Reminder of the information that matters

Xavier Noguerras, a lawyer for defendant Mohammed Amri, a suspected accomplice of Salah Abdeslam, answers reporters outside the special courtroom. Credit: Keystone

Trial starts for Paris attack jihadists. Salah Abdeslam and 19 other defendants are being tried in Paris over the attack in November 2015 which left 130 dead. The trial expected to last nine months is being described as the biggest in France’s modern history. There will be more than 140 days of hearings, about 330 lawyers participating, and 300 victims.

New sex-for-aid claims in Mozambique. The government has been urged to investigate new claims that women have been coerced into giving sex or money to receive food aid from international humanitarian programmes in regions hit by a four-year insurgency. The latest claims are being backed by findings earlier this week from an investigation by Mozambique’s Centre for Investigative Journalism.

Meningitis epidemic declared in DR Congo. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak in the northeastern part of the country, where 129 people have died so far and a total of 261 suspected cases recorded, amounting to a ‘high case fatality’ ratio of 50%. The epicenter of the outbreak is in Banalia, in Tshopo province, which lies in a «meningitis belt» of 26 countries.

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On the radar today

Rio Ferdinand to share experiences of online racism with parliament. The former English football captain who is now a leading TV pundit will give evidence to parliament today to discuss online racism against footballers and how proposed new laws can tackle the issue. His appearance will come nearly two months after leading England stars were racially abused on social media following the national side’s loss on penalties to Italy in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley.

Biden to deliver address on way forward with Covid-19. The United States President is set to lay out remarks on a new strategy to stop the spread of the contagious delta variant and boost vaccinations. The remarks are scheduled just 11 days before the administration is set to begin widely rolling out booster shots of Pfizer, a process that has been mired by confusion as some public health experts say data doesn’t yet support the need for boosters.

This Malawaian man single-handedly brought power to his village, and it’s clean energy. Colrerd Nkosi grew up in a village with no electricity, like much of Malawi, an experience that spurred in him a desire to change that. Today, Nkosi is using an old maize sheller to create a turbine that carries power through metal cables strung between trees. The electricity is free for his neighbors and he only charges €1 for maintenance costs.

In the African lab

In this photo taken on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019, a small-scale farmer kneels down in a cracked bed of a water pan in Vosburg, South Africa. Credit: Keystone

A large part of South Africa will grow drier and a bit hotter. A new study from the University of Reading has revealed that the country will see some dramatic changes in climate within the next few years including a lack of rain. The latest predictions come on the heels of an already ongoing drought in South Africa, making them more worrying.

Fintech company Wave becomes Francophone Africa’s first unicorn. The US & Senegal-based mobile money service has raised $200 million in a Series A round, the biggest ever Series A investment in that region which gives the company a valuation of around $1.7 billion. Wave is an offshoot from Africa-focused remittance provider Sendwave which is now a Worldremit subsidiary.

Nigerian e-Commerce startup Bumpa raises $200,000 pre-seed to build the Shopify of Africa. Greencap Equity, HoaQ club, Rizq Investment Group, and several other investors participated in this round which the company says will help to digitize thousands of businesses on its platform. Previously known as SalesCabal, Bumpa relaunched in 2021 to help retailers manage and grow their businesses with their smartphones.

Sur Heidi.news aujourd’hui

Keystone

The Covid certificate interferes in our daily lives from September 13. In Switzerland, it will be necessary to present proof of vaccination, cure, or the result of a negative test to have access to cultural places, sports training, swimming pools, restaurants, museums, libraries, zoos, theaters, cinemas, etc at least until January 2022.

The Geneva specialized education shouts its fed up in a petition. The petition launched on the eve of the school year is calling for the attention of the Council of State and the Geneva Grand Council to alert on the working conditions in the institution which is facing a significant increase in the number of schoolchildren with behavioral disorders and autism spectrum disorders.

‘This disease messes up everything in its path’: migraine sufferers speak out. The first Francophone Migraine Summit will take place on September 11th, an open event that gives patients the opportunity to shine the spotlight on a disease that can be very debilitating and affects over 15 - 20% of the entire adult population with a prevalence in women.

How do governments influence us with our data. Researchers are warning of a new form of governmental influence. These governments use sensitive personal data to implement campaigns to change the behaviour of individuals, known as «nudge». This strategy has been largely encouraged by the growth of large tech companies.

It may surprise you

Keystone

Pope Francis sends 15,000 ice creams to prisoners in Rome. The catholic leader says the treats were to help the prisoners cool down from what has been one of the hottest summers on record in Italy where there also has been severe wildfires. The ice creams were delivered to two prisons by the Vatican’s almoner, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski.

Can you owe rent to a government? This US art dealer owes the Ugandan government nearly $500,000 in rent. Asher Edelman’s businesses owe nearly $470,000 in back rent on the Lenox Hill townhouse at 111 East 70th Street in New York. The Permanent Mission of Uganda to the United Nations is the landlord of the building who is now suing the art dealer for not paying rent since April last year.

Shop owner runs away with a customer’s winning lottery ticket. The Italian tobacco shop owner is suspected to have made away with a winning lottery ticket worth around $580,000 belonging to a woman in her late 60s who had given the ticket to him to verify. He was found by police in Rome as he attempted to board a flight to the Canary Islands, but authorities are yet to locate the winning ticket.