UK moves to end early GCSE teaching in Year 7–9 shake-up
The UK government plans to stop secondary schools from routinely teaching the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) content before Year 10, as part of a curriculum overhaul aimed at making the first three years of secondary school more engaging.
Four African presidents head to Mali amidst political crisis
Malian leaders are gearing up for more mediation talks on Thursday, when four African presidents will fly to the country in a bid to resolve its deepening political crisis. The leaders of Ivory Coast, Ghana, Senegal and Niger are all due to arrive in the country, according to an official from Mali’s presidency, saying that […]
Creator of 1980 Moscow Olympic bear mascot dies at 84
Viktor Chizhikov, the Russian illustrator behind the memorable Mishka bear mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics, died on Monday aged 84, his publisher said. The children’s book illustrator came up with the cuddly bear to represent the controversial Games, boycotted by countries including the United States. The publisher AST Deti announced his death on Facebook, […]
Zimbabwe on course to meet 2020 budget deficit target — finance minister
Zimbabwe’s finance minister Mthuli Ncube said on Monday the country was on track to meet its budget deficit target of 1.5% of GDP in 2020 in a key update that was absent from his mid-term budget last week. READ ALSO: Zimbabwe says economy to shrink 4.5% this year “I am still focusing on a budget deficit […]
Saudi Arabia’s king, 84, admitted to hospital – Royal court
Saudi Arabia’s 84-year-old ruler King Salman has been admitted to hospital in the capital Riyadh for gall bladder inflammation, the royal court said on Monday. It is rare for Saudi Arabia to report on the health of the ageing monarch, who has ruled the top oil exporter and the Arab world’s biggest economy since 2015. […]
North Korea’s Kim berates officials over troubled flagship hospital
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un berated officials for their “careless” construction of a flagship hospital in Pyongyang and ordered those responsible to be sacked, state media reported Monday. The North has long used giant infrastructure projects to try to burnish the government’s credibility, including housing developments in Pyongyang and the continuing Wonsan-Kalma tourism development, […]
