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Qatar will host the draw for the FIFA Arab Cup 2021™ (www.FIFA.com) at Katara Opera House on Tuesday, 27 April at 21:00 local time.

The tournament will be contested by 23 Arab nations.
The draw will be attended by a limited number of officials, in line with Qatar’s COVID-19 protocols.
The FIFA Arab Cup™ will be held at the end of 2021 and is seen as a vital opportunity to test operations and facilities exactly a year before Qatar hosts the first FIFA World Cup™ in the Middle East and Arab world. The finals of both events are set to take place on 18 December – Qatar’s National Day.
Matches will take place at six Qatar 2022 tournament venues, some of which have hosted top-level football in recent months, while others are in the final stages of construction.
The 23 nations participating in the FIFA Arab Cup 2021™: Qatar (host nation), Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
Further details about the tournament format and match calendar will be confirmed in due course.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
Contact for African Media: AfricanMedia@fifa.org
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Qatar to host FIFA Arab Cup 2021(TM) draw on 27 April

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“If we must satisfy Africa’s food security with our growing population, then there must be high commercialization of agriculture. That is modern farming.” – Ayotomiwa Yinka Ogunsua, poultry farmer

When Ayotomiwa Yinka Ogunsua got a job as a loan officer at a microfinance bank in Ibadan, Nigeria, after graduating from university, he thought he’d done well for himself. Then, he spotted an online advertisement for a youth agricultural training program and signed up, owing to his interest in farming as a hobby.
Selected to interview for a place in the poultry rearing course, Ogunsua promptly quit his bank job and, he says, prayed he would get in. “I knew I wanted to follow my passion for agriculture full-time,” the 29-year-old Nigerian said.
Ogunsua did win a place in the course, organized last March by the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (https://bit.ly/2PrrEK9) program, or TAAT, a program of the African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) and partners including the CGIAR, a global research partnership. TAAT works to harness high-impact agricultural technologies to boost crop output and create viable opportunities for workers and entrepreneurs.
Soon after, Ogunsua bought 50 chicks and started a business.
The African Development Bank’s Director for Agriculture and Agro-Industry, Dr. Martin Fregene, said TAAT has the resources, scientific and technological expertise, as well as proven implementation plans to benefit millions of African farmers like Ogunsua.
“As the continent’s leaders gather for the High-level Dialogue on Feeding Africa (https://bit.ly/2QBkjrN) at the end of the month, Ogunsua’s experience serves as an inspiration for governments to commit to investing in Africa’s food systems,” Fregene added.
“After the training, I saw agriculture as a proper business, not just a passion,” Ogunsua said via telephone from his farm, as roosters crowed in the background. “I realized this is something I must make income from, as something to pay my bills – something that I can build on as an enterprise,” he added.
The CGIAR’s International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, based in Ibadan, southwestern Nigeria, provides TAAT training courses that offer capacity building and technical assistance to African “agripreneurs”.
The training, Ogunsua says, gave him the technical know-how to expand his start-up, Vive Verde, from water, agricultural and environmental services into livestock production. Atops Farms, Ogunsua’s poultry business, grew to include 500 birds by early 2021. Then something wonderful happened.
“We sold out of birds for Easter,” Ogunsua said, noting that he makes more money from agribusiness than he did working as a loan officer.
As head of Atops Farms, Ogunsua does his part to advocate for Nigeria’s agriculture sector, appearing regularly on radio and television programs, and working to change society’s perception of farming as a pastime.
“Farming, for one, is to make profit. It is also to ensure food security of the land, or the nation – of the continent,” he recently told Inspiration 100.5 FM radio (https://bit.ly/3gJjFDo). “If we must satisfy Africa’s food security with our growing population, then there must be high commercialization of agriculture. That is modern farming.”
Currently, he is expecting a shipment of new chicks to restock his coop, and while he waits for his chickens to mature, also rears turkeys, rabbits and goats to generate cash flow and build his agricultural business.
“I am still a small farmer, but by the grace of God I am growing and I will get there,” he said.
Click here (https://bit.ly/2QBkjrN) to register and to learn more about the High-level Virtual Dialogue on Feeding Africa on 29-30 April 2021.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).
About the African Development Bank Group: The African Development Bank Group is Africa’s premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 41 African countries with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states.

Banker-turned-poultry farmer becomes champion for African agriculture

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The countdown towards the historic FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ (www.FIFA.com) will reach an important milestone today (Tuesday 27 April) when the draw takes place, and you can watch the event as it happens.

Click on the above link to watch the draw, which will take place at 21:00 local time (20:00 CET).
The draw will involve four FIFA legends: Wael Gomaa (Egypt), Nawaf Al Temyat (Saudi Arabia), Haytham Mustafa (Sudan) and Younus Mahmood (Iraq), along with FIFA’s Director of Competitions, Manolo Zubiria.
The 16-nation tournament will feature four groups followed by a knockout stage. Twenty-three nations (https://fifa.fans/32OIAx8) will feature overall, with preliminary matches involving the 14 lowest-ranked teams.
The FIFA Arab Cup™ is seen as an important opportunity to test operations and facilities ahead of Qatar 2022 (www.FIFA.com/WorldCup). Both tournaments will take place in a similar timeslot, with the finals of each scheduled to take place exactly one year apart – 18 December, Qatar’s National Day.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
Contact for African Media:  AfricanMedia@fifa.org

Watch FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021(TM) draw live

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In the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic, the Orange Foundation (www.FondationOrange.com) is providing an additional €1.3 million in financial aid to the 17 countries in Africa and the Middle East within its footprint. These funds will be used to support national efforts to vaccinate as many people as possible and to help combat the health crisis and its effects.

Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa (www.Orange.com) says: &#8220;To take on the health crisis in Africa and the Middle East, each of our 17 countries will use this aid to supplement projects that have already been launched locally in collaboration with the country&#39;s health authorities. In addition to providing protection kits (masks, sanitizer, gloves, goggles, coveralls, etc.) and medical equipment and taking urgent action alongside NGOs, we are proud to facilitate access to the Covid-19 vaccine which is a huge challenge for African countries.&#8221;
Elizabeth Tchoungui, Executive Director of CSR, Diversity and Philanthropy at Orange, and Deputy Chair of the Orange Foundation adds: &#8220;This support for vaccination comes in addition to the €5.5 million that was already made available in Africa and the Middle East by the Orange Group and the Orange Foundation in April 2020. The Orange Foundation got involved from the very beginning of the health crisis to support preventive information, protection and healthcare measures and to provide essential supplies to the populations in all the countries within our footprint.&#8221;  
The Orange Group, which is present in 26 countries worldwide, remains committed to overcoming this health crisis hand-in-hand with local populations.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Orange.
Press contacts: Khadija Komara khadija.komara@orange.com +33 6 76 45 96 18
Nathalie Chevrier nathalie.chevrier@orange.com + +33 1 44 44 93 93
About the Orange Foundation: The Orange Foundation is committed to social and professional insertion for young people and women in difficulty: young people without qualifications and out of work, women in vulnerable situations, people with autism. For the past 30 years, the Foundation&#39;s initiatives have given them access to education, healthcare and culture, to help them find their place in society. We also help increase access to culture to all audiences by providing easy access to vocal music, books, museums. The Foundation now works in all these fields, ensuring that digital technology, essential in today&#39;s world, plays a part in equality of opportunities. In this way, with the support of its committed employees, the Orange Foundation helps nearly 2 million people every year in 30 countries to make a new start.
&#8220;Orange Foundation, helping with what&#39;s important&#8221;
About Orange: Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications carriers with a turnover of €42.3 billion in 2020 and 142,000 employees as at 31 December 2020, of whom 82,000 are in France. The Group has a total customer base of 259 million customers worldwide at Thursday, December 31, 2020, including 214 million mobile customers and 22 million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 26 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies, under the brand Orange Business Services. In December 2019, the Group presented its new &#8220;Engage 2025&#8221; strategic plan, which, guided by social and environmental accountability, aims to reinvent its operator model. While accelerating in growth areas and placing data and AI at the heart of its innovation model, the Group will be an attractive and responsible employer, adapted to emerging professions.
Orange is listed on Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).
To find out more (online and via your mobile device), go to: www.Orange-business.com or to follow us on Twitter: @orangegrouppr.
Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trademarks of Orange or Orange Brand Services Limited.
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Orange provides support for Covid-19 vaccination campaigns in Africa and the Middle East through its Foundation

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Ahead of the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ (www.FIFA.com) draw on Tuesday, 27 April (21:00 local time), the qualifying matches for the tournament have been decided.

Of the 23 nations involved, the 14 lowest-ranked teams according to the April edition of the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men&#39;s World Ranking (https://fifa.fans/3sVOCXB) will participate in single-leg play-offs ahead of the tournament, which will be held later this year.
The play-offs were decided according to the rankings, as follows:
 	Oman (FIFA World Ranking: 80) vs Somalia (197) 	Lebanon (93) vs Djibouti (183) 	Jordan (95) vs South Sudan (169) 	Bahrain (99) vs Kuwait (148) 	Mauritania (101) vs Yemen (145) 	Palestine (104) vs Comoros (131) 	Libya (119) vs Sudan (123) 
The seven winning teams will join the nine highest-ranked teams who have already qualified for the tournament: host nation Qatar (58), Tunisia (26), Algeria (33), Morocco (34), Egypt (46), Saudi Arabia (65), Iraq (68), the United Arab Emirates (73) and Syria (79).
The tournament will consist of a group stage and knockout rounds. The 16 teams will be split into four groups of four, with the top two from each progressing to the quarter-finals. Matches will be played at six FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ tournament venues.

Tuesday’s draw will be made by four FIFA legends: Wael Gomaa (Egypt), Nawaf Al Temyat (Saudi Arabia), Haytham Mustafa (Sudan) and Younus Mahmood (Iraq), along with FIFA’s Director of Competitions, Manolo Zubiria. Click here to read the procedures for Tuesday’s draw (https://fifa.fans/3gICmXF).
A limited number of officials will attend the draw, in line with Qatar’s COVID-19 protocols. Information on broadcasting the draw will follow tomorrow.
The FIFA Arab Cup™ is seen as an important opportunity to test operations and facilities ahead of Qatar 2022. Both tournaments will take place in a similar timeslot, with the finals of each scheduled to take place exactly one year apart – on 18 December, Qatar’s National Day.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
Contact for African Media: AfricanMedia@fifa.org
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Excitement mounts ahead of FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021(TM) draw

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By Ibrahim Moshood, Associate &#038; Tozaye Balogun, Director of Tax Services in Africa

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (“FIRS”) recently issued a Revised Information Circular on the Tax Treatment of Non-Governmental Ogranisations (NGOs), hereafter referred to the as “Revised Information Circular” or “the Circular”. The Circular, published on 31 March 2021, amends, updates or replaces the FIRS’ initial information circular (issued in 2010) on the tax exemption status of NGOs &#8211; but only to the extent that the initial circular contains information that is inconsistent with the Revised Information Circular.
The Revised Information Circular reiterates the tax-exemptions, filing and other compliances obligations of NGOs. It also provides clarification on the application of the term “public character” to NGOs when evaluating their eligibility to enjoy the tax exemptions granted under the Companies Income Tax Act (CITA). It is noteworthy that the FIRS’ clarification on the application of the term public character is issued following an inclusion of a definition for “public character” in the CITA by Finance Act, 2020.
The “public character” issue
The CITA exempts from tax the profits of “any company engaged in ecclesiastical, charitable or educational activities of a public character in so far as such profits are not derived from a trade or business carried on by such company” (emphasis ours). Prior to Finance Act 2020, CITA did not provide definitions for “public character” or “activities of a public character”. Taxpayers, the FIRS and even the Courts therefore interpreted these terms and its application, for tax purposes, in varied ways:
 	All ecclesiastical, charitable and educational activities are generally accepted as activities of a public character. Therefore, a company engaged in such activities immediately qualifies for tax exemption on profits from (and proven to be from) those activities. 	Ecclesiastical, charitable and educational activities are only of public character if those services are freely available for all Nigerians to use, share in or enjoy. If such services/activities are provided at a fee, they no longer pass the public character test because not all Nigerians will find those services affordable. 	It is only a body or institution whose activities are meant to benefit Nigerians in general, and particularly the public, and its profits are not available for distribution to its promoters that can qualify as a “public character” company eligible to enjoy tax exemption on its profits. 
The long-standing debate has been whether the pre-condition for enjoying the tax exemption is that the company seeking the exemption is an “institution of public character” or the activities provided by that company are of “public character”. To clarify, the Finance Act 2020 defines public character as “with respect to any organisation or institution means an organisation or institution that is (a) registered in accordance with the relevant law in Nigeria; and (b) does not distribute or share its profit in any manner to its members or promoters.” The FIRS’, in its Revised Information Circular, expatiates on this point by stating that distribution of assets (even by way of gift) in cash or kind by such company to its promoters or members will qualify as a distribution of profits.
Defining public character by reference to company/institution and not activity, shifts the focus of the tax exemption from the nature of activities provided to the nature of company providing those services. This will appear contrary to the law which provides that “any company engaged in…. activities of a public character” may qualify for a tax exemption. It is therefore arguable that while introducing a definition of “public character” in the law may be helpful in some respects, it doesn’t do much to resolve the age-old dispute between Taxpayers and FIRS on how the tax exemption should be applied. The question what constitutes activities of a public character, which to our minds is the more relevant question given the clear provision of the law, remains unanswered.
Further, more questions may arise based on the definition of “public character”. The requirement that the institution “does not distribute or share its profits in any manner to its members or promoters” is interesting. According to the Companies and Allied Matters Act, it is only a company limited by guarantee that is precluded from distributing profits to its promoters and members. A company limited by shares has no such restriction. Is the intention, therefore, to exclude a company limited by shares from the enjoying the tax exemption? Or is such company eligible for the tax exempt provided if it doesn’t (and can presumably prove) that it does not make distributions to its shareholders or promoters?
Conclusion 
Any clarification of a hitherto ambiguous term in a Tax Statute will typically be considered a welcome development. However, the definition of the term “public character” in Finance Act 2020 and the Revised Information Circular may prove insufficient to rest the long-standing issue on the interpretation and application of the tax exemption granted in CITA to ecclesiastical, charitable and educational institutions.
It will be interesting to see how the definition of public character will be applied vis-a-vis the clear provision of the law going forward and how Taxpayers will react to it. Will a company limited by shares that engages in activities of a public character accept that it may no longer qualify for a tax exemption? Or will it continue to contest its eligibility for the exemption in court?
Authors: Ibrahim Moshood, Associate &#038; Tozaye Balogun, Director of Tax Services in Africa,  The Centurion Law Group
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Centurion Law Group.
Centurion’s Tax and Investment Desk: Centurion currently represent and provide legal and tax services to a wide spectrum of multinational companies. Our team comprises of advisors who have been engaged in big-ticket legal and tax compliance engagements across Africa.  
Our legal and tax practice spans several frontier and established markets across Africa, and this has led us to develop a most robust country activity and market entry checklist for about a decade.
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A re-definition of the term “public character” and its impact on the taxability of Non-governmental organisations in Nigeria (By Ibrahim Moshood & Tozaye Balogun)

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Vertiv (www.Vertiv.com/en-emea) (NYSE: VRT), a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, today announced the opening of a new factory in Rugvica, Croatia to support its integrated modular solutions (IMS) business in EMEA. Compared to the previous factory, the site offers 130% more indoor space and 60% more outdoor space and can easily be expanded to seize the opportunities of the rapidly growing prefabricated modular data centers (PFM) market. The factory also includes a number of innovations for the construction of PFM modules as well as thermal management air handling units.

“We hear a lot about IT trends and the upcoming advances in technologies such as of 5G, IoT, and AI, but less about the innovative physical infrastructure that’s behind it,” says Giordano Albertazzi, president for Vertiv in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “We are seeing strong growth in the adoption of prefabricated modular solutions to support these new technologies, and as market leaders we are investing both in capacity and innovation to continue to meet our customers’ needs and stay ahead of the curve. This new site ultimately means supporting the plans and enabling the success of our EMEA and global customers, and is reflective of our continued investment in the markets in which we operate.”
“The Rugvica factory boasts all the latest technologies, production processes, tools and testing labs,” says Viktor Petik, VP for Vertiv’s IMS business in EMEA. “The facility is designed to provide a complete range of prefabricated modular solutions, from cable landing stations powering the internet and connecting geographies, to bespoke data centre building blocks. The new factory testifies our commitment towards innovation and growth, and I am proud to say that we’ve created about 150 jobs in the last year, many being engineering or skilled professionals from this region.”
Last year, Vertiv was ranked by technology analyst firm Omdia as one of the leading suppliers in the PFM data centre market (https://bit.ly/3nnQHdD) with the second highest market share worldwide. The research highlighted that benefits such as the ability to scale with confidence (https://bit.ly/3xnjFPv) are driving significant growth in the adoption of PFM solutions in all geographies. Omdia attributed this strong growth to factors including scalability, the benefits of offsite manufacturing and integration, and speed of deployment.
PFM data centres come in many different forms with varying use cases, including IT and facility-specific designs and so-called all-in-one modules with integrated IT, power, and cooling infrastructure, which are commonly used in education, industrial, and healthcare applications as well as remote and harsh environments. The ‘plug and play’ approach has the benefit of not only cutting the time for start-up and commissioning, to just a few days instead of weeks or months, but also reducing the potential for quality issues, as components are pre-integrated and pre-tested off-site.
Vertiv’s PFM designs cover a range of different offerings to meet specific customer needs, such as the Vertiv™ SmartMod™ (https://bit.ly/3aDWXss), a fully self-contained, easily-configurable and ready-to-order PFM product range that enables new data centre whitespace to be rapidly deployed, and the Vertiv™ Power Module (https://bit.ly/3eBS4kH), an efficient, power-dense critical infrastructure that can be quickly deployed as a standalone unit. Vertiv also provides completely custom PFM solutions, which include design, project management and system integration.
To learn more about how Vertiv can help data centre owners and operators to scale with confidence, visit www.Vertiv.com/SWC.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Vertiv.
Media contact: Zenab Abbas E Zenab.Abbas@Vertiv.com
About Vertiv: Vertiv (NYSE: VRT) brings together hardware, software, analytics and ongoing services to ensure its customers’ vital applications run continuously, perform optimally and grow with their business needs. Vertiv solves the most important challenges facing today’s data centers, communication networks and commercial and industrial facilities with a portfolio of power, cooling and IT infrastructure solutions and ser vices that extends from the cloud to the edge of the network. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, USA, Vertiv employs approximately 20,000 people and does business in more than 130 countries. For more information, and for the latest news and content from Vertiv, visit Vertiv.com.
Forward-Looking Statements: This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27 of the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act. These statements are only a prediction. Actual events or results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statement set forth herein. Readers are referred to Vertiv’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for a discussion of these and other important risk factors concerning Vertiv and its operations. Vertiv is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Vertiv Opens Innovative New Factory in Croatia to Support Growing Demand for Integrated Modular Solutions

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MyCountry MyWorld (http://MyCountryMyWorld.com) is set to launch MY! a social media platform for Africans by Africans providing possibilities in world exploration by giving users the opportunity to bring their country and world to each other.

MY! A social media platform is set to be launched in May 2021. “Having developed the app over a period of two years, with a series of tests; we are now confident that the app is ready to be released to the world”, Samuel Zean Jr, Co- founder, MY!
With over 4 billion internet users across the world and growing by 332 million in the past 12 months and more than 900,000 new users each day, MY! Presents a platform where these users especially from developing economies can tell their story their own way and own the platform. Globally, internet user numbers are growing at an annual rate of more than 7½ percent, but year-on-year growth is much higher in many developing economies.
“Majority of Africans complain of how African nations are portrayed by the western countries on both traditional media and digital media. The MY! app is developed by Africans for Africans to help change this narrative. Whereby, everyone is given a chance to tell their story their way.” Samuel Zean Jr, Co- founder, MY!
MY! is an inclusive social media platform that appeals to all age groups. The app provides unmatched user experience, engagement, interaction and entertainment. The app’s interface is user friendly and easy to navigate through. It enables users to share content effortlessly, by providing feedback and updating a post status. It simplifies the collaboration between users and gives them the full visibility of content created.
Developed and founded by a small group of self-funded African immigrant community from Liberia and Sierra Leone who reside in Minnesota, the app is meant to take on both Facebook and Instagram.  “In a time of so much unrest, it brings hope to many seeing this diverse group of people coming together to create something special for the world”. Adam Borgerding, VP of Operations, MY! 
Furthermore, the app gives users the opportunity to retain the rights of authentication for their work. MY! allows its users to maximize their creativity to the maximum and rewards them for every uploaded post shared. The app enables users to represent their country by showcasing an individual’s country’s unique attraction sites, features, wildlife, culture, cuisine, art, skills, talent, stories, business hustle, history and so much more.
MY! will officially launch on May 10th, 2021 and will be readily available on Google Play and Apple Store.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of MY!.
About My!: MY! provides a global platform that will enable users to travel high above and beyond our planet for a glimpse of earth&#39;s natural beauty, attraction sites, wildlife, culture, history, cuisine, infrastructure, art, talent, from country to country as seen, captured, and shared through the unique lenses of MY!
The app intends to award its users by giving them the opportunity to retain the rights of authentication for their work with an optional feature, patent water stamping technology. Which displays user’s name, city, state, and country of residence on each post a user shares on the platform.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Mycountry_MyWorld-106748934860621 LinkedIn: www.LinkedIn.com/in/mycountry-myworld/ Instagram: www.Instagram.com/MyApp_Africa/ Twitter: https://Twitter.com/MyApp_Africa  Blog: https://MyCountry-MyWorld.blogspot.com
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A Social Media Platform for Africans by Africans set to be launched in May 2021 (MY!)

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NollywoodWeek film festival (www.NWff.eventive.org), the first and only Nigerian film festival organized in Paris has taken its 8th edition online. The films in this year’s line-up will be available to a global online audience from May 6-9, 2021. This year’s selection has expanded beyond Nigeria to include high quality, thought provoking, and entertaining productions from other countries in Africa and the African Diaspora. 

“The recent global uprisings and calls for greater justice has prompted us to rethink how our platform can help to elevate black voices and share more of our stories that show the full range of the global black experience. It is only natural to use this medium to not only highlight the fantastic talent in Nigeria but to make this first online edition a celebration of talent in Africa and the Diaspora”, said Nadira Abdus-Shakur, co-founder of NollywoodWeek.
This year’s official selection is made up of 4 world-premiere screenings. This year’s global audience will have an opportunity to discover the latest films before they hit the theatres or online streaming platforms. The festival will also include masterclasses, workshops and panel discussions around production and distribution in African cinema and animation. 
The feature films in the official selection will be competing for the Audience Choice Award given to the film with the highest marks from the audience. Voting happens immediately after the screening and the winner is announced during the Closing Ceremony of the festival. Previous winners include movies such as Phone Swap, The Meeting, 76, The Wedding Party and Isoken. The winning filmmaker receives a range of top of the line lenses from the Angénieux brand with which to shoot their next film.
The full list of selected feature films, shorts, special screenings and animations can be found here (https://bit.ly/2QCgZgf).
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of NollywoodWeek Paris Film Festival.
Media contact: Nadira Shakur – Festival Director press@nollywoodweek.com +33652218704 www.NollywoodWeek.com facebook.com/nollywoodweek
About Nollywood Week film festival : Nollywood Week is a film festival organized by the French-based association Okada Media, headed by Serge Noukoué and Nadira Shakur. The two co-founders have been promoting African cinema globally for a decade and launched the first edition of Nollywoodweek in Paris in 2013.  Nollywood Week film festival takes place in the spring each year and aims to bring the best of Nigerian cinematic talent to the French public. It is also a forum for discussion and networking around the key challenges and opportunities in the African cinema landscape with masterclasses, Q&#038;As and opportunities to connect to experts in production and distribution. In 2021, the first online edition was launched to connect exceptional Nigerian, African and African Diaspora movies and animation to a global audience. 
NollywoodWeek Paris 2021 takes place online from Thursday May 6th to Sunday May 9th.
Click here (https://bit.ly/3aHxmyJ) to view our teaser.
Click here (https://bit.ly/3sPbdF6) to view the festival program for the week
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The 8th edition of the NollywoodWeek film festival goes global: Selection includes films from other African countries and the African Diaspora

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Thirty-five patients have been diagnosed positive for COVID-19 in tests carried out today at Quarantine Centers in Gash Barka, Southern,  Central, Anseba,  Northern Red Sea, and Southern Red Sea Regions.

Out of these, ten patients are from Quarantine Centers in Agordat (2), Gherset (1). Barentu (1), Bushuka (1), Aderde (1), Forto-Sawa (1), Goluj (1), Adibara (1), and Ali Ghidir (1); Gash Barka Region.  Nine patients are from Quarantine Centers in Amini-Haili (2), Dibarwa (2), Areza (2), Mai-Mine (1), Adi Quala (1), and Mendefera (1), in the Southern Region.  Four patients are from Quarantine Centers in Asmara; Central Region.
Four other patients are from Quarantine Centers in Halhal (2), Habero (1), and Hagaz (1); Anseba Region. One patient is from the Quarantine Center in Foro; Northern Red Sea Region. The last seven patients are from the Quarantine Center in Oidi; Southern Red Sea Region.
On the other hand, forty-five patients who have been receiving medical treatment in hospitals in the Southern Red Sea (38), Southern (6), and Central (1), Regions have recovered fully and have been discharged from these facilities.
The total number of recovered patients has accordingly risen to 3455 while the number of deaths stands at ten.
The total number of confirmed cases in the country to-date has increased to 3640.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.
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Coronavirus – Eritrea: Announcement from the Ministry of Health (26 April 2021)

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Daily: Laboratory test: 5,595 Severe cases: 990 New recovered: 750 New deaths: 19 New cases: 841

Total: Laboratory test: 2,555,989 Active cases: 56,051 Total recovered: 193,497 Total deaths: 3,570 Total cases: 253,120
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health, Ethiopia.
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Coronavirus – Ethiopia: COVID-19 update (26 April 2021)

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Tests conducted: 10,545,817 Positive cases identified: 1,576,320 Total recoveries: 1,501,880 Total deaths: 54,186 New cases: 849
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa, Department of Health.
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Coronavirus – South Africa: COVID-19 update (26 April 2021)

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Total daily tests: 725 New confirmed cases: 1 Cumulative confirmed cases: 18,443 Active cases: 31 Recoveries: 17,741 (4 new) Currently admitted: 6 New deaths: 0 Total deaths: 671 Total vaccinated to date: 34,897
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health, Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini.
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Coronavirus – Eswatini: COVID-19 update (26 April 2021)

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Total cases: 24,677 (+84) Recovered: 23,005 (+64) | 93.2% Active cases: 1,342 In critical condition: 6 Tests: 1,294,444 (+5,324) Test positivity rate: 1.6% Vaccinated: 349,702 Deaths: 330 (+0) | 1.3%
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health, Republic of Rwanda.
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Coronavirus – Rwanda: COVID-19 update (26 April 2021)

Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.

Entrepreneurs change the world and create the future. They focus their energies on solving problems, improving things around them and making a positive impact on peoples’ lives everywhere. To do this, most true entrepreneurs embody several characteristics which help them align their lives around this pursuit – to be in the best possible position to achieve their goals successfully.

We often hear from business and entrepreneurship experts who preach the common factors of success &#8212; things like resilience, persistence, drive, and more recent buzzwords such as “grit” and “hustle”. These of course are useful personal attributes to have, in addition to general business acumen and technical knowledge of a specific field of work.

But such elusive traits are not easy to come by or easy to train for. They must arise from each person’s inner strength and character, shaped by a multitude of experiences and conditioning. That’s where the lifestyle comes in.

FELS (www.MyFELS.com), or The Flourishing Entrepreneurial Lifestyle is an online content movement that has set out to identify the lifestyle formula most correlated with these positive outcomes and to help raise awareness for it. As an internet “tribe” it aims to grow and foster a global community of people who want to be better primed for high achievement, and to facilitate to exchange of insights and support between them.

The movement advocates for ten main lifestyle pillars which have been carefully researched from the lives of top business leaders from around the world. These pillars cover a wide range of common life practices which come together to deliver a holistic impact. The hypothesis here is that their cumulative effect can help us become better at complex entrepreneurship pursuits, challenging business undertakings or any career aspirations by making us the best versions ourselves mentally and physically.

FELS is on a mission to bring these useful learnings to the world through simple blog-style content that provides examples of the lifestyle and how to best practice it. Aiming to make the content accessible to the people who may most need it, FELS focuses on the developing regions of the world and has created special sets of social media channels for each of them &#8212; such as FELS Africa, FELS Latino, FELS Arabia and the like. These channels are tailored to their local audiences’ culture and language, with a total of 14 major languages covered.

The movement has also released an eBook featuring interviews with more than 30 influential entrepreneurs and business leaders from around the world, each sharing their personal stories and insights reflecting on how these lifestyle pillars have contributed to their current success and prosperity.

With the community growing rapidly and reaching over half a million followers, FELS recently created a mobile app to centralize the conversation in one place and make it easier for members to step up as local leaders or ambassadors.

So who’s behind all of this? You may have guessed correctly that it must be a successful serial entrepreneur who has identified these factors from his own personal journey. Indeed, the life of movement leader Mr Aiman Kabli (https://AimanKabli.com) serves as an example to these principles: as an innovator he has been part of over two dozen technology startups, as a digital nomad he has visited over 85 countries, and as an avid learner he has read over 300 insightful books over the last decade.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Flourishing Entrepreneurial Lifestyle (FELS).
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Can your overall lifestyle really affect your success in work or business?

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Based on observed drought conditions and rainfall forecasts, the Federal Government of Somalia and the humanitarian community are deeply concerned about the deterioration of the dry conditions in Somalia which has now escalated to a drought situation.

More than 80 per cent of the country is experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions. Although the Gu rains started in some parts of the country, forecasts indicate below-average rainfall. Limited rainfall amounts are expected in May and June with larger parts of Somaliland, Puntland, central regions and Gedo region being the worst affected.
 “Somalia experiences a cyclical pattern of drought every five to six years and the failure of the rains thus far spells disaster. At a time when communities are already struggling to cope with the recent water shortages in many parts of the country, the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and already dire humanitarian situation in the country, many lives are at stake,” said Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Khadija Diriye.
 Somalia is on the front line of climate change and the frequency of climate-related disasters is increasing rapidly. Since 1990, Somalia has experienced more than 30 climate-related hazards, including 12 droughts and 19 floods – triple the number of climate-related hazards experienced between 1970 and 1990. In 2021, drought conditions are expected to increase displacement and have a lasting negative impact on livelihoods and food security outcomes. At least 3.4 million people are projected to be affected by drought conditions by the end of 2021, of whom around 380,000 are expected to be displaced.
 The loss of livelihoods forces families to rely on increasingly severe coping mechanisms, worsened by political instability, armed conflict and forced displacement. “We are at the brink of a human catastrophe amidst an already dire humanitarian situation,” said the Humanitarian Coordinator, Adam Abdelmoula. “The cost of inaction is far too dire and the time to take action is now. Urgent and immediate collective action, including scaling-up of response and funding, is needed now to mitigate a full-scale disaster.”
 The Somalia Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) requires US$ 1.09 billion to assist four million people, including more than three million people in acute need. As of today, the HRP is 15 per cent funded.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of OCHA Somalia.

Somalia: Humanitarian Leadership declares Drought

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We are disappointed about Total’s recent decision to declare force majeure on its Mozambique LNG Project. While the African Energy Chamber (“AEC”) (www.EnergyChamber.org) stands in solidarity with Mozambique and Total all energy investors, we believe the declaration of force majeure could have been prevented and comes prematurely. We encourage all parties involved to have a better and more open conversation to find a practical and pragmatic commonsense solution for the force majeure event to cease and for the project to resume, for the benefit not only of Total, but also of international and local companies, and especially for Mozambique’s people.

Force majeure is recognized under the Mozambique Petroleum Law, which provides that “petroleum operations rights holders may lawfully suspend performance of petroleum operations on account of a force majeure event” (Article 15(h), Mozambique Petroleum Law).
While the force majeure declaration by Total is a legal instrument at its disposition to procure its objectives and compromises with its lenders and the government, we firmly believe that Total will do whatever it takes to stand with Mozambique and its people. Total is not only an international company. It is an African company as well, as it is one of its most prominent investors and employers. Total’s connection to the African people goes far beyond its investments at a macro level. While many other multinational companies have left the continent, Total has remained, and we believe this commitment to the continent and Mozambique specifically will continue to remain.
“Mozambique continues to be one of the most attractive options to produce gas in the world due to its carbon neutrality, representing a viable solution for climate change. Such a rare opportunity for Africa and the world.” Stated NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber
“The energy industry continues to grapple with multiple insecurity issues, community engagement, climate change, energy poverty, greater cooperation between stakeholders is required to find beneficial solutions” Added Ayuk.
Mozambique may have some important security issues at the moment, Mozambique is not within the top countries most impacted by terrorism, according to the 2020 Global Terrorism Index. Such countries include Nigeria, Pakistan, India, and Libya, where Total continues to operate. We are looking forward to Total taking the same stance in Mozambique as it has done in these countries more impacted by terrorism, and together with the government and other parties involved, find a solution to safely continue with its LNG Project.
When energy multinationals made a decision to halt natural gas development projects in Myanmar and some declared Force Majeure, Total remained, and made a clear argument that the public stands to lose from electricity shortages. The field supplied about half of Myanmar&#39;s natural gas used for power generation.
If Total does halt gas production, &#8220;we are convinced the junta will not hesitate to resort to forced labor,&#8221; Total’s Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné stated at the time. In Mozambique, if this drags on and not resolved, we give an upper hand to terrorist and ISIS.
“When we stop as an industry, we nurture the hate speech against energy projects in Africa, and we give those “haters” instruments to criticize further our good-faith efforts to make Africa better for Africans. This is not the time to allow for this. This is the time to make a stand, find solutions, and continue exploiting our resources”. Concluded Ayuk
Everyone must stand against the cowardly attack on Palma. Everyone with sense must understand that terrorist activities and the attacks on energy infrastructure are not only against Total and energy investors, they are against Mozambique and the entire world and all who believe that Mozambique’s gas is a solution to the climate crisis. 
Not only is this LNG project and revenue for a company and its lenders is at stake, but the life of everyday Africans and of the people of Mozambique are. We must not forget that all of these efforts and projects are and should be for the benefit of the people. Mozambicans are eagerly waiting for the benefits their gas will give to them, and we should be focusing on making them see and receive such benefits. We must not concede or surrender. We have to find a way to fight for the project and for the people.
Let us stand together. Let us find a solution to get the Total LNG project going again. Many local and international service companies have invested much money in people, capacity building, materials, and financing, believing in Total’s LNG Project. Such efforts should not be discarded.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
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Qatar to host FIFA Arab Cup 2021(TM) draw on 27 April

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Watch FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021(TM) draw live

Orange provides support for Covid-19 vaccination campaigns in Africa and the Middle East through its Foundation

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Can your overall lifestyle really affect your success in work or business?

Somalia: Humanitarian Leadership declares Drought

Total’s Force Majeure declaration on Mozambique LNG is a call for dialogue and a global firewall against terrorism

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