For the first time the Obama administration on Thursday clearly and publicly said a cash payment of $400 million to Iran was used as leverage to ensure the release of a group of American prisoners being held by Tehran.Earlier this month, President Bara…
Category: Education
East African States See Rising Threat From al-Shabab
The militant group al-Shabab, once a threat primarily in Somalia, has grown and expanded its aspirations, operations and aims, and is preparing to wage a long war in East Africa, according to analysts and experts on the region.East Africa’s Inter-Gover…
Polio Is Back in Nigeria; Immunization Drive Begins Monday
The polio virus struck Nigeria just as the country was set to celebrate an important anniversary this week – two years of being polio free. Now two children infected by polio are paralyzed for life.The virus attacked in Borno, a northern state that bor…
SOUTH AFRICA: Election upset good for reforms, pressure on spending
Moody’s Investors Service said in its initial response to the results that “while the emerging pluralistic party competition has the potential to generate reform momentum over the medium term, near-term risks of policy distraction and spending pressure…
CYPRUS: July inflation -0.2% y-o-y, -1.9% Jan-July
In the twelve-month period from August 2015 to July 2016, in comparison to the period from August 2014 to July 2015, the annual average rate of change of the CPI was -2.0%. The corresponding annual average rate of change of the CPI in the previous year…
MARKETS: GBP under heavy selling after BoE cuts rates
This represents a historic low for UK interest rates which have been left unchanged at the previous rate of 0.5% since the peak of the financial crisis in March 2009. Other policy measuresm such as an expansion to the asset purchase programme and the i…