industrial Management Alexander Ilyinsky took part in the round table of the Energy Initiative “International Business Congress” on the topic “Promising technologies for monetizing natural gas and ensuring energy security”. Alexander Ilyinsky also held business negotiations with the General Director of Gazprom Flot Yuri Shamalov, where they discussed promising areas of cooperation in the field of educational and scientific activities.

    Aleksandr Volkov, a practicing teacher, associate professor at the Higher School of Industrial Management, and CEO of the Grand Media Service communications agency, moderated the conference “Gas Industry Companies in New Realities: How to Be Most Effective in PR and Digital Communications?” and gave a presentation on a proven tool for comprehensive promotion in the gas industry, Public Performance. Among the audience were students from the Higher School of Industrial Management studying in the educational programs “Marketing” and “Oil and Gas Enterprise Management”.

    Students of the Higher School of Engineering and Economics took part in the round table “Distributed generation as a solution to the problems of energy-deficient regions”, where the prospects for implementing innovative solutions for distributed generation were discussed: own generation of electricity and heat supply.

    Students of the Higher School of Administrative Management, led by the head of the IPMEiT Directorate, Associate Professor of the Higher School of Administrative Management Maxim Ivanov, attended the conference “New Technologies for the Oil and Gas Industry”, the panel session “Technological Leadership: New Horizons” and the round table “Current Issues of Legislative Support for the Oil and Gas Industry”. They got acquainted with samples of modern equipment and advanced technologies at the RosGazExpo exhibition, an exposition of the subjects of the Russian Federation, which presented projects demonstrating their potential in the oil and gas sector.

    Such forums captivate with their scale and friendly, but at the same time businesslike atmosphere. The stand of the Polytechnic University stood out from the rest and attracted many visitors, it was impressive. We went around the stands that were related not only to the oil and gas industry, but also to the agricultural, transport industry and to the specialization of various regions of Russia. We learned that many representatives of large companies are graduates of the Polytechnic University, and, of course, they were happy to tell us about their work, – the students of the Higher School of Economics shared their impressions.

    Students of the Higher School of Industrial Management of the educational programs “Industrial Management (Energy)” and “Management of Oil and Gas Enterprises” together with teachers Olga Konovalova and Vyacheslav Melekhin participated in the round table “Union of Science and Industry in the Transformation of the World Energy Market”, where current issues and trends in the development of the international energy market, transformation of the gas market, the role of international cooperation and joint educational programs were discussed.

    The Gas Forum is certainly a large-scale event that has become a platform for demonstrating the technological and innovative capabilities of the domestic industry. For our students, this is an invaluable experience of participating in one of the most important events in the Russian economy, says Olga Konovalova, associate professor at the Higher School of Management and Management.

    Students of IPMEiT demonstrated significant results in the Virtual Academy from Gazprom. From June 3 to July 15, as part of the preparation for the SPIGF-2024 Youth Day, an educational program and selection round of the Virtual Academy project were held. This year, more than 130 candidates from 30 countries representing 45 universities participated in it. The Virtual Academy program included lectures in English by leading experts and scientists in the field of energy and information technology. Participants completed individual tasks and submitted them for expert assessment. As a result of the competitive selection, only 30 candidates with the best results received an invitation to the Youth Day. Among them, three students of the Higher School of Industrial Management: Nikita Kuznetsov and Leonid Alkhimovich (Bachelor’s program “International Business”) and Arab Yusof Abad Mohammad (international program “Development of International Business”). Moreover, Nikita Kuznetsov’s team, where he was the captain, took first place based on the results of participation in the case.

    This year, our institute made its small contribution to the work of the Polytechnic University at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum. We prepared for individual events in advance, planned the participation of both adult colleagues-teachers and students. We paid special attention to the preparation of those students who already work in oil and gas and energy companies, undergo practical training or internships there, – noted the director of IPMEiT Vladimir Shchepinin.

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

    Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    https://vvv.spbstu.ru/media/nevs/partnership/polytechnics-at-the-Petersburg-international-gas-forum/

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Recruitment of Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland invites applications for the appointment of a new Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner.

    The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland invites applications for the appointment of a new Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner. 

    Further details about the role of Commissioner, including terms of appointment and an application pack are available for download at:

    https://apply-for-public-appointment.service.gov.uk/roles/8403

    Alternatively, an application pack or alternative formats can be requested by email to NIVC2024@nio.gov.uk. 

    Applications should be submitted via the ‘Apply Online’ function on the Cabinet Office Website where possible:  http://publicappointments.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/

    The closing date for applications is 1 November 2024 at 4pm. Late or incomplete applications will not be accepted.

    Equality of Opportunity

    We welcome applications from all suitably experienced individuals regardless of ethnicity, religion or belief, political opinion, gender, sexual orientation, age, and disability.

    Updates to this page

    Published 16 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Goonhilly to boost deep space communications capacity 

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Goonhilly will provide deep space communications services to the UK Space Agency and international partners from Cornwall, under a new contract.

    Goonhilly Earth Station

    Goonhilly Earth Station Ltd (Goonhilly) will provide deep space communications services to the UK Space Agency and international partners from its satellite Earth station in Cornwall, under a new contract announced today (16 October) during the International Astronautical Congress in Milan.  

    Space agencies and companies use a global network of large antennas to communicate with, and transfer data between, their spacecraft and controllers on Earth. As the numbers of space missions beyond Earth orbit – to destinations including the Moon – increase, the capacity of these existing services is reaching their limit.  

    Several of the world’s space agencies already share resources to cope with high demand, but this issue is predicted to deteriorate with the increase in robotic and human activity around the Moon. 

    The UK is in a unique position to provide increased capacity through facilities like Goonhilly, which is the world’s most experienced provider of commercial lunar and deep space communications services. Since 2021, Goonhilly has supported over 17 spacecraft beyond geostationary orbit, including CubeSats deployed on the Artemis-I mission. Goonhilly has also provided services for international organisations, including ESA, ISRO, and Intuitive Machines. 

    Minister for Data Protection and Telecoms, Sir Chris Bryant, said:  

    Just as digital infrastructure helps us stay connected here on Earth, this government-backed contract will play a vital role in supporting humanity’s next steps to the Moon and beyond.  

    The UK has a real competitive advantage in space and I want to exploit that to its full potential, using innovative commercial models such as those demonstrated by Goonhilly and the UK Space Agency to attract more investment, generate high-quality jobs and support our international partners.

    This new agreement between the UK Space Agency and Goonhilly will help expand existing UK capabilities, unlock new and emerging markets and support the growth of the fledgling lunar economy. It will support Goonhilly to provide more services to international agencies and companies to help them cope with the increasing global demand for deep space communications. The contract is task-based and worth up to an initial £2 million this financial year.  

    Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency, said: 

    Our work with Goonhilly is a great example of how the UK can benefit from the commercial opportunities associated with developing the nascent lunar and deep space economy. This contract award signals a step change in how we use different tools as a government agency to support the growing space sector and strengthen international partnerships.  

    Earth ground stations will play an increasingly important role in every part of the sector, from supporting major UK-led missions such as TRUTHS and Moonlight to enabling the next generation of broadband connectivity in low Earth orbit. Developing this critical capability will help meet both our national and international ambitions in space.

    Goonhilly Earth Station.

    With the rapid rise in lunar missions, including upcoming examples like Intuitive Machines’ IM-2, Astrobotic’s Griffin Mission One, and NASA’s Artemis-II, the UK Space Agency recognises the potential for Goonhilly’s advanced capabilities to ensure that deep space networks are able to support increasing demand for communications services.  

    The UK Space Agency and Goonhilly will work with new international partners to showcase the quality of Goonhilly’s state-of-the-art assets, robust processes, and expert team, initially demonstrating  downlink telemetry and navigation services, with a long-term goal of providing uplink services to control spacecraft in flight – services Goonhilly has already successfully provided for a number of high profile missions. 

    Executive Director of UKspace, Colin Baldwin, said:

    Goonhilly Earth Station has pioneered commercial deep space communications capabilities in the UK. This agreement will put the UK at the heart of international missions to the Moon and Mars, and will continue to give us a seat at the top table of space faring nations.

    As a founding member of the European Space Agency with strong international ties beyond Europe, the UK wants to play a leading role in addressing this issue facing the global space sector, while supporting the development of new commercial models and national capabilites, and attracting more investment into the growing sector.  

    Matthew Cosby, CTO, Goonhilly Earth Station:  

    Goonhilly is at the forefront of commercial lunar and deep space communication services, providing vital infrastructure and expertise that supports international missions to the Moon and beyond.

    As the demand for deep space communications continues to grow, this new contract enables us to expand our capacity, support more missions, and play a key role in the next chapter of space exploration. We are excited to be contributing to the global space ecosystem and strengthening the UK’s leadership in this critical area.

    Goonhilly is at the heart of a growing cluster of 300 space organisations in Cornwall and the South West of England, which generate an annual income of £600 million and employ 3,200 people.

    Updates to this page

    Published 16 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Change of His Majesty’s High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3

    Mr Jon Dean has been appointed British High Commissioner to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in succession to Ms Harriet Cross who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment. Mr Dean will take up his appointment during December 2024.

    Mr Jon Dean

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Jon Mark Dean

    2022 to 2024 N’Djamena, His Majesty’s Ambassador
    2020 to 2022 New York, Counsellor Internal
    2018 to 2020 United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, Secondment, New York
    2015 to 2018 FCO, Head of Iraq Team, Middle East and North Africa Directorate
    2013 to 2015  Juba, Deputy Head of Mission and Consul
    2013 Yaoundé, Deputy High Commissioner and Consul (3 months)
    2012 New York, UK Permanent Mission to the United Nations, Second Secretary Political (3 months)
    2009 to 2012 Brasília, Second Secretary Political
    2007 to 2008 FCO, Desk Officer, Kosovo
    2005 to 2007 FCO, Desk Officer, EU Environment Policy
    2005 Joined FCO

    Media enquiries

    Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

    Telephone 020 7008 3100

    Contact the FCDO Communication Team via email (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

    Updates to this page

    Published 16 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Training course on market access for governments acceding to WTO concludes in Geneva

    Source: WTO

    Headline: Training course on market access for governments acceding to WTO concludes in Geneva

    The governments represented were Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belarus, Bhutan, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Participants were given guidance on how to prepare initial goods offers, consolidate bilateral market access agreements and verify schedules of concessions and commitments on goods.
    Speaking at the opening session, the Director of the WTO Accessions Division Maika Oshikawa emphasised the importance of the training programme in strengthening acceding governments’ negotiation capacities. “Managing market access negotiations on goods alone can be a challenging task, even for the biggest economies with capacities,” she told participants. “This training is designed not only to equip you to start negotiations but, more importantly, to successfully conclude them.”
    The curriculum included lectures and interactive exercises organized by WTO experts. A roundtable took place with representatives of selected WTO members active in accessions and another with negotiators from recently acceded governments. The objective was to gain insights on market access negotiations with specific WTO members, known as “bilateral negotiations”. Participants also simulated the negotiation of bilateral market access agreements on goods.
    Participating in the course was Bokhodirjon Bobokulov, Chief Inspector at Uzbekistan’s State Customs Committee, who said: “I gained practical knowledge on negotiating market access, analysing non-tariff barriers and aligning trade policies with WTO principles. This training has equipped me with essential tools to engage more effectively in international trade discussions.”
    Another course participant, Sharmarke Abdi Jama, Senior Trade Advisor in the Office of the President of Somalia, underlined the importance of preparation and strategy in market access negotiations: “The course significantly enhanced my understanding of tariff schedules and taught me how to find a balance when it comes to stakeholders’ interests in the negotiations, while also aligning with global trade rules. The combination of theoretical insights and practical exercises will be particularly beneficial to my work.”
    Also taking part in the course was Diveen Abduraheem, Head of the Trade in Goods Division at Iraq’s Ministry of Trade. Underscoring the comprehensive nature of the training programme, she stressed: “Through this course, I improved my understanding of WTO rules and trade agreements. It enhanced my negotiation skills and taught me how to analyse trade data effectively. Overall, the course has prepared me for real-world trade negotiations.”
    A training course on navigating WTO rules in accession negotiations took place in December 2023.

    Share

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Government funding secured to bring forward disused site for new homes 16 October 2024 Isle of Wight Council secures government funding to bring forward disused site for housing

    Source: Aisle of Wight

    The Isle of Wight Council has been awarded £150,000 to help bring forward a prime brownfield site for development.

    The windfall will be used to demolish the former police station in Fairlee Road, Newport, and prepare the council-owned site so that it is ready for the building of up to ten new homes.

    The funding comes from the government’s Brownfield Land Release Fund which supports councils in unlocking small and medium sites that have been previously developed and where viability issues due to abnormal costs, such as site levelling, demolition, and groundworks, are likely to prevent their future development.

    Councillor Ian Stephens, deputy leader and Cabinet member for housing and finance, said: “We are delighted to have secured funding from the Brownfield Land Release Fund.

    “This will enable us to demolish a disused building, in a prime location close to the town centre. The cleared site will speed up the delivery time for much needed new homes.”

    Council leader, Councillor Phil Jordan, added: “This scheme, using government funding, is part of a wider council project to deliver homes for residents of the Isle of Wight.

    “In clearing this site in preparation for housing, we are enabling another development to be built on and provide the homes we desperately need.

    “This is the third site we have obtained government funding for and along with other sites we are bringing forward for provision, are positively adding to the housing availability numbers on this Island at a time when demand is outstripping supply.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: YieldMax™ ETFs Announces Distributions on FIAT (105.76%), CONY (101.35%), ULTY (100.99%), YMAX (51.97%), YMAG (62.33%) and Others

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO and MILWAUKEE and NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — YieldMax™ today announced distributions for the YieldMax™ ETFs listed in the table below.

    ETF
    Ticker    1    		 ETF Name Reference
    Asset    		 Distribution
    per Share    		 Distribution
    Frequency    		 Distribution
    Rate    2,4,5    		 30-Day
    SEC Yield    3    		 Ex-Date &
    Record Date    		 Payment
    Date
    YMAX YieldMax™ Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs Multiple $0.1747 Weekly 51.97% 62.93% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    YMAG YieldMax™ Magnificent 7 Fund of Option Income ETFs Multiple $0.2261 Weekly 62.33% 50.85% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    CONY YieldMax™ COIN Option Income Strategy ETF COIN $1.1098 Every 4 Weeks 101.35% 3.70% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    FIAT   YieldMax™ Short COIN Option Income Strategy ETF COIN $1.4513 Every 4 Weeks 105.76% 3.22% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    MSFO YieldMax™ MSFT Option Income Strategy ETF MSFT $0.5077 Every 4 Weeks 33.76% 3.33% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    AMDY YieldMax™ AMD Option Income Strategy ETF AMD $0.9212 Every 4 Weeks 84.48% 3.24% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    NFLY YieldMax™ NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF NFLX $0.7929 Every 4 Weeks 59.84% 3.45% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    ABNY YieldMax™ ABNB Option Income Strategy ETF ABNB $0.8003 Every 4 Weeks 61.67% 2.84% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    PYPY YieldMax™ PYPL Option Income Strategy ETF PYPL $1.1042 Every 4 Weeks 75.73% 2.94% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    ULTY YieldMax™ Ultra Option Income Strategy ETF Multiple $0.8267 Every 4 Weeks 100.99% 0.00% 10/17/2024 10/18/2024
    Scheduled for next week: YMAX YMAG MSTY YQQQ AMZY APLY AIYY DISO SQY SMCY


    The performance data quoted above represents past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when sold or redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost and current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted above. Performance current to the most recent month-end can be obtained by calling     (833) 378-0717.

    Note: DIPS, FIAT, CRSH and YQQQ are hereinafter referred to as the “Short ETFs”.

    Distributions are not guaranteed.   The Distribution Rate and 30-Day SEC Yield are not indicative of future distributions, if any, on the ETFs. In particular, future distributions on any ETF may differ significantly from its Distribution Rate or 30-Day SEC Yield. You are not guaranteed a distribution under the ETFs. Distributions for the ETFs (if any) are variable and may vary significantly from period to period and may be zero. Accordingly, the Distribution Rate and 30-Day SEC Yield will change over time, and such change may be significant.

    Investors in the Funds will not have rights to receive dividends or other distributions with respect to the underlying reference asset(s).

    1All YieldMax™ ETFs (except YMAX,YMAG and ULTY) have a gross expense ratio of 0.99%. YMAX and YMAG have a Management Fee of 0.29% and Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses of 0.99% for a gross expense ratio of 1.28%. “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” are indirect fees and expenses that the Fund incurs from investing in the shares of other investment companies, namely other YieldMax™ ETFs. ULTY has a gross expense ratio of 1.24% but the investment adviser has agreed to a 0.10% fee waiver through at least February 28, 2025.

    2The Distribution Rate shown is as of close on October 15, 2024. The Distribution Rate is the annual distribution rate an investor would receive if the most recent distribution, which includes option income, remained the same going forward. The Distribution Rate is calculated by annualizing an ETF’s Distribution per Share and dividing such annualized amount by the ETF’s most recent NAV. The Distribution Rate represents a single distribution from the ETF and does not represent its total return. Distributions may also include a combination of ordinary dividends, capital gain, and return of investor capital, which may decrease an ETF’s NAV and trading price over time. As a result, an investor may suffer significant losses to their investment. These Distribution Rates may be caused by unusually favorable market conditions and may not be sustainable. Such conditions may not continue to exist and there should be no expectation that this performance may be repeated in the future.

    3 The 30-Day SEC Yield represents net investment income, which excludes option income, earned by such ETF over the 30-Day period ended September 30. 2024, expressed as an annual percentage rate based on such ETF’s share price at the end of the 30-Day period. As of such date, the ULTY subsidized and unsubsidized 30-Day SEC Yields were 0.00% and 0.00%, respectively. The subsidized yield reflects fee waivers in effect while the unsubsidized yield does not adjust for any fee waivers in effect.

    4 Each ETF’s strategy (except those of the Short ETFs) will cap potential gains if its reference asset’s shares increase in value, yet subjects an investor to all potential losses if the reference asset’s shares decrease in value. Such potential losses may not be offset by income received by the ETF. Each Short ETF’s strategy will cap potential gains if its reference asset decreases in value, yet subjects an investor to all potential losses if the reference asset increases in value. Such potential losses may not be offset by income received by the ETF.

    5 As of the date hereof, distributions for the following ETFs have included return of investor capital: TSLY, OARK, APLY, AMZY, NVDY, GOOY, JPMO, XOMO, PYPY, CONY, DISO, FBY, MSFO, NFLY, SQY, AMDY, MRNY, AIYY, MSTY, ULTY, YMAX, YMAG, YBIT, SNOY, CRSH,GDXY and FIAT. For additional information, please visit http://www.YieldMaxETFs.com/TaxInfo.

    Each Fund has a limited operating history and while each Fund’s objective is to provide current income, there is no guarantee the Fund will make a distribution. Distributions are likely to vary greatly in amount.

    Standardized Performance

    For YMAX, click here. For YMAG, click here. For TSLY, click here. For OARK, click here. For APLY, click here. For NVDY, click here. For AMZY, click here. For FBY, click here. For GOOY, click here. For NFLY, click here. For CONY, click here. For MSFO, click here. For DISO, click here. For XOMO, click here. For JPMO, click here. For AMDY, click here. For PYPY, click here. For SQY, click here. For MRNY, click here. For AIYY, click here. For MSTY, click here. For ULTY, click here. For YBIT, click here. For CRSH, click here. For GDXY, click here. For SNOY, click here. For ABNY, click here. For FIAT, click here. For DIPS, click here. For BABO, click here. For YQQQ, click here. For TSMY, click here. For SMCY, click here. For PLTY, click here

    Prospectuses

    Click here.

    Before investing you should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. This and other information are in the prospectus. Please read the prospectuses carefully before you invest.

    There is no guarantee that any Fund’s investment strategy will be properly implemented, and an investor may lose some or all of its investment in any such Fund.

    Tidal Financial Group is the adviser for all YieldMax™ ETFs and ZEGA Financial is their sub-adviser.

    THE FUND, TRUST, AND SUB-ADVISER ARE NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY UNDERLYING REFERENCE ASSET.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable to all YieldMax ETFs referenced above, except the Short ETFs)

    YMAX and YMAG generally invest in other YieldMax™ ETFs. As such, these two Funds are subject to the risks listed in this section, which apply to all the YieldMax™ ETFs they may hold from time to time.

    Investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible.

    Call Writing Strategy Risk. The path dependency (i.e., the continued use) of the Fund’s call writing strategy will impact the extent that the Fund participates in the positive price returns of the underlying reference asset and, in turn, the Fund’s returns, both during the term of the sold call options and over longer time periods.

    Counterparty Risk. The Fund is subject to counterparty risk by virtue of its investments in options contracts. Transactions in some types of derivatives, including options, are required to be centrally cleared (“cleared derivatives”). In a transaction involving cleared derivatives, the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members.

    Derivatives Risk. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive value from the underlying reference asset or assets, such as stocks, bonds, or funds (including ETFs), interest rates or indexes. The Fund’s investments in derivatives may pose risks in addition to, and greater than, those associated with directly investing in securities or other ordinary investments, including risk related to the market, imperfect correlation with underlying investments or the Fund’s other portfolio holdings, higher price volatility, lack of availability, counterparty risk, liquidity, valuation and legal restrictions.

    Options Contracts. The use of options contracts involves investment strategies and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The prices of options are volatile and are influenced by, among other things, actual and anticipated changes in the value of the underlying instrument, including the anticipated volatility, which are affected by fiscal and monetary policies and by national and international political, changes in the actual or implied volatility or the reference asset, the time remaining until the expiration of the option contract and economic events.

    Distribution Risk. As part of the Fund’s investment objective, the Fund seeks to provide current income. There is no assurance that the Fund will make a distribution in any given period. If the Fund does make distributions, the amounts of such distributions will likely vary greatly from one distribution to the next.

    High Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may actively and frequently trade all or a significant portion of the Fund’s holdings.

    Liquidity Risk. Some securities held by the Fund, including options contracts, may be difficult to sell or be illiquid, particularly during times of market turmoil.

    Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is “non-diversified,” it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers than if it was a diversified fund.

    New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.

    Price Participation Risk. The Fund employs an investment strategy that includes the sale of call option contracts, which limits the degree to which the Fund will participate in increases in value experienced by the underlying reference asset over the Call Period.

    Single Issuer Risk. Issuer-specific attributes may cause an investment in the Fund to be more volatile than a traditional pooled investment which diversifies risk or the market generally. The value of the Fund, which focuses on an individual security (ARKK, TSLA, AAPL, NVDA, AMZN, META, GOOGL, NFLX, COIN, MSFT, DIS, XOM, JPM, AMD, PYPL, SQ, MRNA, AI, MSTR, Bitcoin ETP, GDX®, SNOW, ABNB, BABA, TSM, SMCI, PLTY), may be more volatile than a traditional pooled investment or the market as a whole and may perform differently from the value of a traditional pooled investment or the market as a whole.

    Inflation Risk. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions, if any, may decline.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable only to BABO and TSMY)

    Currency Risk: Indirect exposure to foreign currencies subjects the Fund to the risk that currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. dollar. Currency rates in foreign countries may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time for a number of reasons, including changes in interest rates and the imposition of currency controls or other political developments in the U.S. or abroad.

    Depositary Receipts Risk: The securities underlying BABO and TSMY are American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). Investment in ADRs may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market.

    Foreign Market and Trading Risk: The trading markets for many foreign securities are not as active as U.S. markets and may have less governmental regulation and oversight.

    Foreign Securities Risk: Investments in securities of non-U.S. issuers involve certain risks that may not be present with investments in securities of U.S. issuers, such as risk of loss due to foreign currency fluctuations or to political or economic instability, as well as varying regulatory requirements applicable to investments in non-U.S. issuers. There may be less information publicly available about a non-U.S. issuer than a U.S. issuer. Non-U.S. issuers may also be subject to different regulatory, accounting, auditing, financial reporting and investor protection standards than U.S. issuers.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable only to GDXY)

    Risk of Investing in Foreign Securities. The Fund is exposed indirectly to the securities of foreign issuers selected by GDX®’s investment adviser, which subjects the Fund to the risks associated with such companies. Investments in the securities of foreign issuers involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities.

    Risk of Investing in Gold and Silver Mining Companies. The Fund is exposed indirectly to gold and silver mining companies selected by GDX®’s investment adviser, which subjects the Fund to the risks associated with such companies.

    The Fund invests in options contracts based on the value of the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX®), which subjects the Fund to some of the same risks as if it owned GDX®, as well as the risks associated with Canadian, Australian and Emerging Market Issuers, and Small-and Medium-Capitalization companies.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable only to YBIT)

    YBIT does not invest directly in Bitcoin or any other digital assets. YBIT does not invest directly in derivatives that track the performance of Bitcoin or any other digital assets. YBIT does not invest in or seek direct exposure to the current “spot” or cash price of Bitcoin. Investors seeking direct exposure to the price of Bitcoin should consider an investment other than YBIT.

    Bitcoin Investment Risk: The Fund’s indirect investment in Bitcoin, through holdings in one or more Underlying ETPs, exposes it to the unique risks of this emerging innovation. Bitcoin’s price is highly volatile, and its market is influenced by the changing Bitcoin network, fluctuating acceptance levels, and unpredictable usage trends.

    Digital Assets Risk: Digital assets like Bitcoin, designed as mediums of exchange, are still an emerging asset class. They operate independently of any central authority or government backing and are subject to regulatory changes and extreme price volatility. Potentially No 1940 Act Protections. As of the date of this Prospectus, there is only a single eligible Underlying ETP, and it is an investment company subject to the 1940 Act.

    Bitcoin ETP Risk: The Fund invests in options contracts that are based on the value of the Bitcoin ETP. This subjects the Fund to certain of the same risks as if it owned shares of the Bitcoin ETP, even though it does not. Bitcoin ETPs are subject, but not limited, to significant risk and heightened volatility. An investor in a Bitcoin ETP may lose their entire investment. Bitcoin ETPs are not suitable for all investors. In addition, not all Bitcoin ETPs are registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Those Bitcoin ETPs that are not registered under such statute are therefore not subject to the same regulations as exchange traded products that are so registered.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable only to the Short ETFs)

    Investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible.

    Price Appreciation Risk. As part of the Fund’s synthetic covered put strategy, the Fund purchases and sells call and put option contracts that are based on the value of the underlying reference asset. This strategy subjects the Fund to certain of the same risks as if it shorted the underlying reference asset, even though it does not. By virtue of the Fund’s indirect inverse exposure to changes in the value of the underlying reference asset, the Fund is subject to the risk that the value of the underlying reference asset increases. If the value of the underlying reference asset increases, the Fund will likely lose value and, as a result, the Fund may suffer significant losses.

    Put Writing Strategy Risk. The path dependency (i.e., the continued use) of the Fund’s put writing (selling) strategy will impact the extent that the Fund participates in decreases in the value of the underlying reference asset and, in turn, the Fund’s returns, both during the term of the sold put options and over longer time periods.

    Purchased OTM Call Options Risk. The Fund’s strategy is subject to potential losses if the underlying reference asset increases in value, which may not be offset by the purchase of out-of-the-money (OTM) call options. The Fund purchases OTM calls to seek to manage (cap) the Fund’s potential losses from the Fund’s short exposure to the underlying reference asset if it appreciates significantly in value. However, the OTM call options will cap the Fund’s losses only to the extent that the value of the underlying reference asset increases to a level that is at or above the strike level of the purchased OTM call options. Any increase in the value of the underlying reference asset to a level that is below the strike level of the purchased OTM call options will result in a corresponding loss for the Fund. For example, if the OTM call options have a strike level that is approximately 100% above the then-current value of the underlying reference asset at the time of the call option purchase, and the value of the underlying reference asset increases by at least 100% during the term of the purchased OTM call options, the Fund will lose all its value. Since the Fund bears the costs of purchasing the OTM calls, such costs will decrease the Fund’s value and/or any income otherwise generated by the Fund’s investment strategy.

    Counterparty Risk. The Fund is subject to counterparty risk by virtue of its investments in options contracts. Transactions in some types of derivatives, including options, are required to be centrally cleared (“cleared derivatives”). In a transaction involving cleared derivatives, the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members.

    Derivatives Risk. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive value from the underlying reference asset or assets, such as stocks, bonds, or funds (including ETFs), interest rates or indexes. The Fund’s investments in derivatives may pose risks in addition to, and greater than, those associated with directly investing in securities or other ordinary investments, including risk related to the market, imperfect correlation with underlying investments or the Fund’s other portfolio holdings, higher price volatility, lack of availability, counterparty risk, liquidity, valuation and legal restrictions.

    Options Contracts. The use of options contracts involves investment strategies and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The prices of options are volatile and are influenced by, among other things, actual and anticipated changes in the value of the underlying reference asset, including the anticipated volatility, which are affected by fiscal and monetary policies and by national and international political, changes in the actual or implied volatility or the reference asset, the time remaining until the expiration of the option contract and economic events.

    Distribution Risk. As part of the Fund’s investment objective, the Fund seeks to provide current income. There is no assurance that the Fund will make a distribution in any given period. If the Fund does make distributions, the amounts of such distributions will likely vary greatly from one distribution to the next.

    High Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may actively and frequently trade all or a significant portion of the Fund’s holdings.

    Liquidity Risk. Some securities held by the Fund, including options contracts, may be difficult to sell or be illiquid, particularly during times of market turmoil.

    Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is “non-diversified,” it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers than if it was a diversified fund.

    New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.

    Price Participation Risk. The Fund employs an investment strategy that includes the sale of put option contracts, which limits the degree to which the Fund will participate in decreases in value experienced by the underlying reference asset over the Put Period.

    Single Issuer Risk. Issuer-specific attributes may cause an investment in the Fund to be more volatile than a traditional pooled investment which diversifies risk or the market generally. The value of the Fund, for any Fund that focuses on an individual security (e.g., TSLA, COIN, NVDA), may be more volatile than a traditional pooled investment or the market as a whole and may perform differently from the value of a traditional pooled investment or the market as a whole.

    Inflation Risk. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions, if any, may decline.

    Risk Disclosures (applicable only to YQQQ)

    Index Overview. The Nasdaq 100 Index is a benchmark index that includes 100 of the largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, based on market capitalization.

    Index Level Appreciation Risk. As part of the Fund’s synthetic covered put strategy, the Fund purchases and sells call and put option contracts that are based on the Index level. This strategy subjects the Fund to certain of the same risks as if it shorted the Index, even though it does not. By virtue of the Fund’s indirect inverse exposure to changes in the Index level, the Fund is subject to the risk that the Index level increases. If the Index level increases, the Fund will likely lose value and, as a result, the Fund may suffer significant losses. The Fund may also be subject to the following risks: innovation and technological advancement; strong market presence of Index constituent companies; adaptability to global market trends; and resilience and recovery potential.

    Index Level Participation Risk. The Fund employs an investment strategy that includes the sale of put option contracts, which limits the degree to which the Fund will benefit from decreases in the Index level experienced over the Put Period. This means that if the Index level experiences a decrease in value below the strike level of the sold put options during a Put Period, the Fund will likely not experience that increase to the same extent and any Fund gains may significantly differ from the level of the Index losses over the Put Period. Additionally, because the Fund is limited in the degree to which it will participate in decreases in value experienced by the Index level over each Put Period, but has significant negative exposure to any increases in value experienced by the Index level over the Put Period, the NAV of the Fund may decrease over any given time period. The Fund’s NAV is dependent on the value of each options portfolio, which is based principally upon the inverse of the performance of the Index level. The Fund’s ability to benefit from the Index level decreases will depend on prevailing market conditions, especially market volatility, at the time the Fund enters into the sold put option contracts and will vary from Put Period to Put Period. The value of the options contracts is affected by changes in the value and dividend rates of component companies that comprise the Index, changes in interest rates, changes in the actual or perceived volatility of the Index and the remaining time to the options’ expiration, as well as trading conditions in the options market. As the Index level changes and time moves towards the expiration of each Put Period, the value of the options contracts, and therefore the Fund’s NAV, will change. However, it is not expected for the Fund’s NAV to directly inversely correlate on a day-to-day basis with the returns of the Index level. The amount of time remaining until the options contract’s expiration date affects the impact that the value of the options contracts has on the Fund’s NAV, which may not be in full effect until the expiration date of the Fund’s options contracts. Therefore, while changes in the Index level will result in changes to the Fund’s NAV, the Fund generally anticipates that the rate of change in the Fund’s NAV will be different than the inverse of the changes experienced by the Index level.

    YieldMax™ ETFs are distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC. Foreside is not affiliated with Tidal Financial Group, YieldMax™ ETFs or ZEGA Financial.

    © 2024 YieldMax™ ETFs

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: We respond to your thoughts on nature

    Source: City of Plymouth

    We’re reflecting on a fabulous Summer of Nature.

    From the end of July to the beginning of September, we delivered over 50 events alongside many different communities and partner organisations and engaged with over 1,000 people.

    We ran youth projects; we played Minecraft; we planted trees; we went swimming; we met the Poole Farm animals and all the while, we asked you how you felt about nature in Plymouth.

    We had an incredible response and nearly 500 of you gave your views on the places you love and how they should be cared for in the future.

    Below, we’ve drawn out some of the key themes and provided a response to your suggestions.

    Image by Chris Parkes Photography
    You said… you wanted us to plant more trees

    Of course we will.

    Did you know that in the last three years, we have planted over 17,204 trees across 135 different sites as part of our involvement in the Plymouth and South Devon Community Forest? That’s an area equivalent to 85 football pitches! And it is something that we are proud of, with our team winning a national local government award for their efforts on this.

    Each year we make sure that we plant the right tree in the right place by careful consideration of the location including talking with local people about the plans. We also know about the challenges a changing climate will bring and the need to diversify the types of trees in the city and so we consider the tree species in this.

    We plant whips – young and slender trees, often just a few feet tall at the time of planting, maidens, which are smaller, usually three to five foot tall and standards, large trees that at the time of planting is already six to ten feet tall.

    This autumn we’ll be announcing our plans for the tree planting season ahead, with plenty of chances to get involved in planting and caring for trees throughout the year.

    You said… we need to educate young people about the benefits of nature

    Many people who fed back to our survey suggested that more could be done to educate young people about the natural world and how very important it is to look after it. We absolutely agree – we’d love to do even more outreach with young people!

    But did you know that we already run several programmes across the city?

    At Poole Farm, we run regular youth clubs focussed on outdoor skills and we run Junior Ranger sessions where young people can earn digital badges for set programmes of work.

    We run the Forest Rising programme, a youth forum which allows young people to feed into the delivery of tree planting across the city.

    Our Green Communities team is delivering a programme of nature education sessions in primary schools, secondary schools, and with youth groups, too.

    Our Climate Connections team regularly provide resource for schools and appoints Young Climate Ambassadors for carbon-conscious volunteers.

    Meanwhile, this year our National Marine Park are inviting all key stage two classes across the city to take part in the Sea in our Schools programme.

    Do we want to do more? Absolutely, and we will continue to work with partners and funding bodies to explore as many education options as possible, and give young people the chance to gain employment and build careers in looking after and improving nature sites across the city.

    You said… that the water quality of the Sound and rivers needs improvement

    It’s a hard agree from us – the water quality around Plymouth is not good enough. And although the issue is not of our making, we are determined to support improvements in the Tamar Catchment, in the Sound and along the Plym.

    Earlier this year, we held and hosted a Water Quality Select committee, which was supported by partners from the Environment Agency and South West Water.

    Representatives from the National Marine Park, University of Plymouth, Tamar Catchment Partnership, Ocean Conservation Trust and a local swimming group were also in attendance to provide insight and answer questions.

    Amongst the actions for the Council were an increased drive in education (see above!) as to what communities can do to improve water quality and to lobby government to allow Plymouth to be a pilot for an area of water quality improvement.

    South West Water, meanwhile, were tasked with ensuring their existing drainage infrastructure investment plans align with the city aspirations while the Environment Agency were asked to make water quality data from a new pilot monitoring scheme available more quickly.

    The partners involved in the select committee will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding to formalise their commitments and actions to water quality for the next ten years.

    You said… you wanted us to take better care of grass in the city.

    We hear what you’re saying on grass-cutting and we know that this year, we didn’t quite get it right. The very wet weather at the start of the year meant we couldn’t start on time and then when we did start, the rain continued to fall, and we couldn’t keep on top of the growth.

    Full disclosure; 60-40, our policy of cutting most of our grass regularly, but managing the minority for nature, is here to stay. If we want to make a difference to the biodiversity crisis; if we want nature to thrive in our city, then we have to do what we know is right.

    But what we can do is manage it differently. One of things that you said to us was that there was too much grass and not enough colour. Fair challenge. Over the winter, we’re going to look to fix that by improving a whole range of sites across the city.

    We are also going to look at how the cutting schedules are managed, how we can do more regular cuts on areas we know are prone to quick growth. This year, despite the issues, we doubled the regularity of cuts on roadside verges and playgrounds. This is something we can build on.

    You said… that litter can spoil some of our best green and blue spaces

    We agree. Littering really is the pits and the only people to blame for litter are the litterers themselves. Litter annoys us too and takes resource away from other services.

    We do carry out litter picks where we can, particularly in our larger parks and there are also some amazing local volunteer groups who help out, too, and we do our best to support them to do that. But the fact is, none of these would be needed if people took responsibility for their own waste.

    Did you know that there are 1,078 litter bins across the city and that 381 of those are in our parks or green spaces?

    You said… we need more dog poo bins in our parks and nature reserves

    Whilst we think we have generally got the right balance of bins in our parks right for the level of demand we will always listen to feedback and review provision at specific locations where concerns are raised.

    Did you know that dog poo can be put in any public litter bin?

    You said… you wanted more opportunities to get involved

    Good news in this department… we’ve got more opportunities to get involved than you can shake a stick at!

    Green Communities
    Regular opportunities to get involved across Central Park, Devonport Park and Keyham.
    Find out more: Green Communities webpage

    Plymouth Sound National Marine Park
    Get involved in a full range of volunteering programmes across Plymouth’s varied waterfront.
    Find out more: National Marine Park website

    BRIC
    Sign up a voluntary Community Flood Responder role, and our Adopt a Drain scheme. We provide training and/or equipment for the voluntary activities.
    Find out more: BRIC webpage

    Community Forest
    Regular Community Tree Nursery Volunteering every Thursday at Poole Farm.
    Community tree planting days within the city across the winter.
    Forest Rising winter programme open for registration now for young people aged 16 – 28 years old.
    Find out more: Community Forest website

    Plymouth Natural Grid
    Regular volunteer opportunities across reserves and greenspaces in the city. Practical conservation work and infrastructure/ access improvement work.
    Find out more: PNG LinkedIn

    Poole Farm
    Weekly volunteering opportunities at the farm
    Find out more: Poole Farm Facebook page

    Climate Connections
    Adults can join the Climate Ambassador volunteers programme. There is also a youth version to join as well.
    Find out more: Climate Connections website

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Department of School Education & Literacy Convenes National Advisory Council Meeting

    Source: Government of India

    Department of School Education & Literacy Convenes National Advisory Council Meeting

    Shri Dharmendra Pradhan reaffirms commitment to strengthening the implementation of the RTE Act in Line with National Education Policy 2020

    Posted On: 15 OCT 2024 9:30PM by PIB Delhi

    Union Minister for Education, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan chaired the National Advisory Council meeting, focusing on strengthening the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which primarily emphasises access to school education. The National Education Policy 2020 highlights the revision and revamping of the education structure, including its regulation and governance, to create a new system that is aligned with the aspirational goals of 21st century education by providing holistic, inclusive and multidisciplinary growth in school curriculum.

    In his keynote address, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan emphasised the Government of India’s dedication to guaranteeing universal access to quality education and reaffirmed the commitment to strengthening of school education in the country guided by the Implementation of the RTE Act,2009 and the holistic and  transformative provisions of  National Education Policy 2020. He focused on developing a thorough plan to integrate innovative teaching methods and significantly enhance learning outcomes to strengthen the educational framework in the forthcoming years. He stressed on providing a special focus on Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) that ensures the cognitive development of children according to the NEP 2020. Additionally, the Minister highlighted the need to formulate a comprehensive strategy for effective pedagogy and teaching methodology, with a strong emphasis on ensuring quality education, accessibility, affordability, equity and inclusivity in the implementation of educational interventions.

    Shri Sanjay Kumar, Secretary (DoSEL), addressed the transformative journey of the education policies and the commitment to achieve the vision of Viksit Bharat through the National Education Policy, 2020. He urged the council members to examine the advancements in the education sector and provide their insightful feedback to the participants.

    Shri Vipin Kumar, Additional Secretary (DoSEL), highlighted the current state of the government’s initiatives under the RTE Act of 2009, particularly the provision of free textbooks, uniforms, the Mid-Day Meal Scheme and many other interventions related to it.

    Aligned with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, these initiatives form the core of the Samagra Shiksha scheme, which is dedicated to enhancing the quality of education and promoting equity and inclusivity. By integrating these components, Samagra Shiksha promotes holistic development and improves learning outcomes, ensuring that every child has the necessary interventions for a seamless transition from elementary to secondary education. It was also mentioned during the discussion that while RTE Act 2009 talks about the elementary education upto class 1 to class 8 but NEP-2020 takes care of the holistic developmental needs of 15 years of school education.

    The National Advisory Committee members shared their valuable insights to create a more cohesive and equitable education system. The committee members highlighted the need to strengthen the school ecosystem, teacher education and socio-economically disadvantaged groups, as underscored in the NEP 2020. The meeting was attended by distinguished dignitaries and senior officials from the Department of School Education and Literacy and autonomous bodies of the Department.

    Additionally, Director, NCERT mentioned that 79 Primers have been developed in scheduled languages of the respective State/ UTs. These Primers are in accordance with NEP 2020, which fosters education in child’s native language to facilitate their overall development. This meeting marks a crucial step towards further strengthening the education system in India, ensuring that every child receives their right to free and compulsory education and reinforcing the principles of equity and inclusivity in education.

                                                                           

    *****

    MV/AK

    (Release ID: 2065192) Visitor Counter : 19

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Citizen Centric approach: Comprehensive guidelines for sensitive, accessible and meaningful redressal of Central Government Pensioners’ grievances

    Source: Government of India (2)

    Citizen Centric approach: Comprehensive guidelines for sensitive, accessible and meaningful redressal of Central Government Pensioners’ grievances

    Ministries and Departments strive for redressal of Pensioners’ grievances within 21 days on CPENGRAMS

    Root cause analysis of the Pensioners’ grievances for checking the incidences of grievances

    All the Pensioners’ grievance applications to be redressed in online mode through CPENGRAMS

    Posted On: 16 OCT 2024 11:18AM by PIB Delhi

    Central  Government  has  issued  comprehensive  guidelines  after  reviewing    its    Pensioners’ grievance  redressal  mechanism  i.e.  Centralized  Pension  Grievances  Redress  and  Monitoring System  (CPENGRAMS)  to  make  it  more  sensitive,  accessible  and  meaningful  in  line  with  the vision of the Prime Minister.

    The guidelines envisage expeditious and efficient redressal of the grievances, bearing a  testimony to the citizen-centric approach of the Government of India.

    The  main  highlights  of  the  comprehensive  guidelines  for  handling  Central  government  Pensioners’ grievances are as follows:

    1.     Ministries/Departments  should  strive  to  redress  the  Pensioners’  grievances  within  21  days.  In the cases, where redressal of   the grievances requires longer time, an  interim reply may  be furnished on the portal.

    2.     The   grievance   shall   be   redressed   under   ‘whole   of   the   Government   approach’.   In   no   case, grievance shall be closed summarily by stating, ‘it does not pertain to this Office’.

    3.     The  grievance shall  not  be closed  without  its conclusive  redressal  and the  Action Taken  Report (ATR)  should  be  filled  in  with  the  supporting  information  and  documents  at  the  time  of  closure  of grievance.

    4.     Ministries/ Departments  shall  undertake  monthly  review  of  Pension  related  grievances,  pending on the portal to ensure the qualitative redressal of grievances within the prescribed time limit.

    5.     The Nodal PG Officer   shall analyze the trend of grievances and conduct a root cause analysis to check the incidence of grievances.

    6.     The applicant can file an appeal   against the redressal of his grievance within  30 days of closure of    the  grievance  and  it  shall  be  disposed  of  within  30  days  by  the  Appellate  Authority.  A speaking order shall be passed, attaching relevant documents, if any.

    7.     The  grievance  applications,  filed  in  the  physical  form  with  the  Ministry/ Department,  shall  be uploaded on the CPENGRAMS portal to ensure proper monitoring of these grievances.

    *****

     

    NKR/DK/AG

    (Release ID: 2065213) Visitor Counter : 34

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY THE PRIME MINISTER FOR HEALTH MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK – PARADE

    Source: Government of Western Samoa

    Share this:

    Thursday 10th October, 2024 (9:00am – 10:00am – Infront of the Government Building)

    Captain Eric Turner (Regional Leader of Salvation Army, Samoa),

    Hon. Deputy Prime Minister,

    Hon. Cabinet Ministers,

    Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

    Heads of Government Ministries and Corporations, NGOs,

    Distinguished guests,

    Ladies and Gentlemen,

    Talofa Lava! And a Warm Welcome!

    It is a great honor to stand here and address you today on a topic that is vital for our individual well-being, our workplaces, and ultimately, our nation – ‘MENTAL HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE’.

    Today, we rally to not only recognize the importance of mental health but to ensure that it becomes a pillar of how we work, how we lead, and how we care for one another in the workplace.

    Today, the 10th of October is the commemoration of the World Mental Health Day globally including Samoa, with the overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world, on its theme – ‘Healthy Minds, Healthy Workplaces’. It is also the last day that ends the commemoration of the activities for the Mental Health Awareness Week in Samoa, which started on Sunday 6th October, 2024.

    As this year’s World Mental Health Day puts more emphasis on the

    importance of Mental Health in the Workplace, I am humbled indeed to speak not only as a leader and as an employer but an employee of the Government of Samoa.

    Mental health is not something that exists in isolation. It is deeply tied to every part of our lives, including the workplace. The workplace is where we spend a large part of our days. It is where we contribute to our communities, earn a living, and grow professionally. But the workplace can also be a source of stress, anxiety, and pressure.

    In Samoa, the demands of work, the increasing pace of change, and the responsibilities we all carry, whether as employees or leaders can take a toll on our mental well-being. When stress becomes overwhelming and mental health is not prioritized, the results are clear. There will be a decrease in productivity, an increase in absenteeism, and a general decline in workplace morale.

    However, mental health challenges do not just impact the workplace, they impact individuals, families, and communities. When an employee is struggling mentally, it affects their ability to engage fully at work, their relationships at home, and their overall quality of life. This is why it is essential that we take a proactive approach in addressing mental health in our workplaces. It is not just good for business; it is good for people.

    Samoa, like many other nations, is facing a rise in Non-Communicable Diseases or NCDs including those related to mental health. NCDs accounts for over 80% of all deaths and more than half the premature deaths in Samoa. Therefore, mental health conditions such as stress, depression, anxiety, and burnout are no longer issues we can ignore. In fact, mental health conditions are among the leading causes of lost workdays, lower productivity, and long term-disability worldwide.

    The Ministry of Health in Samoa has integrated mental health into our national health strategy, recognizing the importance of both physical and mental well-being for a healthy Samoa. In the workplace, we must follow suit. We cannot build a prosperous Samoa if our workforce is unwell, both mentally and physically.

    A lot of organizations including our Health Sector Partners who are

    gathered here today, both public and private have recognized the

    importance of mental health through their combined efforts such as awareness campaigns, advocacy, offering of coping platforms and mechanisms for our people to be more resilient. More workplaces are adopting policies that address mental health and are working to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.

    However, we need to accelerate these efforts and ensure that all

    workplaces, no matter the size or sector, are places where mental health is supported.

    Let us commit to making mental health a priority in every Samoan

    workplace. We can take practical steps such as raising more awareness on mental health; develop and implement supportive policies; foster a culture of care by showing compassion and understanding toward each other; and collaborate with Mental Health Services in Samoa for counselling and support.

    In Samoa, we have a unique opportunity to lead by example. By

    prioritizing mental health in the workplace, we not only improve the lives of our employees but also enhance productivity and success of our businesses and institutions. Let us move forward with the spirit of fa’aaloalo, valuing and respecting the mental well-being of every

    individual.

    I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge our partners and stakeholders from government, the guidance and support of the World Health Organization, development partners, the private sector, NGOs, and civil society. Thank you for your continuous support towards the work of mental health in Samoa. Your commitment demonstrates your dedication to the health of our people.

    Ladies and Gentlemen – Together, we can build workplaces that not only contribute to Samoa’s economy but also to the happiness, health, and well-being of our people.

    SOIFUA MA IA MANUIA!

    SAUNOAGA AUTU: AFIOGA FIAME NAOMI MATA’AFA – PALEMIA O SAMOA I LE SAVALI FA’APITOA – FA’ATAUAINA O LE VAIASO O LE SOIFUA MALOLOINA O LE MAFAUFAU

    Aso Tofi, 10 Oketopa 2024

    9:00am – 10:00am – Luma Maota o le Malo

    Lau Susuga i le Taitai o le Sauniga, Captain Eric Turner,

    Lau Afioga i le Sui Palemia, Afioga i le Saoali’i, Tuala Tevaga Iosefo Ponifasio,

    Paia o Minisita o le Kapeneta,

    Sui o Malo Aufaatasi ma Faalapotopotoga mai Fafo,

    Le paia ma le mamalu ua aofia potopoto,

    O le asō, ua fa’ailogaina ai e le lalolagi atoa e aofia ai ma Samoa le Aso Fa’apitoa o le Fa’atauaina o le Soifua Maloloina o le Mafaufau. Ua fa’ai’u ai fo’i ma polokalame e pei ona tapisaina ai e Samoa le Vaiaso Faapitoa mo le fa’alauiloaina o le taua o le Soifua Maloloina o le Mafaufau, e pei ona sa amata mai le Aso Sa 6, Oketopa 2024.

    Tatou ave lea o le vi’iga i le Atua, ua livaliva le foe a le tautai, ua a’e manuia taumafaiga o lenei vaiaso.

    O le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau e aofia i le fa’atulagaga fa’asaienisi o sē tasi o gasegase tumau, ua to’atele nisi ua a’afia ma maumau ai le soifua. E tusa ai ma fa’amaumauga fa’asoifua maloloina, e sili atu ma le 80% o tagata Samoa ua a’afia i gasegase tumau e a’afia ai totoga e pe’i o le suka, toto maualuga ma o’o ai ina maua i gasegase o le fatu, kanesa ma isi. O lo’o aofia ai i totonu ma le faitauga o tagata ua a’afia tumau le mafaufau i le faitauga o nei gasegase tumau. O fa’amaumauga lata mai, o le to’atele ua a’afia le mafaufau ma fa’amauina e mafua mai ona o le soona tagofia o le ava malosi. Ma ua mafuli i tupulaga talavou o lo’o nonofo i nu’u tu taulaga, o i latou fo’i nei e faigaluega.

    O le sini autū o lenei tausaga ma lona fa’amoemoe, ua ave le fa’amamafa i le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau i totonu o fale-faigaluega. O se tasi o mataupu ua le Pau, le Vau, a ua fa’atāfea i le auau e nisi tagata. Atonu e malamalama gofie pe a tatou talatala iai, ae faigata lona fa’atinoga ma e le’o lagonaina e le to’atele.

    Afai o le tele o le taimi o le tagata faigaluega e alu i totonu o le fale-faigaluega, e tatau ona tapena fa’afafine to’aga le silasila mamao i le mafaufau manuia o le aufaigaluega. E lē masino o le a si’itia se auaunaga, tele tupe maua ma fa’afiafiaina le ta’ita’i o le fale-faigaluega, o le aufaigaluega faapea ma aiga o lo’o tapua’i mai.

    E le o pō malaē le to’atele o e pele ia tatou uma, o fanau, uso ma tuafafine faapea tua’ā ua a’afia mafaufau. E le gata o i latou ua iloa āuga ma iai foliga va’aia,ae fa’apena ma nisi o lo’o a’afia i nisi o gasegase ua avea ma mafuaaga ua a’afia ai ma le mafaufau. O le popōlega tele, o le to’atele o lo’o a’afia e le’o mafai ona iloa, ma o nisi ua a’afia ma ma’imau ai le soifua ona o le pule i le soifua. Ua taotaomia le saili o se fesoasoani ona o le to’atele o lo’o a’afia i sauaga ona o le fefe ma le tusitusilima.

    E le māmā lenei mataupu, ma o le tele o lu’itau pe a a’afia le mafaufau, e le gata o le a afaina ai le auaunaga o se fale-faigaluega, ae faapēnā ona a’afia ai aiga, o fanau, faapea ma nu’u ma le atunu’u. O Samoa o lo’o fa’avae ana auaunaga tausili i so’o se fale-faigaluega i ana tu ma aganu’u, e pei o le fa’aaloalo, alofa ma le tautua matavela. O nei tu ma aga a Samoa e mafai ona fa’alautele e fai ma vaifofō ina ia maua le mafaufau maloloina o le tagata faigaluega.

    O se fa’amalosi mo fale-faigaluega uma faapea ma ta’ita’i o Samoa, e tāua tele la tatou pitolaau fai fa’atasi. Afai e lagonaina e so’o se tagata faigaluega o lo’o iai tu ma aga e pei o le alofa ma le fa’aaloalo, e ta’ita’itama ai le fa’atinoga o le galuega, o le a si’itia ma maoa’e so’o se auaunaga, o le a telē le lagolago a le aufaigaluega, ma fa’atuatuaina ta’ita’i o so’o se fale-faigaluega.

    O le fesili – O a nisi taumafaiga tatou te galulue ai ina si’itia le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau i totonu o se fale-faigaluega? Ia tatou:

    • Lagolago ma fai le fale-faigaluega o se nofoaga e fiafia ai tagata e galulue.

    • Ia saogalēmū le fale-faigaluega mo tagata uma, e aunoa ma le tusitusi lima ma le fa’ailoga tagata

    • Ia amanaia le taimi e tatau ona mālōlō, ma mafuta ai le tagata faigaluega i lona aiga

    • Ia fa’atino ni a’oa’oga e si’itia ai le malamalama o ta’ita’i o fale-faigaluega i le tāua o le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau.

    E toe fia fa’aleo le tele o taumafaiga a Samoa ua iai, e pei ona iai le saunoaga a le Afioga i le Sui Palemia i lana saunoaga autū i le Aso Sa, na tatalaina ai lenei Vaiaso Faapitoa mo le mafaufau maloloina.

    – O galuega ma auaunaga e tauala atu le Matagaluega a le Soifua Maloloina, ua amanaia ma tu’ufa’atasia ai vaega o le siakiina o so’o se gasegase, e le gata i le tino ae ua aofia ai ma le mafaufau. O lenei taumafaiga, ua tatau ona fa’ata’ita’i ma fa’atino e fale-faigaluega, e le gata o le ausia o galuega a le aufaigaluega, ae ia silasila toto’a i a’afiaga o le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau.

    – Ua tele polokalame fa’alauiloa, o auaunaga mo le fa’atalatalanoaina o i latou ua a’afia, faapea ma faigafa’avae ma tulafono mo le unaia o le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau.

    – Ua tele polokalame ma auaunaga e taofi ma fa’atonutonu ai mafuaaga fa’avae o le a’afia ai o le mafaufau e pei o le ava malosi ma le tagofia o fualaau fa’asaina.

    Ae peita’i, o lo’o mana’omia ona fa’aauau ona tapisa lenei mataupu i auala saogālēmū, alofa lē fa’atuāoia, ma aua ne’i iai se tusitusilima. E mo’omia na lalago fa’atasi auaunaga fa’asoifua-maloloina ina ia si’itia faigafa’avae ma tulafono e aofia ai vaega o le mafaufau manuia e aunoa ma le fa’aitū-au.

    O le pitolaau a aiga, āoga, fale-faigaluega, nu’u aemaise ekalesia o le ogatotonu lea o le fa’avae o le soifua maloloina e aofia ai ma le mafaufau manuia.

    E toe momoli le agaga fa’afetai i a tatou auaunaga ma fale-faigaluega ua potopoto lenei aso, i lā outou lagolago i lenei fa’amoemoe. E fa’afetaia a tatou paaga uma fa’asoifua maloloina faapea ma auaunaga o lo’o fa’aauau ona galulue mo le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau.

    Ou te fiafia tele e fa’alauiloa ai fo’i le fa’amae’a ai o fa’atinoga uma o le Vaiaso Faapitoa o le Soifua Maloloina o le Mafaufau i Samoa i le asō.

    Agalelei le Atua i fuafuaga o lenei aso, aemaise fo’i le aga atu mo le Aso Sa faapitoa o le fanau.

    SOIFUA

    Share this:

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY HON. TUALA TEVAGA IOSEFO PONIFASIO, HON. ACTING PRIME MINISTER/ DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER/ ACTING MINISTER OF HEALTH MENTAL HEALTH WEEK – OFFICIAL OPENING CEREMONY (EFKS AAI-O-NIUE @ 3.30PM)

    Source: Government of Western Samoa

    Share this:

    Rev. Efu Efu,

    Cabinet Ministers,

    Members of the Parliament,

    Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

    Heads of Governments and Non-Government Organizations,

    Members of the National Mental Health Committee

    Congregation,

    Ladies and gentlemen,

    I am humbled to stand before you today to address a topic that touches the very core of our society – mental health in Samoa. As we gather here today, we are united by a shared commitment to addressing one of the most pressing issues facing our people.

    In Samoa, our culture and sense of community – our ‘Fa’asamoa’ – are our greatest strengths. Our traditions of togetherness, family, and spirituality have sustained us through many challenges. Yet, mental health is a challenge that requires us to confront uncomfortable truths and break the silence that surrounds it.

    Starting today until the 10th of October is the Commemoration of the Mental Health Week in Samoa, with the main objective of raising awareness on mental health issues and to mobilize efforts in support of mental health. This week’s celebration is parallel with the World Mental Health Day that is commemorated every year globally.

    The theme for this year’s Mental Health Week is– ‘Healthy Minds, Healthy Workplaces’. It is an issue that is often overlooked but is increasingly essential in today’s world. We all know that our work plays a significant role in our lives. It is not only a source of income, but also a place where we spend much of our time, contribute to society, and build our identities. However, while we talk a lot about productivity, performance, and success in our workspaces, we don’t talk enough about something just as important, our mental health.

    In Samoa, mental health is often misunderstood or hidden. Many of our people suffer in silence, believing that mental illness is a sign of weakness or a curse. But mental health issues, like depression, anxiety, and stress, are not signs of personal failure – they are illnesses that require care and compassion. These mental health issues have become increasingly common in the workplace, yet many still go unaddressed. In fact, globally it is estimated that one in five employees will experience a mental health challenge in any given year. And yet, many people are hesitant to talk about their mental health at work for fear of being judged, overlooked, or even discriminated against.

    When workplaces neglect mental health, the consequences can be costly, not just in human terms, but financially as well. When an employee is struggling with mental health, their performance may suffer, leading to missed deadlines, errors, or conflicts with colleagues.

    Beyond the economic cost, the personal toll is immense. Employees who face mental health challenges in silence can feel isolated, stressed, and burnt out.

    Our country has seen rising rates of mental health issues, particularly among our youth. The pressures of modern life, unemployment, academic stress, and family conflicts contribute to feelings of hopelessness and isolation. Suicide has tragically become a reality for too many of our young people. The fact that Samoa has one of the highest youth suicide rates in the Pacific should give us all pause. The recent reports stated that majority of people at risk of developing mental disorders are middle aged men living in urban areas and working. Other recent studies indicate that males of less that 30years who were unemployed and living in Apia urban area, were more likely to experience psychological distress due to contributing factors such as alcohol use. Young adults aged 18-29 years living in Apia urban area were more likely to report symptoms of psychological distress than those in other areas. Women were more likely to report symptoms of psychological distress compared to men. Therefore, most of us working and employed are at risk of developing mental disorders and psychological stress.

    Behind these statistics are real stories of our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, whose lives could have been saved with better mental health support.

    We cannot talk about mental health in Samoa without addressing the stigma. Mental illness is often perceived through a lens of shame, leading many to avoid seeking help. In many cases, mental health conditions are seen as a spiritual or supernatural issue, which delays access to proper care. This stigma prevents open conversations, leaving people feeling alone in their suffering.

    Samoa has made significant strides in addressing mental health, recognizing it as a crucial component of public health. Mental health has been integrated into its national health strategy, reflecting a commitment to addressing mental health as a public health priority. One of the key efforts is the integration of mental health services into primary health care in ensuring that mental health is treated alongside physical health, allowing people to seek help within their local health facilities. The Samoa government and various NGOs launched public awareness campaigns to combat stigma and encourage open discussions about mental health.

    Samoa works closely with international organizations such as the World Health Organization to enhance its mental health services. Some of the local organizations have launched suicide prevention programs, particularly focused on vulnerable groups such as youth. Treatment and care are provided through the Mental Unit at the main hospital in Apia which offers inpatient and outpatient care for those with severe mental health conditions. With extensive care of these patients, service is supported and provided by the GOSHEN Trust. Churches and other organizations such as the Salvation Army have played a pivotal role in promoting mental health particularly programs that focus on building resilience, emotional intelligence, and coping mechanisms. These programs aim to empower our people especially the youth to manage stress, anxiety and reducing the risk of more severe outcomes such as suicide.

    Despite these combined efforts, Samoa still faces several challenges in addressing mental health. These include the resource limitations including shortage of trained mental health professionals in Samoa. Mental Health services are often concentrated in urban areas. There are also geographical barriers and cultural stigma, making it hard for individuals to seek help openly.

    There is still much work to be done, particularly in expanding access to services and reducing stigma. Continued collaboration, investment, and community engagement will be essential to ensure that every Samoan can receive the mental health care they need.

    I would like to reiterate that there is no health without mental health. Therefore, I would like to invite everyone who is present here today, to show your support by joining the National Mental Health Committee and the Health Sector, to the Mental Health Parade. This will be held on Thursday 10th October, which starts from the Fire and Emergency Station and ends in-front of the government building, to end the activities of this important event.

    I acknowledge the support of all our development partners, churches, NGOs, civil society and the wider community towards the work of mental health in Samoa.

    SOIFUA MA IA MANUIA.

    SAUNOAGA AUTU ALE AFIOGA TUALA TEVAGA IOSEFO PONIFASIO

    AFIOGA ILE SUI PALEMIA / SUI MINISITA OLE SOIFUA MALOLOINA

    O LE POLOKALAME O LE “FA’ATAUAINA O LE SOIFUA MALOLOINA O LE MAFAUFAU”

    (EFKS, AAI-O-NIUE I LE 3:30 ILE AOAULI)

    Lau Susuga le Ta’ita’i o le Sauniga,

    Lau Susuga i le Faifeau Toeaina, Susuga i le Fa’afeagaiga

    o le EFKS i Aai-o-Niue nei, Rev. Efu Efu,

    Sui Mamalu o le Kapeneta,

    Le paia o Sui o Malo Aufaatasi,

    Ta’ita’i o Matagaluega ma Faalapotopotoga Eseese,

    Paaga uma a le Soifua Maloloina,

    Le mamalu o le Ekalesia nei i Aai-o-Niue, i ona tupu ma e’e faapea ma le potopotoga,

    O paia ma mamalu, o lā le Atua ia, aua o Samoa ua uma ona fa’ataotooto ana tofiga. Nu’unu’u atu ia fa’atini o tausala.

    Ua tala mai le lagi le mamalu o le Atua, o lē e ou vi’iga na sa’afi ma talatala i ai le susuga i le fa’afeagaiga toeaina. Mua ia le fa’apolo i le taliuta, aua o le Atua o Samoa ma lona vi’iga.

    E fia momoli le agaga fa’afetai i lau susuga i le toeaina, mo le taulaga osi o lenei aso, ma fa’anōnōmanū ai aua lenei fa’amoemoe taua. O le Atua pulepule tetele na te fa’afo’i le mau e tele i lau Susuga aua faiva o tapuaiga mo si o tatou atunu’u.

    O tausaga ta’itasi i le aso 10 Oketopa e fa’amanatuina ai e le lalolagi e aofia ai ma Samoa, le Aso Faapitoa o le “Fa’atauaina o le Soifua Maloloina o le Mafaufau”.

    Ua tolu ai nei o tausaga, ua fa’amanatuina ai e Samoa lenei aso fa’apitoa i le vaiaso atoa. E amata atu nei e tau le Aso Tofi, 10 Oketopa, ua fa’ailogaina ai e Samoa lenei vaiaso taua. O le sini autu o lenei fa’amoemoe, ina ia fa’aauau ona tapisa ma talanoaina le taua o le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau.

    O le anavatau po’o le sini autū o lenei tausaga, ua ave le fa’amamafa i le ‘Soifua Maloloina o le Mafaufau i Totonu o Fale-faigaluega’. O le fale-faigaluega, o se nofoaga po’o se vaipanoa lea o lo’o tele ina mafuta ai tagata faigaluega i aso uma. E ave ai lana fa’amuamua ona o lo’o maua mai ai le alagātupe mo le tausiga o lona aiga. O lo’o mafai ona fa’aauauina ai le maua o tomai ma agava’a, ma toe si’itia ai le malamalama. E mafuta ma feiloa’i ai le tele o tagata eseese. O le nofoaga e tausi ina ia mamā lona si’osi’omaga, ma ia mautinoa o lo’o fa’atino galuega a le aufaigaluega ina ia si’itia tupe maua a le fale faigaluega.

    Ae pe’ita’i e tele ina galo ona talatala ma tali le fesili – “O a mai oe?” O tua atu o lenei fesili o lo’o afīfī ai i totonu le ‘anofale o le fale-faigaluega, o le mafaufau manuia o le tagata faigaluega. Po’o le a le lelei o le totogi, mautū ta’iala ma faigafa’avae, lelei le tino-i-fale o le fale-faigaluega, ae a a’afia le mafaufau o le tagata faigaluega, e faia fua le galuega. A la’ititi fo’i le totogi e le tusa ai ma le galuega fa’atino, e ono o’o ai ina a’afia le mafaufau, ona ua tele mea fai ae le lava le fa’asoa. Ona fa’asolo ai lava lea i le li’o lea, ma ono o’o ai ina le faigaluega le isi tagata, ona o a’afiaga o le mafaufau. O se fa’afitauli fa’amata e le o iloa atu, ae se’iloga ua talanoa ma fa’asoa ai, ona fa’atoa lagona lea e le tagata o le mea moni o lo’o tupu.

    Ua to’atele tagata ua a’afia le mafaufau ona o le tele o mafua’aga. O se mataupu e tele ina lē amana’ia ma leai se fa’amamafa. O le to’atele o tagata ua a’afia le mafaufau, fa’atoa iloa lava ona ua i ai foliga va’aia, ma ua o’o i o’oo’oga. Ae o le to’atele o lo’o a’afia, e le o mafai ona iloa ona o mafua’aga e pei o le; leai o se malamalama i āuga o le a’afia o le mafaufau, o le māasiasi ona o le tusitusilima ua le mafai ona alu e saili ai se fesoasoani, ua fai ma vaisū tu ma aga o lo’o mafua ai e pei o le tagofia o le ava malosi ma laau faasaina, ua leai se lagolago a aiga, matua, nu’u ma le ekalesia. I totonu o le fale-faigaluega ua leai se lagolago a le pule, o tagata faigaluega, faapea isi tagata.

    O le to’atele o lo’o noanoatia ma tutupu ai fa’afitauli e pei o le sauāina i totonu o aiga, nu’u po’o le fale-faigaluega. Ona tupu ai lea o le musuā e talanoa ma fa’asoa e saili fesoasoani. Ua sili atu le mā ma fefe e talanoa atu ona o le popole i le tusitusi lima, ma ua leai se fa’atuatuaga o nisi tagata e ono maua ai le fesoasoani. O nisi o āuga o le mafaufau ua a’afia, a tele galuega ona saili lea o le mea e mapu i ai e pei o le tagofia o le ava po’o laau fa’asaina e tua iai. Ae peita’i, o ī tonu o lo’o amata ai lava le vaisu ma le masani lea ma ono o’o ai i se tulaga ua le mafai ona tu’u, ma i’u ina a’afia ai le mafaufau.

    O fa’amaumauga lata mai i totonu o Samoa, o le toatele lava ua a’afia mafaufau e mafuli aga’i i tupulaga talavou. Ona o le tele o fesuiaiga o tu ma aga, o fa’alavelave i totonu o ā’oga, o āiga, fa’apea ma fale-faigaluega, o lo’o mafua ai le tele o a’afiaga o le mafaufau. O le to’atele o i latou ua maualuga le tulaga o le ono a’afia ai o le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau e mafuli i le itupa o ali’i mai le vai-tausaga 30 aga’i luga le matutua. O le to’atele foi, e nonofo i nofoaga tu taulaga.

    O nisi o tupulaga talavou e i lalo ifo o le 30 tausaga le matutua o lo’o faamauina le a’afia o le mafaufau ona o le tagofia o le ava malosi, ma e le faigaluega. E tusa ai ma fa’amaumauga, o le to’atele o tinā ma tama’ita’i ua o’o le tulaga o le a’afia o le mafaufau pe a fa’atusa i ali’i. O le popolega, ona o nisi ua a’afia le mafaufau ua o’o ina a’afia ai le soifua, aemaise lava i le tulaga o le pule i le soifua.

    O nei fa’amaumauga, e fa’amausalīina ai le tatau ona una’ia ma ave le fa’amuamua i le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau. E le gata i ona a’afiaga, ae o mafua’aga fa’avae e ala ai ona fa’atino e tagata soifua tu ma aga ma o’o ai ina a’afia.

    Ua tele taumafaiga a le Malo o Samoa e tauala atu i le tatou Matagaluega o le Soifua Maloloina ma ana pa’aga galulue, ina ia una’ia le soifua maloloina o le mafaufau. E ui ua i ai ta’iala ma faigafa’avae e ta’ita’itama ai le galuega, o auaunaga e pei ona iai togafitiga ma fa’atalatalanoga, o fa’alauiloa ma polokalame i nu’u ma afio’aga. Ae peita’i, e le o mafai ona fa’aitiitia ai le tele o fa’afitauli.

    O le agaga maualuga, e manuia a tatou taumafaiga, pe afai e lalago fa’atasi tagata uma. O se mafaufau manuia e afua mai totonu o aiga, ekalesia, nu’u, fale-faigaluega ma le Malo. Ia tatou opogi fa’atasi ma fa’asoa, ia taofi le tusitusilima ma le fa’alumaluma, ia saili avanoa e lagolago ai so’o se tagata soifua. Ae aua le sili musa ia tatou ona toso i lalo le isi uso a tagata ma ana taumafaiga. Po’o totonu o le fale-faigaluega, o ekalesia, totonu o le aiga, e taua le galuega a ta’ita’i, o matua, o matai, fa’apea ma le lagolago a tagata ta’ito’atasi, ina ia manuia tagata uma, ma ia sapaia mea uma i le alofa. O le alofa lea o le Atua e lē fa’atuāoia.

    E momoli le fa’amālō i le lagolago a tatou pa’aga galulue, o ekalesia, o so’o se fa’alapotopotoga fa’apea nu’u ma alalafaga aua lenei fa’amoemoe taua.

    E tatalo atu ai i le paia ma le mamalu o le auvala’aulia, ina ia fa’ailoa lau lagolago e ala i lou auai i le “Savali mo le Mafaufau Manuia”, Aso Tofi, 10 Oketopa 2024, e amata atu luma o le Ofisa o Tinei Mu fa’asolo atu luma o le Maota o le Malo i Matagialalua i le 7.30 i le taeao.

    Manuia tele toe taimi o le Aso Sapati Paia o le Atua soifua. Faafetai

    Soifua ma ia manuia !!

    Ata Pueina – Matagaluega o le Soifua Maloloina

    Share this:

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Inland Revenue (Amendment) (Tax Deductions for Leased Premises Reinstatement and Allowances for Buildings and Structures) Bill 2024 to be gazetted

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         The Inland Revenue (Amendment) (Tax Deductions for Leased Premises Reinstatement and Allowances for Buildings and Structures) Bill 2024 will be gazetted on October 18. The Bill seeks to implement two profits tax enhancement measures in the 2024-25 Budget, which include introducing a tax deduction for expenses incurred for reinstating the condition of premises under a lease to their original condition, and removing the time limit for claiming annual allowances in respect of industrial/commercial buildings or structures.

         Under the Bill, if a lessee is obligated to reinstate or pay for the reinstatement of his/her premises to their original condition at the end of the lease term or on early termination of the lease, and the relevant costs have been incurred and are reasonable, the lessee can claim tax deduction for the relevant costs.

         Furthermore, currently a qualifying taxpayer may claim an annual allowance in respect of the expenditure incurred on the construction of an industrial/commercial building or structure during a specified period (usage period). If the building or structure is sold before the expiry of the usage period, the buyer may claim annual allowances over the remaining years of assessment within the usage period. However, if the building or structure is sold after the expiry of the usage period, the buyer will not be entitled to claim any annual allowance even if there is residue of expenditure. The Bill proposes removing the time limit for the relevant claims in order not to discourage the purchase of old or second-hand buildings or structures. If a building or structure is sold in the basis period for a year of assessment beginning on or after April 1 this year, the buyer will be entitled to claim annual allowances until the residue of expenditure has been fully claimed, regardless of whether the usage period of the building or structure concerned has expired.

         A Government spokesman said, “The two enhancement measures will alleviate the tax burden of taxpayers and promote the business environment. As reinstatement costs generally represent a small part of a taxpayer’s turnover, it is envisaged that the proposed tax deduction would not impact on government revenue. Regarding the removal of the time limit for claiming annual allowances for buildings or structures, based on the statistics for the year of assessment 2022/23, it is expected that it will reduce the annual government revenue by about $164 million.”

         The Bill will be introduced into the Legislative Council for first reading on October 30 with a view to implementing the above measures in the year of assessment 2024/25.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –