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  • MIL-OSI: Wix Launches Astro, an AI-powered Assistant for Site and Business Management

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Astro transforms the Wix dashboard experience, simplifying site and business management and helping to improve efficiency 

    NEW YORK – Wix.com Ltd. (NASDAQ: WIX), the leading SaaS website builder platform globally1, today announced the launch of Astro, its AI-powered business assistant. This innovative tool simplifies the user experience by allowing users to query and perform various business and back-office tasks directly from the chat interface. Astro marks the beginning of a series of agents that will be rolled out to Wix users, setting the stage for enhanced productivity and providing more opportunities to monetize and grow their businesses. 

    Astro provides users with seamless access to essential tools and insights, enhancing efficiency and simplifying site operations. Integrated throughout the dashboard, the assistant allows users to ask questions, optimize site settings, complete tasks, and discover useful features. By guiding users toward relevant tools and add-ons, Astro is expected to drive app installations, increase package upgrades, and encourage the adoption of premium features, ultimately improving collections and helping reduce churn.

    “Astro seamlessly integrates powerful capabilities into a single interface, making it easier than ever for users to manage their businesses efficiently,” said Guy Sopher, Head of the AI Platform Group at Wix. “With this being the largest collection of skills we’ve ever incorporated into a single assistant at Wix, boasting hundreds of different skills and capabilities, with more added every day, Astro acts as a trusted guide, Astro provides real-time insights and personalized recommendations to help users optimize their sites. By streamlining workflows and simplifying access to essential tools, it empowers users to accomplish more in less time. As they engage more deeply with the platform’s features, they can ultimately unlock greater opportunities for growth, visibility, and business success.”

    Capabilities of the business assistant include:

    • Data-Driven Insights & Optimization: Users can track their site’s performance, analyze visitor behavior, and generate reports to gain valuable insights. Astro helps monitor website traffic, assess sales trends, and evaluate SEO performance to optimize growth strategies.
    • Creative Content Creation: Astro enables users to create and manage blog posts, incorporate media, email marketing and marketing content for different social media platforms. It also supports setting up structured online programs for training or learning, ensuring content is well-organized and easily discoverable by search engines.
    • Drive Business Expansion: Users can leverage Astro to expand business opportunities by adding new products, exploring dropshipping options, and customizing site services.
    • Seamlessly Manage Subscriptions and Permissions: Users can manage their site’s premium plans, receive personalized plan recommendations, and access billing history, invoices, and transaction details. Additionally, users can easily manage roles and permissions and invite collaborators to the site.

    Astro is for Wix and Wix Studio users in English, gradually rolling out in other languages. Learn more about Wix’s AI solutions here. 

    About Wix.com Ltd.

    Wix is the leading SaaS website builder platform1 to create, manage and grow a digital presence. Founded  in 2006, Wix is a comprehensive platform providing users – self-creators, agencies, enterprises, and more – with industry-leading performance, security, AI capabilities and a reliable infrastructure. Offering a wide range of commerce and business solutions, advanced SEO and marketing tools, the platform enables users to take full ownership of their brand, their data and their relationships with their customers. With a focus on continuous innovation and delivery of new features and products, users can seamlessly build a powerful and high-end digital presence for themselves or their clients. 

    For more about Wix, please visit our Press Room
    Media Relations Contact:  PR@wix.com  

    1 Based on number of active live sites as reported by competitors’ figures, independent third-party data and internal data as of H1 2024.

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    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Spine Wave Announces the Commercial Launch of Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SHELTON, Conn., April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Spine Wave is pleased to announce the successful completion of its limited market release of Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers and its entry into the cortical fiber segment of the spinal allograft market. This appealing new allograft broadens Spine Wave’s position in the large and growing spinal biologics market and well complements its established biologics and graft delivery portfolio. Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers is now fully launched and available from Spine Wave, effective immediately.

    Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers is composed entirely of human allograft cortical bone with osteoconductive and osteoinductive potential. Because no carrier materials are included, surgeons are confident that they are getting the absolute most from each graft. The proprietary processing technology used to formulate Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers maintains tissue integrity and maximizes allograft surface area for cellular proliferation and fiber adhesion. Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers has ideal handling characteristics for fluid retention and expansion and is moldable and pliable to fit into any space. Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers rehydrate quickly with bone marrow aspirate, platelet rich plasma, antibiotics, whole blood, or saline and it resists irrigation after implantation.

    Spine Wave’s GraftMag® Graft Delivery System, which is designed to safely and rapidly deliver large amounts of bone graft, can be used together with Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers.   The GraftMag® Graft Delivery System can transform the tedious and sometimes frustrating graft delivery process into a more efficient part of spine fusion surgery. And using GraftMag® Graft Delivery System may reduce injury risk because it reduces instrument passes by sensitive patient anatomy.  

    The patented GraftMag® Graft Delivery System is comprised of two single use graft magazines that are loaded with bone graft on the back table. The magazines couple with the system’s specially designed funnels to rapidly deliver large amounts of graft into the graft site. This appealing grafting approach can reduce frustrating funnel jams and requires only one instrument pass into the graft site to complete the grafting procedure. The GraftMag® Graft Delivery System can be used in virtually any thoracolumbar spine fusion procedure and with any interbody device. However, it integrates particularly well with Spine Wave’s exciting line of titanium expandable interbody fusion products; the recently launched Exceed® Biplanar Expandable Interbody Device and the well-established Leva® Interbody Device, each of which uniquely accommodates large amounts of bone graft.

    “Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers are my allograft choice for spine fusion surgery,” said Stuart D. Kinsella, MD, MSTR. “My procedures often require large amounts of allograft. I appreciate that Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers maximizes the amount of actual bone in each implanted graft because it is one hundred percent human cortical bone tissue. Also, Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers is versatile because it has great handling and is compatible with GraftMag® Graft Delivery System, which allows delivery of a lot of bone graft safely, quickly and easily.”  Dr. Kinsella is a practicing orthopaedic surgeon at the Steadman Clinic and the Steadman Philippon Research Institute in Aspen, Colorado, USA. 

    “We are very excited to launch Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers as our newest biologic product.  This new allograft performed well in its limited market release and is a great addition to our established line of biologics and graft delivery products,” said Laine Mashburn, Spine Wave’s Executive Vice President for Global Marketing and Business Development.  He continued, “Spine Wave partnered with the respected LifeLink® Tissue Bank to bring Tempest® DCF Demineralized Cortical Fibers to market and our sales team has hit the ground running.  We are making the most of this new opportunity, right now.”

    About Spine Wave
    Spine Wave is a leader in minimally invasive spine surgery and expandable interbody devices. The company is committed to offering differentiated product and procedure solutions for spine surgeons and their patients. Spine Wave offers a broad portfolio of advanced spine implant and biologic products. The company is always looking to expand and continues to recruit sales managers and independent distributors to fuel growth. For more information on Spine Wave and its products please visit www.spinewave.com.

    Contact
    Laine Mashburn, Executive Vice President, Global Marketing and Business Development
    lmashburn@spinewave.com
    (203) 712-1863

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why you should think twice before using shorthand like ‘thx’ and ‘k’ in your texts

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By David Fang, PhD Student in Marketing, Stanford University

    When a texter chops words down, recipients sometimes sense a lack of effort. 35mmf2/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    My brother’s text messages can read like fragments of an ancient code: “hru,” “wyd,” “plz” – truncated, cryptic and never quite satisfying to receive. I’ll often find myself second-guessing whether “gr8” means actual excitement or whether it’s a perfunctory nod.

    This oddity has nagged at me for years, so I eventually embarked upon a series of studies with fellow researchers Sam Maglio and Yiran Zhang. I wanted to know whether these clipped missives might undermine genuine dialogue, exploring the unspoken signals behind digital shorthand.

    As we gathered data, surveyed people and set up experiments, it became clear that those tiny shortcuts – sometimes hailed as a hallmark of efficient communication – undermine relationships instead of simplifying them.

    Short words lead to feeling shortchanged

    Most people type “ty” and “brb” – for “thank you” and “be right back” – without batting an eye.

    In a survey we conducted of 150 American texters ages 18 to 65, 90.1% reported regularly using abbreviations in their daily messages, and 84.2% believed these shortcuts had either a positive effect or no meaningful impact on how the messages were perceived by the recipients.

    But our findings suggest that the mere inclusion of abbreviations, although seemingly benign, start feeling like a brush-off. In other words, whenever a texter chops words down to their bare consonants, recipients sense a lack of effort, which causes them to disengage.

    It’s a subtle but pervasive phenomenon that most people don’t intuit.

    We started with controlled lab tests, presenting 1,170 participants ages 15 to 80 with one of two near-identical text exchanges: one set sprinkled with abbreviations, the other fully spelled out. In every single scenario, participants rated the abbreviating sender as less sincere and far less worthy of a reply.

    The deeper we dug, the more consistent the pattern became.

    Whether people were reading messages about weekend plans or major life events, the presence of truncated words and phrases such as “plz,” “sry” or “idk” for “please,” “sorry” or “I don’t know” made the recipients feel shortchanged.

    The phenomenon didn’t stop with strangers. In more experiments, we tested whether closeness changed the dynamic. If you’re texting a dear friend or a romantic partner, can you abbreviate to your heart’s content?

    Evidently not. Even people imagining themselves chatting with a longtime buddy reported feeling a little put off by half-spelled words, and that sense of disappointment chipped away at how authentic the interaction felt.

    From Discord to dating apps

    Still, we had nagging doubts: Might this just be some artificial lab effect?

    We wondered whether real people on real platforms might behave differently. So we took our questions to Discord, a vibrant online social community where people chat about everything from anime to politics. More importantly, Discord is filled with younger people who use abbreviations like it’s second nature.

    We messaged random users asking them to recommend TV shows to watch. One set of messages fully spelled out our inquiry; the other set was filled with abbreviations. True to our lab results, fewer people responded to the abbreviated ask. Even among digital natives – youthful, tech-savvy users who are well versed in the casual parlance of text messaging – a text plastered with shortcuts still felt undercooked.

    If a few missing letters can sour casual chats, what happens when love enters the equation? After all, texting has become a cornerstone of modern romance, from coy flirtations to soul-baring confessions. Could “plz call me” inadvertently jeopardize a budding connection? Or does “u up?” hint at more apathy than affection? These questions guided our next foray, as we set out to discover whether the swift efficiency of abbreviations might actually short-circuit the delicate dance of courtship and intimacy.

    Our leap into the realm of romance culminated on Valentine’s Day with an online speed dating experiment.

    We paired participants for timed “dates” inside a private messaging portal, and offered half of them small incentives to pepper their replies with abbreviations such as “ty” instead of “thank you.”

    When it came time to exchange contact information, the daters receiving abbreviation-heavy notes were notably more reluctant, citing a lack of effort from the other party. Perhaps the most eye-opening evidence came from a separate study running a deep analysis of hundreds of thousands of Tinder conversations. The data showed that messages stuffed with abbreviations such as “u” and “rly” scored fewer overall responses and short-circuited conversations.

    If you can’t take the time to spell it out, is it sincere?
    Roman Didkivskyi/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    It’s the thought that counts

    We want to be clear: We’re not campaigning to ban “lol.” Our research suggests that a few scattered abbreviations don’t necessarily torpedo a friendship. Nor does every one of the many messages sent to many people every day warrant the full spelling-out treatment. Don’t care about coming across as sincere? Don’t need the recipient to respond? Then by all means, abbreviate away.

    Instead, it’s the overall reliance on condensed phrases that consistently lowers our impression of the sender’s sincerity. When we type “plz” a dozen times in a conversation, we risk broadcasting that the other person isn’t worth the extra letters. The effect may be subtle in a single exchange. But over time, it accumulates.

    If your ultimate goal is to nurture a deeper connection – be it with a friend, a sibling or a prospective date – taking an extra second to type “thanks” might be a wise investment.

    Abbreviations began as a clever workaround for clunky flip phones, with its keypad texting – recall tapping “5” three times to type the letter “L” – and strict monthly character limits. Yet here we are, long past those days, still trafficking in “omg” and “brb,” as though necessity never ended.

    After all of those studies, I’ve circled back to my brother’s texts with fresh eyes. I’ve since shared with him our findings about how those tiny shortcuts can come across as half-hearted or indifferent. He still fires off “brb” in half his texts, and I’ll probably never see him type “I’m sorry” in full. But something’s shifting – he typed “thank you” a few times, even threw in a surprisingly heartfelt “hope you’re well” the other day.

    It’s a modest shift, but maybe that’s the point: Sometimes, just a few more letters can let someone know they really matter.

    Sam Maglio, an Associate Professor of Marketing and Psychology at the University of Toronto, contributed to the writing of this article.

    David Fang 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. Why you should think twice before using shorthand like ‘thx’ and ‘k’ in your texts – https://theconversation.com/why-you-should-think-twice-before-using-shorthand-like-thx-and-k-in-your-texts-248812

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Shark AI uses fossil shark teeth to get middle school kids interested in paleontology and computer vision

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christine Wusylko, Postdoctoral Fellow in Educational Technology, University of Florida

    A student creates their model using Google Teachable Machine. Christine Wusylko, CC BY-ND

    Most kids have a natural curiosity about sharks − especially their sharp and abundant teeth. Our team had the idea to use the appeal of this charismatic apex predator to teach how scientists use artificial intelligence.

    We are researchers in AI literacy and STEM education who helped create a series of lessons that use fossil shark teeth to demonstrate the power and pitfalls of AI.

    The curriculum guides middle school students and teachers through building and evaluating computer vision models that can reliably classify fossil shark teeth. Computer vision is a type of artificial intelligence that uses algorithms and a lot of image data to classify and identify objects. It’s the same technology that enables Google Lens to identify plant species in photographs or self-driving cars to recognize people, cars and bicycles.

    Our free Shark AI curriculum has five modules, which are aligned with national and state science education standards. These standards outline the key knowledge and skills students should learn at each grade level. The lessons are designed to cultivate students’ interest in AI, data science, paleontology and the nature of science.

    Students learn about the different types of shark teeth and what they look like.
    Department of Education, University of Florida, CC BY-ND
    Shark AI students analyze various types of shark teeth.
    Bruce MacFadden photo composite, CC BY-ND

    The overall objective of Shark AI is to show that one does not have to be a computer scientist to use, teach or learn AI. We believe all teachers can and should be prepared to teach about AI in order to facilitate the technology’s meaningful integration into K-12 education.

    Teaching science with AI

    AI is already transforming our lives at a dizzying pace.

    To help prepare kids to live and work in an AI world, it is important for them to learn about the technology in school. Most of the resources available to teach AI in K-12 classrooms focus on the technology itself. As a result, these lessons may be offered only in specialty classes such as computer science and engineering, which may not be offered to all students at all schools.

    Systematic integration of AI in education is relatively new, so many teacher preparation programs are just beginning to incorporate it. There’s a need for professional learning opportunities for teachers already working in schools to learn about AI.

    Our research shows science teachers have a variety of preconceptions about AI. Additionally, many teachers are worried about teaching something they have little experience with. Nearly half of educators told EdWeek in a survey that “they’re uncomfortable with AI technology,” suggesting they are unlikely to add AI lessons to their already packed curriculum.

    Sorting sharks’ teeth

    To break down that unfamiliarity, the curriculum starts by introducing the various types of AI, such as natural language processing, automated speech recognition and computer vision. Students then get to work with fossil kits containing 15 real fossil shark teeth and one 3D-printed megalodon tooth. Megalodons were behemoth sharks that roamed the waters starting 20 million years ago and are now extinct. Students sort teeth in any way they want – such as by size, color or shape. Then, they learn how scientists typically classify fossils and practice sorting the teeth by species of shark and by what it eats.

    A student examines the features of a shark tooth fossil.
    Christine Wusylko, CC BY-ND

    After this, students use Google Teachable Machine, a free, online tool that uses the powerful TensorFlow.js machine learning model trained on millions of images. That creates their own computer vision model to classify fossil shark teeth. The data they use can be pictures they take of the real teeth in their kits or pictures they upload from databases such as the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History paleobiology digital collection or iDigBio.

    The models occasionally misclassify teeth, which creates an opportunity for teachers to discuss bias and limitations of computer vision, such as why it is important to train AI on lots of high-quality and diverse images.

    The Shark AI curriculum concludes with students creating, showcasing and discussing their own computer vision models.

    Different ways students classify fossils.
    Christine Wusylko, CC BY-ND

    Through these activities, students learn about AI concepts such as the strengths and weaknesses of AI compared with human intelligence along with paleontology concepts such as the fossil record or the information that can be learned about the history of life on Earth by studying fossils.

    Teachers have the flexibility to modify the activities, sequence and time they want to spend on the curriculum. This allows them to highlight the aspects that make most sense for their instructional needs and goals.

    To prepare teachers to use Shark AI, we host a weeklong professional learning session in which teachers learn how AI is used in science. They also practice doing the activities in the curriculum, and we leave plenty of time for discussion to demystify the technology.

    An important component of the training is to create a community for the teachers. They have opportunities to check in, brainstorm and troubleshoot together throughout the year.

    The Shark AI staff also checks in frequently with teachers individually to provide personalized support, usually troubleshooting questions about Google Teachable Machine. The teachers meet as a group once every few months to build community.

    Instructors work with Shark AI teachers during the weeklong professional learning session.
    Photos courtesy of the UF College of Education., CC BY-ND

    With these supports, we have found that teachers can change their understanding and beliefs about AI, and feel comfortable and prepared to teach science with AI methods.

    Christine Wusylko works for the University of Florida and receives funding from the NSF.

    Pavlo Antonenko works for the University of Florida and receives funding from the NSF.

    – ref. Shark AI uses fossil shark teeth to get middle school kids interested in paleontology and computer vision – https://theconversation.com/shark-ai-uses-fossil-shark-teeth-to-get-middle-school-kids-interested-in-paleontology-and-computer-vision-251125

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Colorado’s early childhood education workers face burnout and health disparities, but a wellness campaign could help

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jini Puma, Clinical Associate Professor of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

    Early childhood education workers face high stress and burnout. FatCamera/GettyImages

    A lot of research has been done on the outcomes of young children who receive care in early education programs across the country. High-quality early childhood education programs positively shape young children’s development. Far less research has focused on the early childhood workforce that powers these programs.

    We set out to better understand how to support workers who care for our youngest and most vulnerable children.

    Workers who provide care for children under 5, such as teachers, administrative leaders and support staff, play a pivotal role in shaping the next generation. But research suggests they are underpaid, overburdened and have limited resources.

    For example, in Colorado, about 46% of the early education workforce receives public assistance, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and Medicaid. These workers earn a median hourly pay of $18.50.

    Across the country, between 43% of child care workers receive public assistance.

    Additionally, teaching in early childhood settings takes a toll. According to the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future, nearly half of early childhood education teachers report high levels of daily stress during the school year, compared with approximately 25% of U.S. workers.

    Stressed-out teachers impact children, too. Poor well-being in early childhood teachers can reduce child care quality. This may lead to poor social-emotional development and increased behavioral issues in young children.

    Research shows that chronic underfunding of early childhood education programs, coupled with the inherent stressors of the job, leads to burnout and turnover.

    We are clinical associate and research assistant professors of public health at the Colorado School of Public Health. We have researched the early childhood education community in Colorado for more than 15 years. Our team is currently one of six federally funded national research teams investigating the well-being of this workforce and creating strategies to prevent burnout and turnover.

    Mental and physical stress

    There are many causes of health disparities within the early childhood education workforce. The job involves managing children’s challenging behaviors, working 9-12 hours a day, sitting in child-sized furniture, taking few breaks – and having a lack of support from co-workers and supervisors.

    In St. Paul, Minn., organizers at a rally call for more public funding for both child care costs and pay increases for teachers.
    Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

    Researchers have found that early childhood educators in the U.S. experience higher rates of chronic health conditions as compared with national samples of workers with comparable income, education and other characteristics. These conditions include severe headaches, lower back pain, obesity and diabetes, as well as mental health conditions, including depression.

    Past studies, including our own, suggest that poor psychological and physical well-being may be particularly pronounced among early childhood education staff employed in Head Start settings. Head Start is the largest federally funded early childhood education program in the U.S. It often provides care for young children living in poverty.

    Head Start teachers report depression rates ranging between 25% and 32%, compared with the national average of 18% among the U.S. workforce.

    Urban and rural teachers in Colorado

    The well-being of early childhood educators also varies by where they live.

    In our recent work, we explored differences in job-related demands and resources among 332 Head Start staff in rural and urban areas in Colorado.

    A higher percentage of our rural sample in southeast Colorado reported lower family incomes and lower levels of education. This would suggest that early childhood education staff in rural settings may experience higher levels of stress because of increased economic hardships.

    However, on average, our rural sample had a lower level of emotional exhaustion, which is a key indicator of burnout, than our urban sample.

    Rural settings tend to foster close-knit relationships, strong social support networks and a slower-paced work environment than urban settings. These social situations could be why workers in rural areas report lower levels of emotional exhaustion. Alternatively, in urban settings, educators may experience larger class sizes and more stringent licensing and training standards, which could translate to increased stress.

    While workers in urban settings face higher rates of burnout, we also found that they had higher levels of hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience than those of rural child care workers. These positive feelings helped to decrease the effects of their high-stress work environments.

    Our findings suggest a need to improve the work environment and provide caregivers with healthy coping strategies – especially urban Head Start staff.

    The WELL program

    To address the workplace needs we identified, we launched the Well-Being of the ECE Workforce in Low-Resourced Locations program, or WELL program. The program looks at workplace policies, culture and safety, plus a person’s health status, home life and community, to create a program that supports an individual’s well-being at work.

    We partnered with five Head Start agencies to test Head Start well-being programs.

    The Head Start staff we worked with across Colorado identified mindfulness, coping strategies and sleep as areas of need. We tailored WELL in response to their requests. WELL provides workplace training and supports related to these topics, texts weekly tips and strategies to promote well-being, and even helps sites design a relaxation lounge as a place for staff to unwind.

    Our preliminary findings suggest that the majority of staff were satisfied with the WELL program, and participants reported increased confidence in practicing behaviors that promote their well-being, like mindfulness.

    “[The WELL program] has helped me within the classroom, too,” said one study participant. “So when you’re like, ‘Oh, my gosh! This child’s driving me crazy. I can’t deal with it!’ it’s like, ‘Just take a step back. It’s OK to take a break and ask somebody for help.’”

    We also found that 77% felt that their early childhood education center supported participation in WELL. These findings, while preliminary, highlight the likelihood of this program to be successfully implemented in other early childhood education centers in Colorado.

    Read more of our stories about Colorado.

    Jini Puma receives funding from the Administration for Children and Families.

    Charlotte Farewell receives funding from the Administration for Children and Families.

    – ref. Colorado’s early childhood education workers face burnout and health disparities, but a wellness campaign could help – https://theconversation.com/colorados-early-childhood-education-workers-face-burnout-and-health-disparities-but-a-wellness-campaign-could-help-250880

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Americans die earlier at all wealth levels, even if wealth buys more years of life in the US than in Europe

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Sara Machado, Research Scientist in Health Economics, Brown University

    Wealth can buy health – but only to a point. marekuliasz/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    Americans at all wealth levels are more likely to die sooner than their European counterparts, with even the richest U.S. citizens living shorter lives than northern and western Europeans. That is the key finding of our new study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

    We also found that while the wealthiest Americans live longer than the poorest, the wealth-mortality gap in the U.S. is far more pronounced than in Europe.

    We are a team of health policy researchers who study health systems and how their performance compares across countries.

    We analyzed survey data from 73,838 adults ages 50 to 85 across the United States and 16 European countries over a 12-year period and compared how long people across the wealth spectrum lived during the course of our study. The 16 European countries are grouped into European regions: northern and western, southern and eastern Europe.

    Our research revealed that people in the wealthiest 25% of the study population across the U.S. and Europe were 40% less likely to die during the study period than the poorest quarter of people. The wealthiest 25% of people in northern and western Europe had mortality rates that were about 35% lower than participants in the wealthiest quartile in the U.S. For those from southern Europe, during the study period this value ranged from 24% to 33%. For those from eastern Europe, the value ranged from 1% to 7%. The poorest individuals in the U.S. appear to have the worst survival, including when compared with the poorest quarter of people in each European region.

    Why it matters

    Wealth inequality has been rising for decades, but more so in the U.S. than in Europe due to a widening gap between the wealth of the richest and the poorest. At the same time, despite spending significantly more on health care than other wealthy nations, overall, the U.S. consistently demonstrates worse health outcomes, such as higher infant mortality rates and avoidable mortality.

    Our study also reveals a wider wealth-mortality gap in the U.S. when compared with Europe. In other words, personal wealth does buy more years of life in the U.S. than in Europe. These findings suggest that personal wealth alone is not enough to compensate for other factors that tend to affect how long people live, such as health behaviors like smoking or heavy drinking, education or social support.

    At its core, our research suggests that health outcomes are shaped by much more than just health care systems. It is likely that economic and social policies − from education and employment to housing and food security − play a crucial role in determining how long people live, including across the wealth distribution.

    European countries have found ways to reduce health disparities without dramatically increasing health spending. By distributing health-promoting resources more equally across wealth groups, these nations may have created environments where longevity is less dependent on individual wealth.

    What still isn’t known

    While our study shows clear longevity differences between Americans and Europeans across wealth levels, more work still needs to be done to determine which specific aspects of European social systems − whether health care delivery, education access, retirement security or tax policies − most effectively protect health regardless of personal wealth.

    Pinpointing exactly how these factors interact with wealth to influence health outcomes would allow researchers to identify which European policies could be most successfully adapted to improve longevity for all Americans.

    What’s next

    Looking ahead, we plan to identify which of those policy levers might be most effective in reducing mortality gaps.

    The Research Brief is a short take on interesting academic work.

    Irene N. Papanicolas receives funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Commonwealth Fund, the Health Foundation, the National Institute for Health Care Management and the World Health Organiation.

    Sara Machado 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. Americans die earlier at all wealth levels, even if wealth buys more years of life in the US than in Europe – https://theconversation.com/americans-die-earlier-at-all-wealth-levels-even-if-wealth-buys-more-years-of-life-in-the-us-than-in-europe-253620

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: What would happen if Section 230 went away? A legal expert explains the consequences of repealing ‘the law that built the internet’

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Daryl Lim, Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Research and Innovation, Penn State

    Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., are vocal critics of Section 230. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

    Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, passed in 1996 as part of the Telecommunications Act, has become a political lightning rod in recent years. The law shields online platforms from liability for user-generated content while allowing moderation in good faith.

    Lawmakers including Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., now seek to sunset Section 230 by 2027 in order to spur a renegotiation of its provisions. The senators are expected to hold a press event before April 11 about a bill to start a timer on reforming or replacing Section 230, according to reports. If no agreement is reached by the deadline Section 230 would cease to be law.

    The debate over the law centers on balancing accountability for harmful content with the risks of censorship and stifled innovation. As a legal scholar, I see dramatic potential effects if Section 230 were to be repealed, with some platforms and websites blocking any potentially controversial content. Imagine Reddit with no critical comments or TikTok stripped of political satire.

    The law that built the internet

    Section 230, often described as “the 26 words that created the internet,” arose in response to a 1995 ruling penalizing platforms for moderating content. The key provision of the law, (c)(1), states that “no provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.” This immunizes platforms such as Facebook and Yelp from liability for content posted by users.

    Importantly, Section 230 does not offer blanket immunity. It does not shield platforms from liability related to federal criminal law, intellectual property infringement, sex trafficking or where platforms codevelop unlawful content. At the same time, Section 230 allows platform companies to moderate content as they see fit, letting them block harmful or offensive content that is permitted by the First Amendment.

    Some critics argue that the algorithms social media platforms use to feed content to users are a form of content creation and should be outside the scope of Section 230 immunity. In addition, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr has signaled a more aggressive stance toward Big Tech, advocating for a rollback of Section 230’s protections to address what he perceives as biased content moderation and censorship.

    What Section 230 does and how it came about.

    Censorship and the moderation dilemma

    Opponents warn that repealing Section 230 could lead to increased censorship, a flood of litigation and a chilling effect on innovation and free expression.

    Section 230 grants complete immunity to platforms for third-party activities regardless of whether the challenged speech is unlawful, according to a February 2024 report from the Congressional Research Service. In contrast, immunity via the First Amendment requires an inquiry into whether the challenged speech is constitutionally protected.

    Without immunity, platforms could be treated as publishers and held liable for defamatory, harmful or illegal content their users post. Platforms could adopt a more cautious approach, removing legally questionable material to avoid litigation. They could also block potentially controversial content, which could leave less space for voices of marginalized people.

    MIT management professor Sinan Aral warned, “If you repeal Section 230, one of two things will happen. Either platforms will decide they don’t want to moderate anything, or platforms will moderate everything.” The overcautious approach, sometimes called “collateral censorship,” could lead platforms to remove a broader swath of speech, including lawful but controversial content, to protect against potential lawsuits. Yelp’s general counsel noted that without Section 230, platforms may feel forced to remove legitimate negative reviews, depriving users of critical information.

    Corbin Barthold, a lawyer with the nonprofit advocacy organization TechFreedom, warned that some platforms might abandon content moderation to avoid liability for selective enforcement. This would result in more online spaces for misinformation and hate speech, he wrote. However, large platforms would likely not choose this route to avoid backlash from users and advertisers.

    A legal minefield

    Section 230(e) currently preempts most state laws that would hold platforms liable for user content. This preemption maintains a uniform legal standard at the federal level. Without it, the balance of power would shift, allowing states to regulate online platforms more aggressively.

    Some states could pass laws imposing stricter content moderation standards, requiring platforms to remove certain types of content within defined time frames or mandating transparency in content moderation decisions. Conversely, some states may seek to limit moderation efforts to preserve free speech, creating conflicting obligations for platforms that operate nationally. Litigation outcomes could also become inconsistent as courts across different jurisdictions apply varying standards to determine platform liability.

    The lack of uniformity would make it difficult for platforms to establish consistent content moderation practices, further complicating compliance efforts. The chilling effect on expression and innovation would be especially pronounced for new market entrants.

    While major players such as Facebook and YouTube might be able to absorb the legal pressure, smaller competitors could be forced out of the market or rendered ineffective. Small or midsize businesses with a website could be targeted by frivolous lawsuits. The high cost of compliance could deter many from entering the market.

    Reform without ruin

    The nonprofit advocacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation warned, “The free and open internet as we know it couldn’t exist without Section 230.” The law has been instrumental in fostering the growth of the internet by enabling platforms to operate without the constant threat of lawsuits over user-generated content. Section 230 also lets platforms organize and tailor user-generated content.

    The potential repeal of Section 230 would fundamentally alter this legal landscape, reshaping how platforms operate, increasing their exposure to litigation and redefining the relationship between the government and online intermediaries.

    Daryl Lim 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 would happen if Section 230 went away? A legal expert explains the consequences of repealing ‘the law that built the internet’ – https://theconversation.com/what-would-happen-if-section-230-went-away-a-legal-expert-explains-the-consequences-of-repealing-the-law-that-built-the-internet-253326

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: LEADER JEFFRIES: “WE ARE UNIFIED IN OUR OPPOSITION TO THE LARGEST MEDICAID CUT IN AMERICAN HISTORY”

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)

    Washington, DC – Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries held a press availability with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House and Senate Democratic leaders where they made clear that Democrats remain united in pushing back against the reckless Republican tax scheme.

    Leader Jeffries: We had another excellent meeting with our Senate Democratic colleagues. Thank you, Leader Schumer, for hosting us today. We are unified in our opposition to the Republican effort to enact the largest Medicaid cut in American history. That’s a disgrace and it will hurt people all across the country. We are unified in our effort to protect and strengthen Social Security. It’s not an entitlement program. It’s an earned benefit. Senate Democrats and House Democrats will continue to stand together in defense of Social Security. We are unified in our effort to improve the quality of life of the American people.

    America right now is too expensive. The cost of living is too high. President Donald Trump promised that costs would go down on day one. He lied to the American people. Costs aren’t going down. They’re going up. Inflation is going up. And Republicans are crashing the economy in real time, increasing costs, reducing retirement savings and driving America toward a Republican recession. So House and Senate Democrats are unified in defense of the American people, pushing back against their extreme budget plan to take away healthcare, nutritional assistance and veterans benefits from the American people, all in service of tax cuts for their billionaire donors like Elon Musk. As Leader Schumer indicated, House Democrats and Senate Democrats together next week will have a Save Social Security Day of Action on Tuesday, and then a Medicaid Matters Day of Action on Thursday, and then the week after that, a week of action around the cost of living in America.

    Leader Jeffries’ remarks can be found here. 

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: NANO Nuclear Announces Sponsorship and Executive Speaking Engagements at the Upcoming Innovation Zero World Congress 2025 on April 29-30th in London

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, N.Y., April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) (“NANO Nuclear” or “the Company”), a leading advanced nuclear energy and technology company focused on developing clean energy solutions, today announced its sponsorship of the Innovation Zero World Congress 2025, to be held on April 29th and 30th, 2025 at Olympia London, UK.

    NANO Nuclear Chief Executive Officer, James Walker, will deliver a presentation titled “Finding Opportunities in the Resurgent Nuclear Energy Industry” on April 30th at 11:05 a.m., London time, followed by his participation in the panel discussion “Fixing Fission: Green Taxonomies and Red Tape in Nuclear” at 11:35 a.m., London time, the same day.

    Supported by the U.K. Government, the Innovation Zero World Congress 2025 provides a space and opportunity for collaboration and overcoming obstacles to drive large-scale, impactful progress towards global emissions reduction. Approximately 10,000 attendees are expected to arrive at Olympia London, providing an excellent platform for networking, investment exploration, and knowledge sharing. With over 250 sessions taking place across 13 dedicated forums, Innovation Zero is an essential meeting place for anyone looking to keep up with the latest trends, investment opportunities, and announcements.

    Figure 1 – NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. Sponsors Innovation Zero World Congress, held on April 29th– 30th, 2025 at Olympia London, UK.

    “NANO Nuclear is off to a strong start to 2025, and this year’s Innovation Zero conference is an ideal platform to share our recent progress and upcoming plans with stakeholders and fellow clean-tech industry leaders,” said Jay Yu, Founder and Chairman of NANO Nuclear. “Our UK-based technical team, responsible for advancing our proprietary ODIN™ microreactor technology, will also attend, and I anticipate this event will provide valuable insights and meaningful interactions for everyone involved.”

    “We’re delighted to be heading back to London for this year’s Innovation Zero conference,” said James Walker, Chief Executive Officer of NANO Nuclear. “We view this event as a key part of our global growth conference schedule. It brings together many experts in carbon-neutral energy technologies and I’m looking forward to an insightful and productive gathering.”

    About NANO Nuclear Energy, Inc.

    NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) is an advanced technology-driven nuclear energy company seeking to become a commercially focused, diversified, and vertically integrated company across five business lines: (i) cutting edge portable and other microreactor technologies, (ii) nuclear fuel fabrication, (iii) nuclear fuel transportation, (iv) nuclear applications for space and (v) nuclear industry consulting services. NANO Nuclear believes it is the first portable nuclear microreactor company to be listed publicly in the U.S.

    Led by a world-class nuclear engineering team, NANO Nuclear’s reactor products in development include patented KRONOS MMR™Energy System, a stationary high-temperature gas-cooled reactor that is in construction permit pre-application engagement U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in collaboration with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.), “ZEUS”, a solid core battery reactor, and “ODIN”, a low-pressure coolant reactor, and the space focused, portable LOKI MMR™, each representing advanced developments in clean energy solutions that are portable, on-demand capable, advanced nuclear microreactors.

    Advanced Fuel Transportation Inc. (AFT), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is led by former executives from the largest transportation company in the world aiming to build a North American transportation company that will provide commercial quantities of HALEU fuel to small modular reactors, microreactor companies, national laboratories, military, and DOE programs. Through NANO Nuclear, AFT is the exclusive licensee of a patented high-capacity HALEU fuel transportation basket developed by three major U.S. national nuclear laboratories and funded by the Department of Energy. Assuming development and commercialization, AFT is expected to form part of the only vertically integrated nuclear fuel business of its kind in North America.

    HALEU Energy Fuel Inc. (HEF), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is focusing on the future development of a domestic source for a High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) fuel fabrication pipeline for NANO Nuclear’s own microreactors as well as the broader advanced nuclear reactor industry.

    NANO Nuclear Space Inc. (NNS), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is exploring the potential commercial applications of NANO Nuclear’s developing micronuclear reactor technology in space. NNS is focusing on applications such as the LOKI MMR™ system and other power systems for extraterrestrial projects and human sustaining environments, and potentially propulsion technology for long haul space missions. NNS’ initial focus will be on cis-lunar applications, referring to uses in the space region extending from Earth to the area surrounding the Moon’s surface.

    For more corporate information please visit: https://NanoNuclearEnergy.com/

    For further NANO Nuclear information, please contact:

    Email: IR@NANONuclearEnergy.com
    Business Tel: (212) 634-9206

    PLEASE FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES HERE:

    NANO Nuclear Energy LINKEDIN
    NANO Nuclear Energy YOUTUBE
    NANO Nuclear Energy X PLATFORM

    Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements

    This news release and statements of NANO Nuclear’s management in connection with this news release contain or may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In this context, forward-looking statements mean statements related to future events, which may impact our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects”, “anticipates”, “intends”, “plans”, “believes”, “potential”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “would” or “may” and other words of similar meaning. In this press release, forward-looking statement relate to the anticipated benefits to NANO Nuclear of its attendance at the Innovation Zero World Congress 2025. These and other forward-looking statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this news release and represent management’s current views and assumptions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, events or results and involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may be beyond our control. For NANO Nuclear, particular risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the following: (i) risks related to our U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) or related state or non-U.S. nuclear fuel licensing submissions, (ii) risks related the development of new or advanced technology and the acquisition of complimentary technology or businesses, including difficulties with design and testing, cost overruns, regulatory delays, integration issues and the development of competitive technology, (iii) our ability to obtain contracts and funding to be able to continue operations, (iv) risks related to uncertainty regarding our ability to technologically develop and commercially deploy a competitive advanced nuclear reactor or other technology in the timelines we anticipate, if ever, (v) risks related to the impact of U.S. and non-U.S. government regulation, policies and licensing requirements, including by the DOE and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, including those associated with the recently enacted ADVANCE Act, and (vi) similar risks and uncertainties associated with the operating an early stage business a highly regulated and rapidly evolving industry. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this news release. These factors may not constitute all factors that could cause actual results to differ from those discussed in any forward-looking statement, and NANO Nuclear therefore encourages investors to review other factors that may affect future results in its filings with the SEC, which are available for review at www.sec.gov and at https://ir.nanonuclearenergy.com/financial-information/sec-filings. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a predictor of actual results. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this news release, except as required by law.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: SIMPPLE Ltd. Launches New Product “SIMPPLE Vision”, an end-to-end Vision-as-a-Service (VaaS) video content analytics, and Secures Paid Pilot with a national healthcare institution in Singapore

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Singapore, April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SIMPPLE Ltd. (NASDAQ: SPPL) (“SIMPPLE” or “the Company”), a leading technology provider and innovator in the facilities management (FM) sector, today launched its new highly scalable end-to-end A.I. video analytics platform – SIMPPLE Vision, providing building owners and service contractors insights into facility operations and occupants’ behaviour. It brings together a set of pre-trained A.I. models from the Environmental Services and Security sectors coupling them with automated workforce management capabilities, enabling organizations to process vast amounts of video data in real-time, and instantly send alerts or work orders to the workforce to respond. This allows facility managers and workers to react quicker to situations with an enhanced level of transparency and accountability to the operations.

    With rising security concerns around unauthorised access as well as workplace safety breaches and incidents, there is a push towards evidence-based reporting and prevention. SIMPPLE Vision platform makes use of existing camera networks to deliver real-time insights through vision A.I. analytics and automated push notifications, minimising the cost of hardware upgrades and reducing reliance on manual monitoring. This is a significant upgrade, by retrofitting systems that lack modern analytics capability, therefore eliminating the need to replace existing cameras. SIMPPLE Vision processing platform can provide real-time analytics, incident logging, and audit trails for regulatory compliance, amongst many other features and related applications.

    SIMPPLE Vision applies advanced algorithms and high compute capabilities, which can be used and scaled across many sectors, such as aviation and transport safety, healthcare and hospitality monitoring, and compliance within education institutions. Data collected from such implementations can be refined over time, offering people and asset safety, and ultimately creating more personalised customer or occupant experiences within a given space. Another unique proposition SIMPPLE Vision platform offers is its ability to do both on-premises and cloud set-ups, depending on the end user requirements. This is especially important for critical infrastructure or healthcare facilities to avoid cloud risks while concurrently reducing cloud storage and transmission costs from significant bandwidth consumption, making it an ideal and cost-effective alternative solution.

    Following the announcement of SIMPPLE Vision, SIMPPLE is also pleased to announce a contract win with one of the largest public healthcare institutions in Singapore to deploy its advanced computer vision-to-workforce management capabilities as part of the initial proof-of-value initiative. Due to confidentiality, specific contract details remain undisclosed. This collaboration aims to enhance operational efficiency within the healthcare premises and improve customer satisfaction. If successful, the program is set to expand across multiple hospitals nationwide with these added vision applications, marking a major step forward to incorporate cutting-edge vision technologies for the healthcare sector.

    “We are thrilled to launch SIMPPLE Vision as part of our continuing commitment to develop innovative and cost-effective solutions that can positively impact service delivery and improved reporting outcomes,” said SIMPPLE chief executive Norman Schroeder. “This domain-specific computer vision capability is a step forward to revolutionise the way assets and broad ranging facilities are managed. Being awarded one of Singapore’s national public hospitals as an initial site is a testament to our commitment and forward-looking vision. We will continue to deliver on our promise to develop fit-for-purpose solutions, as we look to expand our contribution to the healthcare sector in Singapore and beyond.”

    According to an August 2024 report by SkyQuest Technology, the global video analytics market will attain a value of $44.7 billion by 2031, with a CAGR of 22.3%, from 2024 to 2031. This rapid growth is largely driven by the growing emphasis on security enhancements and integration of artificial intelligence with video analytics solutions. Crowd management will remain as a key contributor to the growth of computer vision applications in stadiums, airports, public events, and government facilities, said the report.

    About SIMPPLE LTD.

    Headquartered in Singapore, SIMPPLE LTD. is an advanced technology solution provider in the emerging PropTech space, focused on helping facilities owners and managers manage facilities autonomously. Founded in 2016, the Company has a strong foothold in the Singapore facilities management market, serving over 60 clients in both the public and private sectors and extending out of Singapore into Australia and the Middle East. The Company has developed its proprietary SIMPPLE Ecosystem, to create an automated workforce management tool for building maintenance, surveillance and cleaning comprised of a mix of software and hardware solutions such as robotics (both cleaning and security) and Internet-of-Things (“IoT”) devices. 

    For more information on SIMPPLE, please visit: https://www.simpple.ai

    Safe Harbor Statement

    This press release contains forward-looking statements. In addition, from time to time, we or our representatives may make forward-looking statements orally or in writing. We base these forward-looking statements on our expectations and projections about future events, which we derive from the information currently available to us. Such forward-looking statements relate to future events or our future performance, including: our financial performance and projections; our growth in revenue and earnings; and our business prospects and opportunities. You can identify forward-looking statements by those that are not historical in nature, particularly those that use terminology such as “may,” “should,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “contemplates,” “estimates,” “believes,” “plans,” “projected,” “predicts,” “potential,” or “hopes” or the negative of these or similar terms. In evaluating these forward-looking statements, you should consider various factors, including: our ability to change the direction of the Company; our ability to keep pace with new technology and changing market needs; and the competitive environment of our business. These and other factors may cause our actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement.

    Forward-looking statements are only predictions. The forward-looking events discussed in this press release and other statements made from time to time by us or our representatives, may not occur, and actual events and results may differ materially and are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions about us. We are not obligated to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this press release and other statements made from time to time by us or our representatives might not occur.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Cyabra Partners with Aquion to Strengthen Digital Security and Combat Disinformation Across Australia and New Zealand

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, NY, April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cyabra Strategy Ltd. (“Cyabra”), a leading AI platform for real-time disinformation detection, has joined forces with Aquion Pty Ltd, a trusted value-added distributor of cybersecurity and digital transformation solutions. This partnership will bring Cyabra’s AI-driven platform to businesses, government agencies, and enterprises across Australia and New Zealand, helping them detect and monitor digital threats in real time.

    With the rise of disinformation campaigns, bot-driven influence operations, and online manipulation, organizations are increasingly vulnerable to digital threats. Cyabra’s AI-powered platform analyzes millions of online conversations across social media platforms such as X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and TikTok. It detects inauthentic accounts, AI-generated content, and coordinated disinformation campaigns, mapping how false narratives spread and influence public opinion. By partnering with Aquion, Cyabra is expanding its reach, enabling organizations in Australia and New Zealand via its reseller partners access to the tools they need to safeguard their digital presence.

    “Disinformation isn’t just about social media engagement—it’s a growing threat with real-world consequences, shaping public opinion, impacting businesses, and eroding trust. Organizations need to be proactive, not just reactive, in protecting their digital presence,” said Dan Brahmy, CEO and Co-founder of Cyabra. “Our partnership with Aquion ensures that businesses and governments across Australia and New Zealand have access to the real-time intelligence they need to spot false narratives, uncover manipulation, and stay ahead of digital threats.”

    “We are excited to partner with Cyabra to bring their AI-powered social media intelligence platform to our customers,” said Stephen Balicki, CEO at Aquion. “Disinformation and online manipulation are growing threats to businesses and government agencies alike. With Cyabra’s unique capabilities, we can provide organizations with unparalleled insights to identify and respond to digital threats effectively.”

    Aquion’s extensive network of reseller partners, combined with Cyabra’s AI-powered insights, will enable businesses, government agencies, and media organizations to detect and combat disinformation before it causes irreparable reputational or financial harm. Together, Cyabra and Aquion empower organizations to proactively detect false narratives, counter-influence operations, and protect digital trust in an era where AI-generated content and coordinated manipulation threaten businesses, governments, and public discourse.

    For more information about Cyabra’s AI-driven disinformation detection capabilities and the partnership with Aquion, visit the Cyabra website or Aquion Website.

    Cyabra has entered into a business combination agreement (the “Business Combination Agreement”) with Trailblazer Merger Corporation I (NASDAQ: TBMC) (“Trailblazer”), a blank-check special-purpose acquisition company.

    About Cyabra

    Cyabra Strategy Ltd. (“Cyabra”) is a real-time AI-powered platform that uncovers and analyzes online disinformation and misinformation by uncovering fake profiles, harmful narratives, and GenAI content across social media and digital news channels. Cyabra’s AI protects corporations and governments against brand reputation risks, election manipulation, foreign interference, and other online threats. Cyabra’s platform leverages proprietary algorithms and NLP solutions, gathering and analyzing publicly available data to provide clear, actionable insights and real-time alerts that inform critical decision-making. Cyabra uncovers the good, bad, and fake online.

    For more information, visit www.cyabra.com.

    Media Contact:
    Jill Burkes
    Jill@cyabra.com
    Signal Contact: Jillabra.24

    About Aquion
     Aquion is a leading Australian software distributor, specialising in connecting world-class technology vendors with the largest resellers across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. With a commitment to delivering value through the channel, Aquion offers a comprehensive portfolio of disruptive technologies with over 5000 existing software agreements, including business transformation, cybersecurity, DevOps, and infrastructure software solutions. Backed by a highly responsive sourcing team and a reputation for outstanding service, Aquion enables partners to drive growth and capitalise on new opportunities. Focused on collaboration, innovation, and customer success, Aquion remains a trusted partner for vendors and resellers alike in APAC.

    https://www.aquion.com.au/

    Investor Relations Contact:
    Miri Segal
    MS-IR
    msegal@ms-ir.com

    About Trailblazer

    Trailblazer Merger Corporation I (Nasdaq: TBMC) is a blank check company formed and entered into a merger, shared exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization, or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. For more information, visit: www.trailblazermergercorp.com

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to certain products that will be the subject of a proposed transaction between Trailblazer Merger Corporation I (“Trailblazer”) and Cyabra Strategy Ltd. (“Cyabra”). All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release, including statements regarding Cyabra’s business strategy, products, research and development costs, plans and objectives of management for future operations, and future results of current and anticipated product offerings, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, but not limited to, the following risks relating to the proposed transaction: the ability to complete the Business Combination or, if Trailblazer does not consummate such Business Combination, any other initial business combination; expectations regarding Cyabra’s strategies and future financial performance, including its future business plans or objectives, prospective performance and opportunities and competitors, revenues, products and services, pricing, operating expenses, market trends, liquidity, cash flows and uses of cash, capital expenditures, and Cyabra’s ability to invest in growth initiatives and pursue acquisition opportunities; the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the Business Combination Agreement; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Trailblazer or Cyabra following announcement of the Business Combination Agreement and the transactions contemplated therein; the inability to complete the proposed Business Combination due to, among other things, the failure to obtain Trailblazer stockholder approval; the risk that the announcement and consummation of the proposed Business Combination disrupts Cyabra’s current operations and future plans;  the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the proposed Business Combination; unexpected costs related to the proposed Business Combination; the amount of any redemptions by existing holders of Trailblazer’s common stock being greater than expected; limited liquidity and trading of Trailblazer’s securities; geopolitical risk and changes in applicable laws or regulations; the size of the addressable markets for Cyabra’s products and services; the possibility that Trailblazer and/or Cyabra may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; the ability to obtain and/or maintain the listing of Combined Company’s Common Stock on Nasdaq following the Business Combination; operational risk; and the risks that the consummation of the proposed Business Combination is substantially delayed or does not occur.

    Important Information for Investors and Stockholders

    Trailblazer will file a registration statement on Form S-4 with the SEC, which will include a proxy statement for Trailblazer’s stockholders and a prospectus related to the securities of the combined company. After the registration statement is declared effective, the proxy statement/prospectus will be sent to all Trailblazer stockholders.

    INVESTORS AND STOCKHOLDERS OF TRAILBLAZER ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT, PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS, AND OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED OR TO BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, AS THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE TRANSACTION AND THE PARTIES INVOLVED.

    Once filed, free copies of these documents can be obtained from the SEC’s website at  www.sec.gov. Additional information about Trailblazer can be found on its website at  www.trailblazermergercorp.com or by contacting info@trailblazermergercorp.com.

    Participants in the Solicitation

    Cyabra, Trailblazer, and their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies from Trailblazer stockholders regarding the transaction. Information about Trailblazer’s directors and executive officers and their ownership of Trailblazer’s securities is set forth in Trailblazer’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC, as modified or supplemented by any Form 3 or Form 4 filed with the SEC since the date of such filing. Other information regarding the interests of the participants in the proxy solicitation will be included in the proxy statement/prospectus pertaining to the proposed Transactions when it becomes available.

    No Offer or Solicitation

    This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation of any vote or approval. No sale of securities shall occur in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful before registration or qualification under applicable laws.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Central Bank of Bahrain grants license to BPay Global

    Source: Central Bank of Bahrain

    Published on 9 April 2025

    Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain – 9 April 2025 – The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has granted BPay Global B.S.C.(c) (BPay Global) a Payment Service Provider (PSP) license to operate in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

    BPay Global is a payment services company in the Binance Group. The PSP license will allow the company to provide fiat services to Binance customers globally, including fiat top ups and withdrawals, custody and other payment services. This will enable Binance customers to open an e-wallet and make fiat top ups on the Binance platform through bank transfers and debit/credit card payments. The license will also allow BPay Global to custody fiat on behalf of customers.

    Commenting on this announcement, Mr. Abdulla Haji, Director of Licensing Directorate at CBB, said “We are pleased to announce the issuance of a license to a new payment service provider in Bahrain. This license represents a positive step in enhancing Bahrain’s digital payments ecosystem, particularly in its support for crypto-related sector as well as fiat payment solutions. The CBB remains committed to enabling a dynamic and progressive payment landscape that aligns with global advancements in financial technology.”

    Mr. Tameem Almoosawi, General Manager of Binance Bahrain and BPay Global, commented: “We are glad to announce the launch of BPay Global and the first Payment Service Provider license received by a Binance company, allowing it to act as a payment service provider and e-wallet provider for users around the world. With this license, BPay Global will provide Binance users with further choice of low-cost fiat on- and off-ramps.”

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    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Cutting edge tech introduced in social care

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Cutting edge tech introduced in social care

    Care leaders will be trained to use cutting-edge technology to improve patient care, free up staff time and help people live independently in their own homes

    Care leaders will be trained to use the latest cutting-edge technology to improve patient care, free up staff time and help people live independently in their own homes for longer.

    In a bid to shift adult social care from analogue to digital as part of the Plan for Change, the Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting has announced a new qualification that will equip care leaders with the skills to use and rapidly deploy technology across care homes and other settings.

    The training will focus on tools which have been shown to improve the quality of care and reduce pressure on staff. This includes motion sensors that can detect and alert staff when a patient has had a fall; video telecare to allow remote appointments with doctors and carers to reduce the need to travel; and artificial intelligence which can automate routine tasks like note taking or predict when a patient might need additional care.

    Care technologies like these will help people to receive the best possible care in the community and prevent avoidable trips to the hospital, reducing pressure on the NHS.  It supports the government’s 10 Year Health Plan to make health and social care fit for the future.

    Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:

    We will harness the full potential of cutting-edge technology to transform social care, helping people to live independently in their own homes and improving the quality of care.

    By investing in skills training for care workers, introducing a Fair Pay Agreement, and providing more opportunities for career progression, we will help retain the incredible professionals we need. 

    Our Plan for Change will make sure we have the people and the skills needed to build a National Care Service.

    Speaking at Unison’s 2025 National Health Care Conference, the Health and Social Care Secretary also outlined a series of wider measures to boost the recruitment and retention of care staff. The plans will professionalise the adult social care workforce and help staff progress in their careers, leading to better pay and recognition.

    This includes:

    • Setting up new job roles – like deputy managers, registered managers, personal assistants and a new enhanced care worker role – in recognition of increasingly complex care requirements. It will mean their skills will be recognised across the health service, so that GPs, doctors and other health professionals understand their expertise.
    • £12 million to fund courses and qualifications for carers to develop new skills, build expertise and advance in their careers.

    The boost for social care careers will support the 1.59 million strong workforce which provides vital care and support to people of all ages and with diverse, complex needs and is in recognition of the vital work they do.

    The measures come as unpaid carers’ see the biggest rise in their earnings limit since the 1970s this month, and the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for the sector continues to progress through Parliament.

    Baroness Louise Casey will soon begin her independent commission into adult social care which will look at how we recruit, retain and support the workforce as part of its focus on building a social care system fit for the future.

    Background

    Care Workforce Pathway

    • The Care Workforce Pathway is the first universal career structure for the adult social care workforce. It focuses on direct care and support roles. The second part of the Pathway includes four further role categories to continue to match the breadth of careers in adult social care.
    • The Pathway provides clear guidance for progression and development for professionals in the adult social care sector by outlining the necessary knowledge, skills, values and behaviours they will need in their work/practice. 8 It sets out how people can develop across a long-term career in adult social care with support and training; attracting people to join and remain in the sector and supporting sustainable workforce growth. 

    Level 5 Digital Leadership Qualification

    • This new qualification will ensure adult social care leaders and managers have the skills they need to adopt digital innovations and new technology to help transform the sector.
    • This supports the fundamental shift from analogue to digital in adult social care will support high quality, safe, efficient and person-centred care. This shift is dependent on the adult social care workforce feeling confident, skilled and supported to embed digital ways of working. 
    • Awarding Organisations can decide which technologies to focus on and these are included, but not limited to: smart home technologies, assistive technologies, technologies worn by staff, telecare, diagnostic tools, digital social care records, business software and AI and robotics technology. Further information can be found in the Level 5 Award in Understanding Digital Leadership in Adult Social Care Qualification Specification. 

     Publication of updated care certificate standards

    • The Care Certificate standards have been refreshed to bring the contents up to date and in line with the Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate qualification that was launched in June 2024. 
    • The Care Certificate Standards were developed for use in England and are the recommended minimum training, supervision and assessment that staff new to care (health and adult social care) should receive as part of induction and before they start to deliver care. It provides a foundation for healthcare support and social care worker roles, ensuring that the new worker can provide a compassionate and caring service.

    International Recruitment Fund

    • Additionally, the government will also reduce reliance on overseas recruitment for social care. £12.5 million has been made available for the international recruitment fund to tackle the exploitation of international care workers. This will help find new employment for displaced overseas care workers, prioritising those already in the UK before hiring internationally.  

    Updates to this page

    Published 9 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Form 8.3 – [Niox]

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FORM 8.3

    PUBLIC OPENING POSITION DISCLOSURE/DEALING DISCLOSURE BY
    A PERSON WITH INTERESTS IN RELEVANT SECURITIES REPRESENTING 1% OR MORE
    Rule 8.3 of the Takeover Code (the “Code”)

    1.        KEY INFORMATION

    (a)   Full name of discloser: Danske Bank A/S
    (b)   Owner or controller of interests and short positions disclosed, if different from 1(a):
            The naming of nominee or vehicle companies is insufficient. For a trust, the trustee(s), settlor and beneficiaries must be named.    		  
    (c)   Name of offeror/offeree in relation to whose relevant securities this form relates:
            Use a separate form for each offeror/offeree    		 NIOX Group plc
    (d)   If an exempt fund manager connected with an offeror/offeree, state this and specify identity of offeror/offeree:  
    (e)   Date position held/dealing undertaken:
            For an opening position disclosure, state the latest practicable date prior to the disclosure    		 08 April 2025
    (f)   In addition to the company in 1(c) above, is the discloser making disclosures in respect of any other party to the offer?
            If it is a cash offer or possible cash offer, state “N/A”    		 N/A

    2.        POSITIONS OF THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE

    If there are positions or rights to subscribe to disclose in more than one class of relevant securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c), copy table 2(a) or (b) (as appropriate) for each additional class of relevant security.

    (a)      Interests and short positions in the relevant securities of the offeror or offeree to which the disclosure relates following the dealing (if any)

    Class of relevant security: Equity
      Interests Short positions
      Number % Number %
    (1)   Relevant securities owned and/or controlled: 13 151 636,00 3,30    
    (2)   Cash-settled derivatives:        
    (3)   Stock-settled derivatives (including options) and agreements to purchase/sell:        

            TOTAL:

    		 13 151 636,00 3,30    

    All interests and all short positions should be disclosed.
    Details of any open stock-settled derivative positions (including traded options), or agreements to purchase or sell relevant securities, should be given on a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions).

    (b)      Rights to subscribe for new securities (including directors’ and other employee options)

    Class of relevant security in relation to which subscription right exists:  
    Details, including nature of the rights concerned and relevant percentages:  

    3.        DEALINGS (IF ANY) BY THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE

    Where there have been dealings in more than one class of relevant securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c), copy table 3(a), (b), (c) or (d) (as appropriate) for each additional class of relevant security dealt in.

    The currency of all prices and other monetary amounts should be stated.

    (a)        Purchases and sales

    Class of relevant security Purchase/sale Number of securities Price per unit
    Equity Sale          501 958,00
           
               		 69.088 GBP

    (b)        Cash-settled derivative transactions

    Class of relevant security Product description
    e.g. CFD    		 Nature of dealing
    e.g. opening/closing a long/short position, increasing/reducing a long/short position    		 Number of reference securities Price per unit
             

    (c)        Stock-settled derivative transactions (including options)

    (i)        Writing, selling, purchasing or varying

    Class of relevant security Product description e.g. call option Writing, purchasing, selling, varying etc. Number of securities to which option relates Exercise price per unit Type
    e.g. American, European etc.    		 Expiry date Option money paid/ received per unit
                   

    (ii)        Exercise

    Class of relevant security Product description
    e.g. call option    		 Exercising/ exercised against Number of securities Exercise price per unit
             

    (d)        Other dealings (including subscribing for new securities)

    Class of relevant security Nature of dealing
    e.g. subscription, conversion    		 Details Price per unit (if applicable)
           

    4.        OTHER INFORMATION

    (a)        Indemnity and other dealing arrangements

    Details of any indemnity or option arrangement, or any agreement or understanding, formal or informal, relating to relevant securities which may be an inducement to deal or refrain from dealing entered into by the person making the disclosure and any party to the offer or any person acting in concert with a party to the offer:
    Irrevocable commitments and letters of intent should not be included. If there are no such agreements, arrangements or understandings, state “none”

    None

    (b)        Agreements, arrangements or understandings relating to options or derivatives

    Details of any agreement, arrangement or understanding, formal or informal, between the person making the disclosure and any other person relating to:
    (i)   the voting rights of any relevant securities under any option; or
    (ii)   the voting rights or future acquisition or disposal of any relevant securities to which any derivative is referenced:
    If there are no such agreements, arrangements or understandings, state “none”

    None

    (c)        Attachments

    Is a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions) attached? NO
    Date of disclosure: 09 April 2025
    Contact name: Kotryna Cinciuke
    Telephone number*: +37060405825

    Public disclosures under Rule 8 of the Code must be made to a Regulatory Information Service.

    The Panel’s Market Surveillance Unit is available for consultation in relation to the Code’s disclosure requirements on +44 (0)20 7638 0129.

    *If the discloser is a natural person, a telephone number does not need to be included, provided contact information has been provided to the Panel’s Market Surveillance Unit.

    The Code can be viewed on the Panel’s website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Fermyon Breaks New Ground in Serverless Hyperscaling with WebAssembly on Google Kubernetes Engine

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    LONGMONT, Colo., April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Fermyon™ Technologies, Inc., the serverless WebAssembly company, today demonstrated a breakthrough for serverless hyperscaling as Fermyon Platform for Kubernetes reaches unparalleled scale on Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) clusters, achieving 7x faster pod scheduling and execution speeds 50x faster than today’s leading serverless cloud technologies.

    At Containers @ Google NEXT ‘25, the Google Cloud team debuted the first high-scale demonstration of next generation GKE Autopilot capabilities. Google Cloud has just announced new performance improvements to GKE Autopilot, including faster pod scheduling, scaling reaction time, and capacity right-sizing. The on-site demo features a GKE Autopilot cluster that hosts 1,000 typical lightweight serverless functions on a single four core node, capable of handling unanticipated bursts of traffic to any function doubling the amount of traffic you can serve within seconds without over-provisioning or introducing latency. The unprecedented workload density is made possible by Fermyon’s specialized high-density runtime, Fermyon Platform for Kubernetes.

    This further cements WebAssembly’s leading-edge stature as the highest-performing compute standard and Fermyon’s leadership within the WebAssembly (Wasm) ecosystem for its selection by Google Cloud to demonstrate this level of scale. The combination of WebAssembly’s fast application scaling and Autopilot’s resource scaling ushers in a new era of cloud elasticity capable of supporting highly responsive “bursty” applications delivered faster than the blink of an eye (<100 milliseconds) while simplifying cluster operations and reducing cost for consumers.

    Media, ecommerce, financial services, and other high-volume digital experience companies know that even 100-millisecond delays can impact customer engagement and online revenue — especially under unpredictable crushing-load situations such as a viral moment or an unexpected high response to a product launch. Current Kubernetes architectures compound the problem by forcing companies to pre-scale to massive compute levels and leave those computers more than 83% idle which puts pressure on both corporate wallets and global emissions.

    “The synergy between Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) and Fermyon’s WebAssembly platform offers remarkable application and infrastructure elasticity. Fermyon’s use of WebAssembly enables serverless applications to achieve startup times in the sub-millisecond range, facilitating rapid scaling in response to sudden demand spikes,” stated Paul Nashawaty, Practice Lead and Principal Analyst at theCUBE Research. “GKE enhances this by providing automated, rapid scaling of virtual machine resources through features like Autopilot mode, which manages node provisioning and scaling based on traffic. This dual-layer elasticity ensures that applications can handle unexpected surges, such as viral events, with near-instantaneous responsiveness, highlighting the growing momentum for serverless WebAssembly and GKE adoption.”

    Scaling with Fermyon Serverless

    Fermyon Platform for Kubernetes (self-hosted, single-tenant) and Fermyon Wasm Functions (hosted, multi-tenant) are both WebAssembly serverless execution engines which achieve blazingly fast cold-starts (<1 millisecond), incredibly high workload density (>50x more than typical Kubernetes app density), and instant scale. Both execute Spin serverless functions. Spin is a Fermyon-contributed CNCF Sandbox project focused on delivering superior developer experience for writing event-driven serverless functions, enabling a developer to go from blinking cursor to deployed serverless function in two minutes or less.

    Pairing this high performance with Google Cloud’s new next-generation Autopilot, featuring a new container-optimized compute platform alongside performance improvements like faster pod scheduling and scaling reaction times, means nodes in a Kubernetes cluster can dynamically resize in a few seconds, capable of hosting thousands of Spin serverless functions and hundreds of thousands of requests per second. This avoids the painful preparatory work cloud operations teams have to do to imagine how large viral spikes could be, then plan for and put in place — at an expense — enough capacity to handle those loads.

    Starting today, Google Cloud customers can develop Spin serverless functions and deploy them on GKE with the container-optimized compute platform enabling them to:

    • Avoid painful blockages, blackouts, and shortages during high-volume bursts that cause customers to be locked out and walk away, thus retaining eyeballs and revenue.
    • Enjoy a serverless developer experience on Kubernetes that rids developers of painful overhead to prepare their code for Kubernetes deployments.
    • Write a serverless function in almost any language with SDK support for Javascript/TypeScript, Rust, Python, .NET/C#, and Go.
    • Cut cold start time of HTTP-centric applications to a mere fraction of a millisecond.
    • Avoid over-spending on Kubernetes clusters for future, unknown events.
    • Avoid the stress that comes with under-guessing.

    Google Cloud customers will be able to directly procure Fermyon Platform for Kubernetes and/or Fermyon Wasm Functions from Fermyon on next-generation GKE Autopilot. And starting in Q3, Autopilot’s container-optimized compute platform will also be available to standard GKE clusters, without requiring a specific cluster configuration.

    “Bringing the world’s fastest serverless platform to the world’s first on-demand expandable compute, backed by intelligent capacity provisioning that supports fast pod scheduling, is a big win for any organization interested in avoiding those painful viral-moment blackouts,” said Fermyon CEO Matt Butcher. “With cold starts under half a millisecond, robust service APIs, AI and GPU integration and support for a broad array of programming languages, Fermyon brings Google customers next-generation compute that is not just industry leading, but redefining.”

    “Companies worldwide are constantly seeking superior performance with less risk and cost. We’ve responded to that with the next generation GKE Autopilot offering featuring a new container-optimized compute platform, along with performance improvements like fast pod scheduling and capacity right sizing, powered by unique Google Cloud hardware. This gets rid of the uncertainty, doubt and cost that comes with pre-planning Kubernetes deployments. Fermyon simply can help customers reach new heights when it comes to scale and speed, utilizing WebAssembly on GKE,” said Gabe Monroy, VP/GM of Cloud Runtimes at Google.

    Google Cloud and Fermyon will be showcasing the Fermyon Platform for Kubernetes on GKE at Google Cloud Next in Las Vegas from April 9th to 11th.

    Additional Resources

    About Fermyon™ Technologies, Inc.

    Fermyon is leading the next wave of cloud computing with the first cloud-native WebAssembly FaaS that lets developers build better serverless apps faster. Fermyon is focused on empowering cloud developers to quickly realize the things they are thinking about creating and focus on the code that brings value instead of the obligatory foundation code. Fermyon was founded by the Deis Labs team at Microsoft Azure and is backed by Insight Partners and Amplify Partners. For more information, go to https://www.fermyon.com or follow @fermyontech.

    Media Contact
    constantia@fermyon.com 

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Energy Industry Veteran Gregory J. Goff Releases Letter to Fellow Phillips 66 Shareholders

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Breakdown in board governance enabled the pursuit of a strategy that has not delivered for shareholders

    Goff supports Elliott’s engagement with Phillips 66 to maximize long-term value for all shareholders

    Elliott’s nominees will provide an infusion of independence and expertise in the Phillips 66 boardroom and ensure management is held to account

    SAN ANTONIO, April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Gregory J. Goff, a 40-year energy industry veteran and shareholder of Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), today released the following letter to his fellow Phillips 66 shareholders:

    Dear Fellow Phillips 66 Shareholders,

    I have made a $10 million investment in Phillips 66 because I am confident that with the right leadership, operating priorities and strategic focus, Phillips 66 can be a much stronger company — offering greater opportunities to its employees and significantly more value to its shareholders. I believe the slate of directors put forward by Elliott Investment Management can help the company unlock that potential.

    During my nearly 30 years at ConocoPhillips, the predecessor company to Phillips 66, I developed an appreciation for the quality of the company’s assets and, more importantly, its people. However, it is my view that Phillips 66 has lost its way. I firmly believe the company can restore its prior stature as a leader in the energy industry, but only if it makes the kinds of operational and strategic changes that are urgently needed.

    I have been disappointed by what I see as a breakdown in effective corporate governance at Phillips 66. I know from experience how critical it is for a company to have a strong Board — possessing both the independence and the expertise to question management’s assumptions about the business and consider the long-term implications of every decision. I don’t see evidence of that kind of culture today on the Phillips 66 Board.

    For example, Phillips 66 has been pursuing a strategy for many years that emphasizes and grows midstream assets alongside its refining business, despite evidence that this structure isn’t delivering value for shareholders relative to the company’s more streamlined peers. A stronger Board would have questioned why these disparate businesses – which trade at different multiples, trapping shareholder value and diluting management focus – belong together. And it wouldn’t require outside pressure to initiate a review of alternatives that could unlock that value and create the focus required to improve operations.

    For these reasons, I am supporting Elliott Investment Management in its engagement with Phillips 66. I believe Elliott’s nominees to the Board — some of whom I know personally from my time at ConocoPhillips — have the potential to instill a new culture in the Phillips 66 boardroom. They would bring much-needed experience and, just as important, a mindset that approaches each critical decision by asking the question, “What’s going to create the most long-term value?”

    I am motivated in part by the fact that Phillips 66 counts among its investors a large number of retail shareholders. These retirees, employees and other individual holders of Phillips 66 stock are counting on their investment to help them meet their financial goals. They deserve a Board that is fully committed to maximizing value on their behalf — one that works tirelessly to hold management accountable.

    To be clear, given my other commitments, I am not seeking a formal role with the company. However, I am committed to helping Phillips 66 reach its full potential, and I would be open to supporting the company, should the Board see fit. I am choosing to devote my time and energy to this effort because I believe Phillips 66 is not only a strong investment, but also a company where my support for Elliott’s campaign can make a difference for employees and investors alike.

    Sincerely,
    Gregory J. Goff

    About Gregory J. Goff

    Gregory J. Goff is an accomplished industry veteran with a 40+ year track record of successfully managing and growing energy and energy-related businesses. He has significant experience in the areas of refining, marketing & logistics, trading, and exploration & production.

    Mr. Goff was previously Chairman, President, and CEO of Andeavor (formerly known as Tesoro) from 2010 until its strategic combination with Marathon Petroleum in 2018. At Andeavor, Mr. Goff spearheaded a successful financial and operational transformation. Prior to joining Andeavor, Mr. Goff had a nearly 30-year career with ConocoPhillips, where he held various leadership positions in Exploration & Production, International Downstream, and Global Commercial Operations. Mr. Goff currently serves as CEO of Claire Technologies, Inc., a technology company providing low-carbon solutions to decarbonize the energy and transportation sectors.

    Mr. Goff is currently a member of the board of directors of Avient (formerly PolyOne Corporation), and XEnergy, a private American nuclear reactor and fuel design engineering company. Additionally, he is the Founder of the Goff Strategic Leadership Institute at the University of Utah.

    Media Contact:

    Dan Gagnier
    Gagnier Communications
    (646) 569-5897
    dg@gagnierfc.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Africa faces critical shortage of oral health workers amid rising disease burden

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    BRAZZAVILLE, Congo (Republic of the), April 9, 2025/APO Group/ —

    Africa faces a chronic shortage of oral health workers due to underinvestment, leaving millions of people without adequate care and vulnerable to preventable oral diseases, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) workforce fact sheet on oral health released today. 

    The WHO fact sheet states that the region has been experiencing the highest increased number of cases of oral diseases like dental caries, gum diseases, and tooth loss over the last three decades across all WHO regions. In 2021, around 42% of the population in the African region suffered from untreated oral diseases. This is compounded by a chronic shortage of health workers to address diseases burden. For example, between 2014 and 2019, the number of dentists and the number of oral health workers, including dentists, dental assistants/therapists and dental prosthetists per 10 000 population in the Region was one tenth and one sixth of the global ratio, respectively.

    In 2022, the region had only about 57 000 oral health professionals, representing a mere 1.11% of the total health workforce in the region and a ratio of 0.37 professionals per 10,000 people. This figure falls far below the 1.33 oral health workers per 10 000 (158 916 total; 83 099 dentists and 75 817 dental assistants and therapists) needed in 2022 to achieve basic universal health coverage targets. 

    This deficit exposes millions to preventable suffering and highlights a critical breakdown in oral health workforce. It also reveals the need for about 199 170 oral health workers (1.37 per 10 000 population) including 103 858 dentists and 95 312 dental health assistants and therapists by 2030.

    Oral health remains a low priority in many African countries, leading to inadequate financial and technical investment. Moreover, oral health has historically been siloed and treated as separate from general health and the broader health care system. This might contribute to isolated oral health management approaches, separated workforce training, increasing costs, and siloed care delivery infrastructures. This silo approach has led to competition for already scarce human and financial resources. Although there are over 4,000 health training institutions in the Region, only 84 dental education institutions were identified across 26 Member States. 

    The shortage of skilled oral health workforce hampers progress towards achieving universal health coverage. Only 17% of the regional population have access to essential oral health interventions as part of the health benefit packages of the largest government health financing schemes. Progress in disease prevention is also slow, including fluoride use and sugar reduction efforts. 

    “Africa cannot afford to neglect oral health. Neglect has severe, lasting consequences for overall well-being,” said Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, Acting WHO Regional Director for Africa. “It’s crucial for countries to do more to increase health workforce, access to affordable prevention and care services and ensure that people are equipped with the knowledge and skill on promoting oral health.”

    The WHO Africa regional oral heath workforce fact sheet will serve as a reference for policymakers and a wide range of stakeholders. In addition, it guides the advocacy process toward better prioritization of oral health in the region to tackle this alarming oral health situation.

    It calls for urgent action to address the oral health workforce crisis, including aligning national oral health and health workforce strategies with the WHO Global oral health strategy, implementing needs-based planning for human resources for health, especially at the primary care level, enhancing data management systems, such as National Health Workforce Accounts to track workforce numbers and trends, shifting from treatment-oriented oral health care to integrated prevention and promotion approaches, particularly at the community and primary care levels and implementing innovative workforce models such as task-sharing of oral health services with oral health workers and non-oral health workers, improving training curricula, and developing retention and migration strategies.   

    “This factsheet calls for action. Increased investment and targeted interventions are critical to closing Africa’s oral health workforce gap. We must prioritize oral health as a fundamental component of Universal Health Coverage to improve health outcomes and reduce the disease burden across the region,” said Dr Ihekweazu.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Africa Finance Corporation Tops US$1 Billion Revenue for First Time as Landmark Projects Unlock Growth Across the Continent

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    LAGOS, Nigeria, April 9, 2025/APO Group/ —

    Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) (www.AfricaFC.org), the continent’s leading infrastructure solutions provider, has announced its strongest financial performance to date, with total revenue for the year ended 31 December 2024 surpassing US$ 1 billion for the first time in the Corporation’s history.

    This record performance marks a significant milestone in AFC’s mission to close Africa’s infrastructure gap through scalable, de-risked investments that attract global capital and deliver tangible development outcomes. The Corporation posted a 22.8% increase in total revenue to US$1.1 billion and a 22.3% rise in total comprehensive income to US$400 million, up from US$327 million in 2023.

    AFC’s earnings growth was driven by improved asset yields, prudent cost-of-funds management and sustained traction in advisory mandates.  

    Further significant financial highlights include:

    • Net interest income up 42.5% to US$ 613.6 million
    • Fee and commission income rose to US$109 million, the highest in over five years
    • Operating income climbed 42.7% to US$709.7 million
    • Total assets reached a record US$14.4 billion, a 16.7% year-on-year increase
    • Liquidity coverage ratio strengthened to 194%, providing over 34 months of cover
    • Cost-to-income ratio improved to 17.3% from 19.6% in 2023

    Throughout 2024, AFC continued to scale its impact by mobilising capital for landmark projects across energy, transport, and natural resources. These included the Lobito Corridor – a cross-border railway development spanning Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Zambia. AFC led the initiative to secure a concession agreement within one year of the initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), an unprecedented achievement for a project of its scale. In the DRC, AFC also invested US$150 million in the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, Africa’s largest copper producer and one of the most sustainable globally, thanks to its high-grade ore and renewable-powered smelter.

    Other milestones transactions included financing support for the commissioning of the Dangote Refinery, the largest in Africa, and continued progress on AFC-backed Infinity Power Holding’s 10 GW clean energy ambition, with power purchase agreements secured in Egypt and South Africa. AFC also invested in the 15GW Xlinks Morocco-UK Power Project, providing US$14.1 million to support early-stage development of a transcontinental renewable energy pipeline between North Africa and Europe.

    AFC strengthened its capital base and expanded its investor network through several landmark funding initiatives. These included a US$ 1.16 billion syndicated loan – the largest in its history, a US$500 million perpetual hybrid bond issue, and the successful execution of Nigeria’s first-ever domestic dollar bond, which raised US$900 million at 180% oversubscription. AFC also returned to the Islamic finance market after eight years, closing a US$400 million Shariah-compliant facility.

    The year also saw strong momentum in equity mobilisation, with US$181.8 million in new capital raised from ten institutional investors. These included Turk Eximbank – AFC’s first non-African sovereign shareholder – the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), and several major pension funds spanning Cameroon, Seychelles, Mauritius, and South Africa. Ratings agencies affirmed AFC’s robust credit profile, with AAA ratings from S&P Global (China) and China Chengxin International, and a stable A3 Outlook from Moody’s.

    “These results send a clear message that strategic investment in African infrastructure creates lasting value for both beneficiaries and investors,” said Samaila Zubairu, President & CEO of AFC. “In 2024, we exceeded the billion-dollar revenue mark, delivered game-changing projects, and reinforced our financial resilience—demonstrating the scalability of our unique model that blends purpose with performance to accelerate Africa’s economic transformation.”

    Read the full annual report here (https://apo-opa.co/424qlmR)

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Women’s Wellness Event promotes health, well-being and empowerment

    Source: Northern Ireland City of Armagh

    Over 70 women gathered at a Women’s Wellness Event at South Lakes Leisure Centre recently for a day dedicated to enhancing physical, mental and emotional well-being.

    The event brought women together for a series of interactive activities, informative health checks and valuable opportunities for connection and self-care.

    Organised by Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council, the Southern Health and Social Care Trust (SHSCT), and ABC Community Network, this impactful event was made possible through funding from The Executive Office, the National Lottery, and the Public Health Agency.

    The programme offered a wide range of activities aimed at promoting health and wellness in a fun, engaging and supportive environment.

    Event highlights included an inspiring talk and music from local comedian Emer Maguire and physical activities such as dance, table tennis, badminton, and boccia, encouraging women of all ages and fitness levels to get active and try new things.

     There were also health checks and complementary therapies providing opportunities for stress relief, relaxation, and self-care plus a wide array of local health organisations on hand to share valuable resources including Women’s Aid, PCSP, Volunteer NOW, Red Cross, SHCST – Breast Health, Sexual Health, Promoting Wellbeing Division, People First and Southern Regional College.

    The event cultivated an inclusive environment where women could access information, gain practical health advice, and discover resources that support their overall well-being.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Local children’s home achieves Outstanding Ofsted rating for the seventh time in a row

    Source: City of Sunderland

    A children’s home in Sunderland has once again been recognised as Outstanding by Ofsted following an inspection in February 2025.

    The Colombo Road home in Castletown is one of nine homes operated by Together for Children, the children’s services partner of Sunderland City Council. Six young people aged between 11 and 17 live at the home.

    This is the seventh time in a row the home has received this highest judgement from Ofsted, with inspectors saying: “The physical environment for children is safe and secure and offers a warm and homely atmosphere. All staff and managers are passionate about building a home for children that they can be proud to welcome their friends and loved ones back to.”

    Councillor Michael Butler, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Child Poverty and Skills said: “The children’s homes in Sunderland provide a safe, caring, and positive environment for young people across the city and we are honoured that Colombo Road has once again been recognised by the independent Ofsted inspectors as leading the way in terms of the care and support in homes like this.  The team offer young people of the city personalised support, opportunities and give them the stability they need to thrive and eventually move on, and their passion and commitment to our young people is clear to see in the report.”

    Director for Children’s Services and Together for Children’s (TfC) Chief Executive, Simon Marshall, added: “The report highlights that Colombo Road staff consistently place children and their well-being at the heart of their practice and are they are highly skilled at responding to their individual needs. As a result, young people know they have a secure, comfortable, and loving home with people who genuinely care about them. We are incredibly proud of the support our staff provide to the young people at the home, and I extend a huge thank you to them for their ongoing hard work – this recognition is truly well-deserved.”

    The Ofsted report noted that:

    • Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding
    • How well children and young people are helped and protected: outstanding
    • The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

    The Ofsted inspector’s report said: “Staff provide a nurturing environment and strive to ensure that children feel loved and genuinely cared for. This has proved effective, as children begin to confide in trusted staff with sensitive issues and requests to keep them safe. Children develop an appropriate sense of permanence and belonging here and see it as their home.”

    The report noted that all the young people at Colombo Road attend school or other educational provisions, where they are learning and making good progress. They highlight that staff are ambitious for children and support them to attend and do well in their education and talk to them about the importance of achieving a full education.  The team also liaise well with schools, colleges and virtual school heads.

    The inspector said: “Leaders and managers understand the plans for the children and drive and celebrate the achievement of important milestones, goals and permanence for their futures. Leaders and managers monitor the progress that individual children make and can demonstrate the positive impact that living at the home has had on individual children’s progress and life chances. Feedback from other agencies and professionals was all extremely positive and demonstrated how leaders’ and managers’ passion drives positive progress and outcomes for children.”

    Home manager, Michael More added: “Achieving our seventh consecutive Outstanding Ofsted rating is a huge accolade for my team at Colombo Road. We welcome the Ofsted findings and take great pride in the positive feedback we received. The report highlights how living in our home significantly enhances the life chances of our young people, and notes that we are committed to placing their individual needs at the heart of everything we do.  We work closely with other homes across the city to support one another and for me this report really sums up the incredibly dedicated and passionate teams across all of our homes and we are incredibly proud to be supporting our young people in becoming the best they can be.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Cabinet to consider move towards zero waste

    Source: City of Liverpool

    Last updated:

    Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet is set to consider a new Zero Waste Strategy, which will look to rid the City Region of all unnecessary waste by 2040.

    The strategy, co-created by all councils in the Liverpool City Region and the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority (MRWA), is an important step towards the Council’s plans to significantly reduce carbon emissions from waste collection and disposal in the next 15 years.

    If agreed at next week’s Cabinet Meeting, the strategy will work alongside the Council’s Recycling and Waste Strategy, which was adopted earlier this year.

    Currently, waste collection and processing in Liverpool creates 51,751 tonnes of CO2 each year, the equivalent of 9,200 car journeys circumnavigating the globe.

    Both the newly proposed strategy and existing waste strategy share targets to reduce purple bin waste by 50 per cent by 2040 and achieve a recycling rate of 65 per cent, up from the current rate of 17.9 per cent, in the next 10 years.

    The Zero Waste Strategy, if agreed, could reduce carbon emissions emitted by waste collection and processing across the region by 80 per cent.

    To help reach these goals, the strategy adopts three main themes of ‘People, Planet, and Economy’. Together, the City Region partnership would focus on awareness and education, promoting positive behaviours in buying habits to prevent waste from being created in the first place.

    This includes meal planning to prevent excess food, reusing and repairing items rather than throwing them away, and buying second hand.

    The strategy explains that the best way to remove carbon emissions from waste is by creating a circular economy. This means encouraging businesses and manufacturers to reduce waste created during the production process, while making materials that can be used again and again.

    If items do need to be thrown away, they should be recycled so that the raw materials can be used to manufacture new products.

    One major step towards a circular economy is the introduction of a food waste collection, which all local authorities across the country must introduce by the end of March next year.

    Households across Liverpool will have a new, weekly food waste collection, which will see unused food taken away to be broken down and repurposed.

    The Council is committed to reducing the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere. In 2019, it declared a climate emergency, followed by an action plan to reach net zero across all Council operations by 2030.

    One of the key aims outlined in the plan is to tackle the carbon footprint created through waste collection and processing. Both strategies outline clear steps needed in Liverpool to reach this goal.  

    Work has already started to meet these goals, with the introduction of solar bins and underground refuse bins across the city, as well as optimising collection routes. Together, these changes have reduced the frequency of collections and to the number of emissions released while doing so.

    The Council has also worked with residents to promote positive waste behaviours, including the introduction of a new environmental enforcement team to tackle fly-tipping and Keep Liverpool Tidy, which has seen a big increase in community litter picking since it started in 2022.

    Further support is available for residents looking to reduce their waste on zerowastelcr.com, including an interactive map featuring charity shops, refill shops, and repair and reuse organisations.

    Councillor Liam Robinson, Leader of Liverpool City Council said: “Liverpool City Council remains fully committed to achieving net zero, and the new Zero Waste Strategy will be a crucial step towards that goal.

    “By working in partnership with our City Region colleagues, we can create meaningful change that benefits everyone, but we can’t do this alone. Only by working together serving residents and businesses can we fully address the climate crisis and create a sustainable future.

    “Not only will this strategy help us to do our bit to protect the planet, but it will also save residents money. If we repair and reuse more often than throwing away, there’ll be less need to buy new items and we can move towards eliminating single-use materials.

    “Together we can create a greener, more sustainable Liverpool for future generations.”

    Councillor Laura Robertson-Collins, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Communities and Streetscene said: “Our Recycling and Waste Strategy already sets out an action plan to reduce the amount of rubbish across the city and this new Zero Waste Strategy is further confirmation that these steps are vital.

    “While the waste that doesn’t get recycled in Liverpool is incinerated to make energy which goes back into the system, this still releases harmful gases into the environment. The only way to combat this is to reduce the amount of rubbish that we produce and increase the amount sent to be recycled.

    “We’re already tackling the amount of waste both on our streets and in our homes and making our waste collection as sustainable as possible. Our successful solar bin pilot and eco-friendly waste wagons are both working towards reducing the number of emissions in collecting our waste. In the near future we’ll be introducing food waste collections and increasing the number of materials households can recycle too, but there’s still more that we can do together.

    “We have a collective responsibility to make sure the actions we take now has a positive impact for our planet in the future.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA – Religious deception in human trafficking: Victims passed off as “pilgrims” and “missionaries”

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 9 April 2025

    Bangkok (Agenzia Fides) – There is a new, insidious stratagem used by human traffickers in organizing trafficking, preparing, and involving victims, in order to evade airport controls: passing themselves off as missionaries, especially Christians, traveling for religious reasons, or using the definition of “pilgrims” traveling for reasons of faith. This is a phenomenon that the Philippine and Thai police have revealed after investigations and wiretaps, which documented various episodes in which the “religious cover” had been uncovered.The Philippine police reported that three women (aged 23, 25, and 50) were attempting to board a flight to Singapore, with a stopover in Thailand, identifying themselves as “missionaries,” “volunteers belonging to the Catholic Church, for missionary work in Thailand.” Due to certain inconsistencies in their documents, and after further investigations and questioning, the truth was revealed: the older woman, who claimed to be a “preacher,” was one of the organizers of an illegal trafficking of women to Thailand. Seduced by “a teaching job,” the two young women allegedly fell into a criminal network and ended up fueling prostitution. The police explained the system whereby a regular traveler, acting as a smuggler, accompanies groups of passengers under false pretenses, who become victims of trafficking. Coordinated police action across the borders of Southeast Asian countries (the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia) led to the arrest of smugglers involved in trafficking networks.In its end-of-2024 report, the Philippine Bureau of Immigration reported 998 victims of human trafficking during the year and identified several activities and schemes such as fake pilgrimages, arranged marriages, and surrogacy. Often, victims, lured, particularly through social media, end up employed in slave labor in the so-called “scam cities” in Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar.The Catholic Foundation PREDA (People’s Recovery, Empowerment, and Development Assistance), founded in the Philippines by Father Shay Cullen, an Irish Catholic missionary and member of the Missionary Society of St. Columbanus, has denounced the fact that many young Filipino women were lured by fake, well-paid job offers and transported to Burma, where they faced threats and abuse and were forced to work in slave-like conditions. In the Philippines, the Philippine Interfaith Movement Against Human Trafficking (PIMAHT)—which brings together representatives of the major Christian, Muslim, and Buddhist communities—praised the efforts of the police and government and reaffirmed their commitment to combating child trafficking and sexual exploitation. Father Bryand Restituto, Assistant to the Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, strongly condemned individuals and trafficking networks that exploit vulnerable populations and use language, clothing, and presumed religious practices to commit criminal acts.In Thailand, among the nuns committed to the fight against trafficking, Sister Marie Agnes Buasap of the Hospitaller Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres, as coordinator of the Talitha Kum Thailand network, promotes awareness among young people, families, teachers, and educators. Talitha Kum is also involved in the reception and reintegration of victims. Catholic communities in Southeast Asian nations, where the phenomenon of human trafficking is particularly widespread and deep-rooted, renewed their commitment on the Day of Prayer and Commitment against Human Trafficking, which the Church celebrates on February 8, the feast of Saint Josephine Bakhita. Catholic associations are promoting innovative strategies, especially in schools, by integrating anti-trafficking education into the curriculum. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 9/4/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Subsidies and support to achieve financial autonomy: How the Dicastery for Evangelization supports local Churches

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 9 April 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – How much funding does the Dicastery for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches) allocate to help the dioceses in the territories under its jurisdiction achieve financial autonomy? This question was discussed yesterday in the Aula Magna of the Pontifical Urbaniana University, which provided the setting for the IV Study Day dedicated to the chair named after Cardinal Velasio De Paolis, the Scalabrinian Cardinal, an authoritative canonist, who died in 2017.Speakers included Professor Vincenzo Buonomo, Grand Rector of the Pontifical Urbaniana University, Professor Andrea D’Auria, Dean of the Faculty of Canon Law, and Professor Yawovi Jean Attila.Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu, Secretary of the Dicastery and Vice Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical Urbaniana University, presided over and moderated the day. Father Tadeusz J. Nowak, OMI, Secretary General of the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith, along with Sister Roberta Tremarelli (AMSS), who works in the administration of the Pontifical Mission Societies, illustrated what it means to accompany local Churches on their path to financial independence.In his address, Father Nowak recalled that to date, more than 3,000 particular Churches in communion with the Successor of Peter fall under the jurisdiction of the Dicastery for Evangelization. This represents more than a third of all particular Churches in the world, he emphasized. Specifically, the list includes “dioceses, both of the Latin and Eastern Rites, apostolic vicariates, apostolic prefectures, apostolic administrations, missions sui iuris, territorial prelatures, and territorial abbeys.”While “in the past, a particular Church began with a mission in an area where the Gospel had only recently been proclaimed and the Church was not yet truly established,” which was then “elevated to the rank of apostolic vicariates and later to the rank of dioceses,” today “most new Churches arise from the division of existing dioceses in areas where the Church was already present.” However, they remain “under the care of the Dicastery for Evangelization until they achieve full financial autonomy.” Once this is achieved, “they may request to be transferred from the jurisdiction of the Dicastery for Evangelization to that of the Dicastery for Bishops.”A transition that can take up to several hundred years, added Father Nowak, recalling that “the Dicastery for Evangelization accompanies the churches under its authority on their path to financial autonomy, primarily through the Pontifical Mission Societies (the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith, the Pontifical Society of St. Peter the Apostle, the Pontifical Society of Holy Childhood, and the Pontifical Missionary Union).The task of these four Societies, according to the Secretary General of the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith, is to place themselves at the service of the Pope and his “care for missionaries.” Above all, however, the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith specifically accompanies young Churches by providing financial subsidies for the creation and strengthening of their ecclesial infrastructure.Last year alone, the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith “disbursed more than $23 million in ordinary subsidies,” which bishops can use “for any purpose related to the pastoral life and evangelization of the local Church.” “Normally,” Father Nowak explained, “this grant is used for the health care of the clergy or for the office expenses of the diocesan Curia. Without such subsidies, the dioceses would suffer great difficulties that would slow down or even hinder the work of evangelization.” In this context, for example, the Society for the Propagation of the Faith also provided “almost $9 million” in subsidies “for the support of catechists in the particular Churches.” This money was used “to provide resources for the support and training of catechists.” Because, as Father Nowak emphasized, “catechists are indispensable because the number of ordained priests in many territories is insufficient to ensure adequate pastoral care for all the baptized.” In addition to ordinary subsidies, there are also extraordinary subsidies for which the Pontifical Mission Societies receive “thousands of requests every year.” In most cases, these are requests for financing the construction of chapels and churches, monasteries, schools, clinics, pastoral centers or homes for retired clergy, as well as for the purchase of transportation for missionaries, etc. For these types of projects, “the Society for the Propagation of the Faith allocated more than 16 million dollars in 2024.” “The Dicastery has provided extraordinary subsidies, responding to requests from bishops in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas,” said Father Nowak, who pointed out that the Society “also provides more than nine million dollars a year for the administration of five colleges in Rome, which serve the ongoing formation of clergy and religious of the particular Churches under the care of the Dicastery. Hundreds of priests and religious from these Churches can thus come to Rome to pursue advanced academic studies and then return to their local Church to provide valuable services to the pastoral life of the particular Church.”Not only that: “Every year, the Dicastery for the Oriental Churches receives significant financial support from the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith to accompany the Churches of the Oriental Rite on their path to financial autonomy.” The Dicastery, the Secretary General continued, “also provides the episcopal vestments for priests appointed bishops in the particular Churches administered by the Dicastery (including two episcopal cassocks, a miter, the episcopal ring, the bishop’s cross, and crosier). In this way, the new bishop is fully equipped to begin his episcopal ministry.”It must be clarified, as Sister Roberta Tremarelli also emphasized, that “the Dicastery for Evangelization does not finance projects through the Pontifical Mission Societies.” According to the statutes of the Pontifical Mission Societies, they “participate in projects initiated by the local community and for which it assumes responsibility. The bishop must present a solid financial plan for the implementation of the project and commit the community to its completion and ongoing maintenance.” In this sense, it is being examined “whether a room created for children’s catechism can also be used for other purposes,” which could also lead to “continuous funding for the structure itself over time,” Sister Roberta Tremarelli emphasized, concluding: “The subsidy is an aid; the Pontifical Mission Societies must not replace the local Church. Our aid must be based on the principle of autonomy.”In this way, the particular Churches are encouraged to manage their finances responsibly and transparently, while remaining independent of external funding: “We are rich in young Churches, but we must not remain immature Churches. The growth and independence of the local Churches is our goal,” Archbishop Nwachukwu said in his concluding remarks. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 9/4/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/NIGERIA – Resignation of bishop of Port Harcourt

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 9 April 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Port Harcourt, Nigeria, presented by Bishop Camillus Archibong Etokudoh.Il Santo Padre ha accettato la rinuncia al governo pastorale della Diocesi di Port Harcourt presentata da S.E. Mons. Camillus Archibong Etokudoh. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 9/4/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/ANGOLA – Missionaries in the Terreiro community: “We must break existing patterns”

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 9 April 2025

    SMA

    Bengo (Agenzia Fides) – “We have been without electricity for a month. …The generator only works for a few hours in the evening,” says Father Martino Bonazzetti of the Society of African Missions.”But even amidst obstacles and unforeseen events, there is always hope and joy, because the most important thing is not to give up,” writes the missionary, who lives and works in the parish of Desvio da Barra do Dande (Bengo) and returned to Italy a few days ago for a short period.”We are currently finishing the cistern on the roof of the church, which will be fed by rain (which should arrive soon) and will be used for the kindergarten and community activities in Terreiro. We have launched a cooking and baking class to motivate women and young people. One thing leads to another…” These are some of the various projects carried out by the missionaries in the community in Terreiro, “inspired by faith but also by ingenuity.” “The schools are also being visited by children and young people who have not been able to attend classes until now,” the missionary continued.”Now is a time of pause for me,” the missionary continued. “The fact of returning to Italy pushed me to finish several things. For example, we are in the process of completing the mill house for maize and cassava flour. Everything is finished, and we hope to harvest the maize later, as it has hardly rained this year. The mill is here, and we hope it works! A young man working as a bricklayer on the construction of the mill told me that a group of women has already asked when it will be operational. This means that we no longer have to travel all the way to Desvio to make flour… and that means we save money because we do not have to pay for the trip! It exists, so it should work.””In Angola, we are moving forward with experience, breaking with rigid and existing patterns. And there is always something that surprises us,” Father Martino concludes, “and the most important thing is the faith of the common people.” (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 9/4/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Africa: Critically ill patients in African hospitals aren’t getting the care they need: new survey

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tim Baker, Associate Professor, Karolinska Institutet

    When someone falls critically ill, hospitals are expected to provide life-saving care. But in many African countries, intensive care units are rare. Critically ill patients are treated in general hospital wards, and the provision of essential emergency and critical care is limited.

    Critical illness refers to any life-threatening condition where at least one vital organ – such as the heart, lungs, or brain – is failing. It can arise from any underlying condition including infections, injuries, or non-communicable diseases such as heart attacks and strokes, and can affect anyone of any age.

    In high-resourced settings some critically ill patients are treated in intensive care units. They receive continuous monitoring, oxygen support, medication to stabilise their blood pressure, and other life-saving treatments. Until now, most data on critical illness and critical care in Africa has come from small, single-hospital studies. These studies hinted at a serious problem.

    For example, a study in Uganda found that 11.7% of inpatients were critically ill, with a 22.6% chance of dying within a week. However, there was no large-scale research showing how widespread this was across the continent.

    That is why we, a collaboration of clinical researchers across Africa, conducted the African Critical Illness Outcomes Study, providing the first large-scale look at the state of critical illness care across the continent.

    The study builds on a network of clinicians, researchers and policy makers that has been growing for over a decade now, working out how to identify and treat patients who are critically ill.

    The findings, published in The Lancet, are striking. One in eight hospital inpatients in Africa is critically ill, over two-thirds of the critically ill are in general wards, and one in five dies within a week.

    Most of these patients do not receive the essential emergency and critical care such as oxygen and fluids that could save their lives.

    What we found

    The African Critical Illness Outcomes Study investigated 20,000 patients at one point in time in 180 hospitals in 22 countries across Africa. Countries throughout the continent were included, from Tunisia in the north to South Africa in the south, from Ghana in the west to Tanzania in the east.

    Between September and December 2023, all adult inpatients in each hospital were examined on a single day to collect data about their clinical condition and treatments, and then a week later, their in-hospital outcomes.

    The key findings were:

    • 12.5% of hospital inpatients were critically ill

    • 69% of critically ill patients were treated in general hospital wards, not intensive care units

    • more than half of critically ill patients didn’t receive the treatments they needed

    • critically ill patients were eight times more likely to die in hospital than other patients.

    The study also revealed gaps in the most basic life-saving interventions:

    • only 48% of patients with respiratory failure received oxygen therapy

    • just 54% of patients with circulatory failure (such as shock) received fluids or medications to stabilise blood pressure

    • less than half of patients with a dangerously low level of consciousness received airway protection or were placed in the recovery position.

    These findings highlight a clear and urgent problem: many critically ill patients in Africa are not receiving the essential treatments that could keep them alive.

    What can be done?

    The study suggests that thousands of lives could be saved if hospitals had better access to essential emergency and critical care. This is a set of simple, low-cost interventions that can prevent deaths from critical illness.

    The care interventions include:

    • ensuring oxygen is available for patients struggling to breathe

    • providing fluids or medications to stabilise blood pressure

    • training healthcare workers in basic life-support techniques to manage unconscious patients.

    Unlike high-tech intensive care unit treatments, essential emergency and critical care can be given in general wards with minimal resources.

    Strengthening these systems could dramatically reduce preventable deaths from conditions such as pneumonia, sepsis and trauma.

    Urgent action is needed

    This study sheds light on a healthcare crisis affecting millions of people, yet one that has remained largely overlooked.

    Every critically ill patient, no matter where they are treated, should receive the basic life-saving care they need.

    We call for urgent action.

    • Governments in Africa should make essential emergency and critical care a core part of universal health coverage. It should be integrated into policies and health benefit packages.

    • The World Health Organization should embed essential emergency and critical care measures into its resolutions.

    • African health funders should support studies and implementation of essential emergency and critical care.

    • Professional medical societies and institutions should include this care in clinical guidelines and training. Frontline healthcare workers must have the tools they need to save lives.

    The EECC Network, a global community dedicated to sharing knowledge, research and best practices, has been started to help prevent needless deaths.

    * Nick Leech, who works on the promotion of essential emergency and critical care on behalf of EECC Global, contributed to this article.

    – Critically ill patients in African hospitals aren’t getting the care they need: new survey
    – https://theconversation.com/critically-ill-patients-in-african-hospitals-arent-getting-the-care-they-need-new-survey-253355

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Politics with Michelle Grattan: Hugh White on what the next PM should tell Trump and defending Australia – without the US

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

    The Trump ascendancy has forced international economic issues and the future strategic outlook onto the Australian election agenda, even if they are at the margins.

    This campaign – while dominated by domestic issues, notably the cost of living – is being conducted against the background of an extraordinarily volatile external situation, with major implications for Australia’s future.

    To discuss these issues, we were joined on the podcast by Hugh White, Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at the Australian National University. White is one of Australia’s foremost thinkers on defence policy, China and the region. His long career includes serving as an adviser to then federal defence minister Kim Beazley.

    White regards US President Donald Trump as a “revolutionary figure”:

    I think Trump is a genuinely revolutionary character, and not just his impact on American domestic politics and economics, I also think he has a huge impact on global strategic affairs. And the reason for that is that he does have a fundamentally different view of America’s place in the world than that of what we might call a Washington establishment.

    Donald Trump is really a kind of an old-fashioned isolationist. That is, he believes America’s strategic focus should be on the Western Hemisphere […] For example, in Ukraine he’s happy to see Russia assert itself as a great power in Eastern Europe. In Asia, I think, despite his reputation as a China hawk on economic issues, he doesn’t have any problem with China asserting itself as a great power in East Asia. He’s for these other great powers to dominate their backyards, just the way he wants America to dominate its backyard in the Western Hemisphere.

    Yet White doesn’t believe either Labor or the Coalition is taking defence seriously in this election.

    It’s not being treated as a real issue in the campaign, and that’s because both sides have determined that it won’t, and what underpins that is the absolutely rock-solid bipartisanship between the two of them on every significant issue. And I think that’s a very serious problem for Australia because at a time when our strategic circumstances are changing dramatically […] neither side has any inclination to have a serious conversation about what that means, why it’s happening, what we should be doing about it,

    A lot of the blame for that lies with the Labor Party, because it seems to me Labor’s political approach to the whole question of foreign affairs and defence for a very long time now has focused on minimising differences with the Coalition.

    While White agrees Australia needs new submarines, and quickly, he doesn’t think they should be nuclear-powered, as promised under AUKUS. He thinks we should leave AUKUS.

    We should have started building replacements for the [Collins-class submarine] around about 2010 or 2012. So we’re well over a decade late and I do think there’s a real risk that we’re going to lose our submarine capability altogether. But the way to solve that is not to push ahead spending billions and billions of dollars on a project which, even if it works, delivers the submarines we don’t need, and which is very unlikely to deliver any submarines at all.

    We’re past looking for a perfect submarine. We just need to get any submarine at all so we can keep some capability running and then once we have that running, we need to have a really focused programme. We need ministers to really tell Defence what to do, focus programmes to develop a follow on to the Collins-class design, because that’s the design we already know best in the world and to start building a new class of evolved Collins.

    After the May 3 election, when the next prime minister meets the US president to talk trade, defence and more, what should Anthony Albanese or Peter Dutton tell Trump? White says:

    Trump is very hard to handle. I don’t think there’s any magic formula that an Australian prime minister can utter, which makes Trump into either a more acceptable, economic partner for Australia or a more reliable strategic partner for Australia, because the forces that are driving America out of Asia are much bigger than Donald Trump.

    The most important thing an Australian political leader could say to Trump when he first meets him is, look, we understand where you’re coming from. We are happy to take responsibility for our own security. We don’t expect you to stay engaged in Asia to look after us in future. What we want you to do is to help us manage that transition as best we can and we’re prepared to pay for what we get.

    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. Politics with Michelle Grattan: Hugh White on what the next PM should tell Trump and defending Australia – without the US – https://theconversation.com/politics-with-michelle-grattan-hugh-white-on-what-the-next-pm-should-tell-trump-and-defending-australia-without-the-us-254197

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Critically ill patients in African hospitals aren’t getting the care they need: new survey

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tim Baker, Associate Professor, Karolinska Institutet

    When someone falls critically ill, hospitals are expected to provide life-saving care. But in many African countries, intensive care units are rare. Critically ill patients are treated in general hospital wards, and the provision of essential emergency and critical care is limited.

    Critical illness refers to any life-threatening condition where at least one vital organ – such as the heart, lungs, or brain – is failing. It can arise from any underlying condition including infections, injuries, or non-communicable diseases such as heart attacks and strokes, and can affect anyone of any age.

    In high-resourced settings some critically ill patients are treated in intensive care units. They receive continuous monitoring, oxygen support, medication to stabilise their blood pressure, and other life-saving treatments. Until now, most data on critical illness and critical care in Africa has come from small, single-hospital studies. These studies hinted at a serious problem.

    For example, a study in Uganda found that 11.7% of inpatients were critically ill, with a 22.6% chance of dying within a week. However, there was no large-scale research showing how widespread this was across the continent.

    That is why we, a collaboration of clinical researchers across Africa, conducted the African Critical Illness Outcomes Study, providing the first large-scale look at the state of critical illness care across the continent.

    The study builds on a network of clinicians, researchers and policy makers that has been growing for over a decade now, working out how to identify and treat patients who are critically ill.

    The findings, published in The Lancet, are striking. One in eight hospital inpatients in Africa is critically ill, over two-thirds of the critically ill are in general wards, and one in five dies within a week.

    Most of these patients do not receive the essential emergency and critical care such as oxygen and fluids that could save their lives.

    What we found

    The African Critical Illness Outcomes Study investigated 20,000 patients at one point in time in 180 hospitals in 22 countries across Africa. Countries throughout the continent were included, from Tunisia in the north to South Africa in the south, from Ghana in the west to Tanzania in the east.

    Between September and December 2023, all adult inpatients in each hospital were examined on a single day to collect data about their clinical condition and treatments, and then a week later, their in-hospital outcomes.

    The key findings were:

    • 12.5% of hospital inpatients were critically ill

    • 69% of critically ill patients were treated in general hospital wards, not intensive care units

    • more than half of critically ill patients didn’t receive the treatments they needed

    • critically ill patients were eight times more likely to die in hospital than other patients.

    The study also revealed gaps in the most basic life-saving interventions:

    • only 48% of patients with respiratory failure received oxygen therapy

    • just 54% of patients with circulatory failure (such as shock) received fluids or medications to stabilise blood pressure

    • less than half of patients with a dangerously low level of consciousness received airway protection or were placed in the recovery position.

    These findings highlight a clear and urgent problem: many critically ill patients in Africa are not receiving the essential treatments that could keep them alive.

    What can be done?

    The study suggests that thousands of lives could be saved if hospitals had better access to essential emergency and critical care. This is a set of simple, low-cost interventions that can prevent deaths from critical illness.

    The care interventions include:

    • ensuring oxygen is available for patients struggling to breathe

    • providing fluids or medications to stabilise blood pressure

    • training healthcare workers in basic life-support techniques to manage unconscious patients.

    Unlike high-tech intensive care unit treatments, essential emergency and critical care can be given in general wards with minimal resources.

    Strengthening these systems could dramatically reduce preventable deaths from conditions such as pneumonia, sepsis and trauma.

    Urgent action is needed

    This study sheds light on a healthcare crisis affecting millions of people, yet one that has remained largely overlooked.

    Every critically ill patient, no matter where they are treated, should receive the basic life-saving care they need.

    We call for urgent action.

    • Governments in Africa should make essential emergency and critical care a core part of universal health coverage. It should be integrated into policies and health benefit packages.

    • The World Health Organization should embed essential emergency and critical care measures into its resolutions.

    • African health funders should support studies and implementation of essential emergency and critical care.

    • Professional medical societies and institutions should include this care in clinical guidelines and training. Frontline healthcare workers must have the tools they need to save lives.

    The EECC Network, a global community dedicated to sharing knowledge, research and best practices, has been started to help prevent needless deaths.

    * Nick Leech, who works on the promotion of essential emergency and critical care on behalf of EECC Global, contributed to this article.

    Tim Baker declares technical consultancies with UNICEF, the World Bank, USAID, and PATH, has received research funding from Wellcome Trust and the National Institute for Health and Care Research and is a board member at the non-profit organisation EECC Global.

    Karima Khalid is a board member of EECCGlobal

    – ref. Critically ill patients in African hospitals aren’t getting the care they need: new survey – https://theconversation.com/critically-ill-patients-in-african-hospitals-arent-getting-the-care-they-need-new-survey-253355

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Health and Social Care Secretary’s UNISON speech

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Speech

    Health and Social Care Secretary’s UNISON speech

    Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting’s speech at UNISON’s annual health conference in Liverpool today.

    Good morning conference.

    Let’s start on a point of agreement.

    The killing of 15 health and rescue workers in Gaza was an appalling and intolerable tragedy.

    Healthcare workers in any context, in any part of the world, should never be a target.

    The international community, or indeed any actors in any conflict, all have a responsibility to protect health and humanitarian aid workers and also to protect innocent civilians.

    And it’s clear that in Gaza, as well as in other conflict zones around the world at the moment the international community is failing and failing badly.

    So I want to say, as a Unison member, I strongly support the sentiments expressed by our Healthcare Executive.

    But on behalf of our government, we want to see a return to an immediate ceasefire.

    We want to see aid in, people out of harm’s way, an end to this bloody conflict and a state of Palestine alongside a state of Israel, and the just and lasting peace that Israelis and Palestinians deserve.

    I also have to say, having been to the West Bank with Medical Aid for Palestinians and seen first hand the work that they do supporting the health needs of Palestinians across the occupied Palestinian territories, they do brilliant work.

    And I would fully endorse the sentiment of the motion in supporting them, and each of us putting our hands in our pockets to do that.

    But today, I’m here as the first health and social care secretary to address a Unison conference since my […] predecessor, Andy Burnham, did 15 years ago, and I am proud to do so as a Unison member.

    [Political content has been removed]

    Now we’re delivering the change people voted for.

    It’s not all plain sailing and I expect you’ll want to question, even challenge some of the government’s decisions.

    So there’ll be plenty of time for questions.

    And I promise to give you honest answers.

    [Political content has been removed]

    You might not like some of the answers.

    I might not like some of the questions, but the important thing is that we show up and we have that conversation.

    For all the challenges we’re confronting, and there are plenty nothing I’ve experienced in the last nine months as our country’s Health and Social Care Secretary has shaken my confidence and conviction that this will be a government that not only gets our NHS back on its feet, but makes sure it’s fit for the future, and shows the bold leadership required to make sure that we also build a National Care Service worthy of the name.

    Of course, it’s hard.

    [Political content has been removed]

    Six months ago, back here in Liverpool, I spent two hours with one of the most remarkable group of people I’ve ever had the honour of meeting in my life.

    In that room were centuries of training and experience between them of working in the health service.

    But all of that training, all of that experience couldn’t have prepared those people with what they were confronted with in Southport on Monday the 29th of July, as they rushed into that community centre to find children and adults lying on the floor bleeding, some tragically dying.

    The aftermath of an unimaginable, senseless, mindless attack.

    Those people were confronted immediately with the consequences.

    For the staff I met, the trauma still runs deep.

    But on the day itself, the whole NHS team kicked into action.

    From the paramedics who arrived first on the scene and had to make split-second decisions of who to treat first in what order, to give them the best chance of survival.

    The porters rushing children through busy hospital corridors, and the security guards trying to shield other patients and visitors from seeing the horror that the staff were confronting.

    The lab teams who are mobilising blood supplies.

    Receptionists fielding calls from panic-stricken parents.

    The surgical teams fighting to save those young girls lives.

    I’m filled with admiration for their care, their expertise and their values.

    As I think about what happened in the aftermath of those brutal attacks, that admiration turns to anger.

    [Political content has been removed]

    Filipino nurses came under attack from racist thugs on their way into work wearing their NHS uniforms.

    GP surgeries closed early out of fear of rioters.

    A Nigerian care worker saw his car torched.

    These people came to our country to care for our sick and vulnerable.

    They bust a gut day in, day out to keep us well.

    If those thugs represented the worst of our country, our health and care workers represent the best.

    This government will never walk by on the other side when it comes to standing up against racist hate, intimidation or violence.

    Because no one should go to work fearing violence, least of all those all of us rely on for our health care.

    What happened after Southport was an extreme, but it wasn’t a one off.

    One in every seven people employed by the NHS have suffered violence at the hands of patients, their relatives or other members of the public.

    This should shame us all.

    So today I can announce we will act to keep NHS staff safe at work.

    Incidents will have to be recorded at a national level.

    Data will be analysed so that those most at risk can be protected.

    Trust boards will be made to report on progress they’re making to keep staff safe.

    Protecting staff from violence is not an optional extra.

    We are making it mandatory.

    Zero tolerance for violence and harassment of NHS staff, campaigned for by Unison.

    [Political content has been removed]

    We invest huge sums of money into training the NHS workforce.

    Then they’re treated like crap.

    Forced to leave the health service and often leave the country.

    British taxpayers are investing billions in doctors, nurses, paramedics and healthcare assistants only for them to turn up treating patients in Canada or Australia.

    We’ve got to retain the talent we have in the health service and treat our staff with the respect they deserve.

    That means more training and opportunities for nurses who want to progress in their career, and making flexible working easier too.

    It also means paying you for the job you actually do.

    There have been too many disputes because NHS staff have not been paid according to their job description, rather than their job.

    So we’re bringing in a new digital system to make sure the job evaluation scheme is applied fairly across the board.

    [Political content has been removed]

    A fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay.

    Campaigned for by Unison.

    [Political content has been removed]

    I owe my life to the NHS.

    Who cared for me when I went through kidney cancer.

    It’s a debt of gratitude I will never be able to repay.

    But I will certainly try.

    You were there for me and I’ll be there for you.

    As the chair said, the scale of the challenge in our NHS is huge.

    [Political content has been removed]

    So our job is twofold.

    First, to get the service back on its feet and treating patients on time again.

    And second, to reform the service for the long term so that it’s fit for the future.

    And I say it’s our job deliberately, because this can’t be done with one man sat behind a desk in Whitehall.

    We will only succeed if this is a team effort, from the Prime Minister to the 1.5 million people who work in the National Health Service.

    When I visited Singapore General Hospital in opposition, they told me about a programme they run.

    It’s called get rid of stupid stuff.

    Does what it says on the tin.

    I thought the NHS could probably do with that.

    Some of you might think I could do with that.

    It’s a common sense idea.

    People working in the health service might have ideas about how to fix it.

    So over the past few months, just as we did when we were in opposition, we’ve been asking NHS staff about the stupid stuff that’s holding them back.

    More than a million people have engaged in what’s been the biggest national conversation since the NHS was founded.

    NHS staff have attended more than 3,000 meetings across the country and online, and if you’ve not made your voice heard yet, you’ve got until 5pm on Monday to go to Change.NHS.uk

    The plan, published later this spring, will take the best ideas from across the NHS, staff and workforce and patients and set out how we’ll deliver the change the NHS needs.

    Shifting the focus of healthcare out of hospital and into the community, with more investment in primary and community care.

    Bringing our analogue health service into the digital age, arming staff with modern equipment and cutting edge technology.

    Turning our sickness service into a preventative health service to help people live well for longer and tackle the biggest killers.

    The crisis in the NHS is not the fault of staff, but we can’t fix it without you.

    I know how hard it is to battle against a broken system, to give patients the best care you can, only to go home at the end of the day, knowing your best wasn’t good enough.

    But there is light at the end of the tunnel.

    The cavalry is coming.

    My message to everyone working in the NHS is this.

    Stay and help us to rescue and rebuild it.

    The NHS was broken, but it’s not beaten.

    And together we can turn it around.

    Change takes time, but it has already begun.

    In nine months, this […] government has awarded NHS staff an above inflation pay rise, ended the resident doctors strikes, invested an extra £26 billion in health and care, the biggest investment in hospices for a generation.

    We’ve agreed the GP contract for the first time since the pandemic, with £889 million more in funding, the biggest uplift in a decade.

    We’ve reversed the decade of cuts to community pharmacy.

    We’ve delivered the extra 2 million more appointments we promised at the election than we did it seven months early.

    NHS waiting lists have been cut for five months in a row and counting.

    80,000 suspected cancer patients were diagnosed early, so lots done, but so much more to do.

    We know there’s a long way to go.

    There’ll be bumps along the way.

    It won’t be plain sailing and we’ll make some mistakes.

    But we are finally putting the NHS on the road to recovery.

    On social care, we’ve been accused of not doing enough.

    I totally understand the cynicism after years of inaction.

    [Political content has been removed]

    Our first step on the road to building a National Care Service, and I can announce today, will go further for our care professionals.

    We are introducing the first universal career structure for adult social care, setting out four new job roles to give care workers the opportunities to progress in their career.

    With millions of pounds of new investment in their skills and training.

    Keir said his ambition for his sister, who is a care worker, is to command the same respect as her brother, the Prime Minister.

    Her work is so important to the future of our country.

    [Political content has been removed]

    But be in no doubt about the weight on our shoulders.

    I’m certainly not.

    Not only the responsibility to millions of people who are being failed by the NHS and social care services, but also to prove to a sceptical public that the NHS can change and deliver the timely, quality care people expect in 2025.

    On the 75th anniversary of the NHS, an opinion poll showed that the health service makes the majority of the British people proud of our country, greater than the pride we feel for any other aspect of our history or culture.

    But the same poll revealed that 7 in 10 believe that the NHS founding principle of healthcare, free at the point of need, won’t survive the next ten years.

    The failure of public services to meet the needs of the people is one of the fertilisers of populism we see across liberal democracies.

    [Political content has been removed]

    We will always defend the NHS as a public service, free at the point of use, so that when you fall ill, you never have to worry about the bill.

    [Political content has been removed]

    That’s why I say it’s change or die.

    The stakes are high.

    The challenge is enormous, but the prize is huge.

    A service that values all of its workforce as an asset to be nurtured, not a cost to be minimised.

    Where staff are proud to work because their patients receive the best possible care.

    An NHS there for us when we need it.

    Once again, it won’t be easy.

    It will take time.

    But if we get this right, we will be able to look back on this time and say that we were the generation that took the NHS from the worst crisis in its history, got it back on its feet and made it fit for the future, and built a National Care Service worthy of the name.

    Change has begun, but the best is still to come.

    Thank you.

    Updates to this page

    Published 9 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Zeelo Partners with Operators to Channel >$50 million into Local Transportation Businesses

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    • Zeelo’s collaborative support to operator partners surpassed $50 million in 2024; a significant increase from the previous year.

    BOSTON, April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Global TransitTech leader Zeelo, through its trusted network of operator partners, channeled >$50 million into local transportation businesses in 2024. This milestone underscores Zeelo’s commitment to building long-term partnerships that empower operators to expand their fleets, generate employment, and meet the rising demand for high-quality shared transportation services, particularly in an industry that has long suffered from underfunding and inadequate support.

    “Our operator partners are at the heart of everything we do at Zeelo,” comments George Grundy, Director, US Operations at Zeelo. “We view our relationship as a true collaboration, working side-by-side with operators to unlock opportunities for sustained growth. Their expertise and commitment enable us all to succeed, and our predictable, supportive contracts provide the stability necessary for expansion.”

    Beyond fueling business growth, these robust partnerships make a significant local impact by creating jobs and enhancing access to reliable transportation. With over 15 million rides completed to date, Zeelo continues to drive meaningful change by connecting communities to work and opportunity.

    “Working with excellent professionals, knowing there’s always someone on the other end of the phone, and feeling that our comments and concerns are valued made partnering with Zeelo an easy decision. We feel that we have a true partnership, not just a vendor/client relationship. We are on the same team, working toward the same goals every day. It’s a great feeling,” said Tracey Salinger, President of Unique Limousine.

    Industry insights further underscore the opportunity: the global bus and coach market was valued at USD 72.11 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to USD 151.62 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 9.9%. Despite its essential role in connecting students, employees, and underserved communities, the coach industry continues to face major hurdles due to short-term funding cycles, lack of inclusion in zero-emission investment schemes, and limited policy attention. While the CERTS Act offered a rare moment of legislative relief, many operators remain under significant financial pressure. With depleted fleets and only a partial rebound driven by corporate shuttle demand, the industry continues to face mounting challenges. Advocates caution that without long-term funding solutions, the vital role of private transportation in national mobility and employment ecosystems could be jeopardized.

    Add to this persistent driver shortages and rising operational costs, and it’s clear the industry needs targeted support. Without urgent policy action, the sector risks further decline, jeopardizing its ability to deliver economic, environmental, and social value across the communities it serves.

    “If we want to see a stronger, more sustainable future for transportation, we need to stand behind the bus, limo and motorcoach industry,” said Sam Ryan, CEO and Co-founder at Zeelo. “Backing our operators means backing better-connected communities and a more inclusive transport network for everyone.”

    Zeelo is also preparing to launch its new Operator Referral Scheme in the United States; a program designed to leverage operators’ local market knowledge to identify new business opportunities and expand Zeelo’s network of trusted partners.

    About Zeelo

    Zeelo is a leading global TransitTech company helping bus/motorcoach and limo operators, employers, and schools implement efficient, sustainable, and affordable transportation programs. Pioneering transport as a benefit, Zeelo enables organizations to improve workforce and student mobility through tailored, tech-driven shuttle solutions. Zeelo’s software and managed services optimize routes, cut costs, reduce CO₂ emissions, and simplify transport management. Following the 2024 acquisition of Kura, Zeelo expanded its leadership in shared mobility for workforce and education transport. With a US headquarters in Boston, MA, and operations across the US, UK, and Ireland, Zeelo was founded in 2016 by Sam Ryan, Barney Williams, and Dani Ruiz. The co-founders previously sold their ride-sharing app JumpIn to Addison Lee in 2014.

    Media Contact:
    Jack Hardiman
    Global Communications

    For more information, please visit zeelo.co/operators

    The MIL Network –