Kim Young-tae, a Korean transport policy expert, on Thursday was named secretary general of the International Transport Forum (ITF), an intergovernmental body under the OECD. It is the first time a Korean has been named to a director position of A7, the highest among grades that range from A1 at the OECD. [...] "Well, Korea as a country has been spotlighted for its rapid development. It rose from the ashes of war. Many countries want to learn how Korea built its top-notch transportation infrastructure in such a short amount of time." He said

World Bank today approved a US$50 million emergency project - Somalia Emergency Drought Response and Recovery Project (SEDRP, the Project) - to scale up the drought response and recovery effort in Somalia. Somalia is facing its worst drought in decades, with over half the population – an estimated 6.7 million people – in need of humanitarian assistance and recovery support. The Project will address the immediate needs of communities affected by the drought as well as supporting early recovery and improved resilience to future shocks.

Every May 31, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and partners mark World No Tobacco Day (WNTD), highlighting the risks associated with tobacco use and advocating for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption. The Ministry of Health through Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC) is organising this year's celebration under the theme, 'Tobacco a Threat to Health, Environment and Development' which will take place at Nyamirambo Stadium in Kigali. According to WHO, about 6 million people die from tobacco use every year. 

The ANC has adopted as its official position an intelligence report that claims Western imperialist powers are working through opposition parties, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and campaigns such as #ZumaMustFall to bring about “regime change” in countries including South Africa. The report lists “#tag campaigns on social media, such as #ZumaMustFall and #FeesMustFall”, as being among the “soft power” tactics used to advance the cause of regime change in the region.

The first Africa Business Summit of NRI forum Gopio began with a call to diaspora Indians to help develop the economies of their own countries and India, using resources they have built over the decades. The three-day summit in Durban organised by Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (Gopio), a non-profit global movement to fight human rights violation of overseas Indians, has brought together 200 delegates from across the globe. [...] It's known that "Indians at all levels continue to set an example and play a role in uplifting the countries where they find themselves." 

The Nigerian government on Friday said it aims to launch "cultural diplomacy" with the South African government to end incessant xenophobic attacks on citizens of the west African nation in that country.[...]More than 100 citizens of Nigeria had been killed or injured in xenophobic attacks across South Africa since 2013, according to the Nigerian government. The government spokesman said cultural diplomacy was an effective tool that would end xenophobia and strengthen the understanding between the two countries.

The third Transform Africa Summit Transform Africa Summit opens today today at the Kigali Convection Centre, attracting about 3,000 delegates. [...] This year's summit's focus is on 'smart cities' with an aim to ensure African capitals embrace technology to effectively deliver services.

In remarks during the occasion, the Ambassador Thit Linn Ohn of the Union of Myanmar stressed that his country was pleased to establish diplomatic relations with Liberia, Africa’s oldest independent Republic. He believes that the event marks the beginning of building closer ties between the two countries especially in the areas of trade, agriculture and people to people exchanges.