Maize, India’s third-largest cereal crop after rice and wheat, plays a critical role in the country’s food and energy systems. India ranks fourth globally in both maize cultivation area and total production, yet its productivity lags behind international benchmarks. At the same time, demand for maize has surged, particularly from the ethanol sector, which is diverting an increasing share of domestic supply away from traditional users such as animal feed and starch industries. This shift has raised concerns about long-term supply chain stability. To address these issues, AbacusBio, a global scientific and business advisory firm, prepared a comprehensive report titled…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research–Indian Institute of Maize Research (ICAR-IIMR) and Biotech Consortium India Limited (BCIL) jointly organized a Brainstorming Workshop on Biotech Intervention in Maize: Challenges and Opportunities on September 1, 2025, in Ludhiana, Punjab. The event drew about 80 participants, including scientists, researchers, and students from ICAR-IIMR, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU), and ICAR-CIPHET, alongside representatives from the seed, feed, and fuel industries. Maize in India’s agricultural landscape In his keynote address, Dr. H. S. Jat, Director of ICAR-IIMR, underscored maize’s growing importance, particularly in meeting the rising demand…
The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised fresh concern over the dangers of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the leading cause of hospitalizations among infants worldwide, responsible for more than 100,000 child deaths every year. In its latest Science in 5 episode, WHO’s Dr. Daniel Feikin described RSV as a nearly universal infection, with almost every child contracting it by age two. While most cases are mild, the virus causes around 33 million lower respiratory infections annually in young children, leading to over 3 million hospital admissions. Nearly half of RSV-related deaths occur in babies younger than six months. RSV symptoms…
A massive sinkhole opened up on September 24, 2025, in front of Vajira Hospital on Samsen Road in Bangkok, Thailand, causing major damage to the road, pipes, power lines, and nearby infrastructure but resulting in no casualties. The sinkhole measured about 50 meters (164 feet) deep and spanned roughly 900 square meters, swallowing vehicles and electrical poles, and prompting evacuations including from a nearby police station. https://www.youtube.com/live/CyRWDS_-ajk?si=BnJ6Vzx-9cfClmjA Source: NewsX.Live Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt explained that the sinkhole was triggered by a leak in a water pipe connected to a tunnel under construction for an MRT subway extension. Water from the…
The President-General of the Ogoni Youth Federation, Mr. Legborsi Yamaabana, has commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for its role in resolving the dispute that stalled oil exploration and production in Ogoniland for over three decades. Oil exploration in the area was suspended in the early 1990s after sustained protests led by the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) forced Shell out in 1993. The long-standing conflict involved the Federal Government, oil multinationals, and the Ogoni people. ALSO READ Tinubu orders talks between NNPC and stakeholders on Ogoni oil resumption In a statement issued in Port Harcourt on…
The Federal Government has called for urgent global action to promote debt relief, describing it as a path to peace and prosperity rather than an act of charity. President Bola Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima made the appeal in Nigeria’s national statement at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Wednesday in New York. He was represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima. Tinubu urged the creation of a new, binding mechanism to manage sovereign debt, likening it to “an International Court of Justice for money,” that would allow emerging economies to escape economic dependence on…
Namibia’s President, Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, has outlined her country’s strategy for youth empowerment, economic diversification, and global equity during a fireside chat at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. She highlighted Namibia’s youthful population, with over 70 percent under 35, as a key driver of future growth. “We are placing human capital at the centre of our development agenda,” she said, citing investments in education, digital access, and innovation. As the country’s first female head of state, Nandi-Ndaitwah reaffirmed the country’s commitment to gender equality, describing women’s leadership in government as “structural, not symbolic.” ALSO READ Namibian president…
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Tajudeen Abbas, on Wednesday inaugurated an ad hoc committee to oversight the implementation of the Federal Government’s Naira-for-Crude Oil policy. Abbas said the step was crucial to ensuring transparency, accountability, and efficiency in one of the country’s most critical policy initiatives in the energy sector. He explained that the committee had been mandated to investigate the policy’s implementation, effectiveness, and inter-agency coordination, stressing that the House expected a thorough, impartial, and well-documented process that would strengthen the economy. “The task before this ad hoc committee requires diligence, courage, and a clear sense…
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, to begin immediate engagements with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Ogoni people, and other stakeholders to finalise modalities for the resumption of oil production in Ogoniland. The directive followed the presentation of a report by the Presidential Committee on Ogoni Consultations, chaired by Professor Don Baridam, at the State House in Abuja on Wednesday. Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, led the Ogoni delegation to the ceremony. Tinubu also conferred posthumous national honours on four fallen Ogoni leaders, Edward Kobani, Albert Bade, Samuel Orage, and…
Saudi Arabia has appointed Sheikh Dr. Saleh bin Abdullah bin Humaid as the new Grand Mufti and Head of the Senior Council of Scholars, following the death of the former Grand Mufti, Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Sheikh. Born in 1950 in Buraidah, in the Qassim region, Sheikh bin Humaid later moved to Mecca to complete his secondary education. He went on to study Islamic law at Umm Al-Qura University, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in 1975, his master’s in 1976, and a doctorate in Islamic jurisprudence in 1981, graduating with honors. His academic career has been closely tied to…