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We Must Respond to the Call by the African Union: Educate an Africa Fit for the 21st Century

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Education Cannot Wait Executive Director Yasmine Sherif Statement on Africa Day 2024

NEW YORK, May 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Africa is an amazingly beautiful continent with a powerful young generation who have the inherent right to an inclusive and continued quality education. Yet – and especially in Sub-Saharan Africa – they have been left furthest behind for far too long. Now is the time to right the wrongs.

As we celebrate Africa Day, we call on all leaders in Africa – and all world leaders globally – to support the African Union’s Call to Educate an Africa Fit for the 21st century and make good on the global promises of universal education as outlined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

More than 60 years ago, African leaders gathered in Ghana for the First Congress of African States. Five years later, on 25 May 1963 – with nearly two-thirds of the continent achieving their longed-for independence – leaders met again in Ethiopia to form the Organization of African Unity. From these early days, the African Union was born in 2002 with the noble vision to create “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena.”

While progress has been made over the past two decades in delivering on these goals, Africa continues to fall behind in meeting many of the targets outlined in the 2030 Agenda. Think about this: “In 1990, 14% of the world’s poor lived in Africa; by 2019, this number jumped to 57%,” according to the World Bank.

Economic interests and a sense of scarcity – in spite of a continent rich in resources – these diametrically opposed positions tend to lead to conflict and human rights abuses. The brunt of this is born by children, families, teachers and communities in countries like Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Mali, Mozambique, South Sudan and Sudan.

Schools, children and teachers are being increasingly targeted. “The number of violent incidents affecting education in Africa Union countries rose by 20% in 2023 with 411 reports of violent incidents,” according to Save the Children.

Furthermore, climate change is compounding these painful realities putting even more girls and boys in harm’s way. According to Education Cannot Wait’s recent analysis on the impacts of climate change on education: “Over the last decade, more than 91 million school-aged children impacted by crises have faced climate shocks amplified by climate change worldwide. The effects have been particularly pronounced in Sub-Saharan Africa, affecting 42 million children. In Sub-Saharan Africa, where climate-related crises are prevalent, internally displaced children are 1.7 times more likely to be out of primary school compared to their non-displaced peers. Girls are disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change, with a higher likelihood of dropping out of school and being forced into early marriages.”

While the challenges before us are enormous, there is hope if we take collective, responsible and global action to right the wrongs now.

It starts with embracing the values and commitments outlined in the UN Charter, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights. The people of Africa deserve no less. Their rights must be guaranteed with an emphasis on their right to an inclusive, equitable, quality education, as the very foundation for all other rights.

Together with our strategic donor partners, and through ECW’s investments in partnerships and joint programming (ECW Multi-Year Resilience Programmes) in Africa, we work closely with Ministries of Education and connect a wide array of local and international partners, governments, non-profits and the private sector to deliver unified programming that breaks down silos and delivers quality with impact.

These programmes provide holistic education – the kind of education that the Global North enjoys, such as mental health and psychosocial support, academic learning, school feeding programmes, teacher training and incentives, back-to-school programmes and catch-up classes, vocational training, early childhood education and more – to ensure that African children and adolescents can access true, quality education.

However, we must urgently increase funding for education. Nowhere is this more true than in Africa’s forgotten crises in places like the Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, South Sudan and Sudan. According to ECW’s strategic partner Educo: “In Mali, all regions of the country have been affected by attacks on schools by armed groups throughout 2023 forcing their closure. In all, 1,170 schools have closed, affecting more than half a million children and 10,260 teachers. Despite this growing and deteriorating context, the education sector has received the least amount of funding, so that only 16% of the identified students have been reached. In 2023, only 7.4% of the US$96 million appeal has been covered.”

If Africa is to deliver on the promises envisaged 60 years ago for “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa,” it must enjoy the rights and resources to focus on educating every girl and boy. A continent that has produced global personalities like Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu among so many other profoundly educated leaders is a continent with great promises for all of us. With a quality education, many more young people will step out of the shadows in Africa and bring the kind of humanity we so desperately need in the world today.

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Tulufan, Xinjiang: For the first time, a new energy plant and station has achieved “all-green electricity” operation

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5 mins ago

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September 20, 2024

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TULUFAN, China, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — On September 19, employees of State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company came to State Power Investment Zhongli Tenghui Qiquanhu Photovoltaic Power Station to provide comprehensive technical support and guidance for new energy enterprises.

Seven wind power and photovoltaic power generation enterprises, including Xinjiang Jize Power Generation Company in Tulufan, have obtained 6.035 million KWH of grid electricity by purchasing 6,035 “green certificates” to achieve “green electricity – green electricity” and achieve green energy use in the whole link of new energy power generation.

The green power certificate, referred to as “green certificate”, is the only certificate that identifies the production and consumption of renewable energy power. Promoting the all-green operation of new energy power generation is an important measure to promote the green consumption of renewable energy.

“Before, we were just ‘producers’ of green electricity. Now the buyers of green certificates have become green electricity consumers, and the production process is fully green.” Qiquan Lake photovoltaic power station inspection officer Forzati Dilishati said.

Since the launch of the green electricity and green certificate market, State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company has actively promoted green electricity trading, promoted the supply of green electricity and green certificates in multiple scenarios, promoted the rapid promotion and popularization of related services in Tulufan, and helped build a new power system.

In the first eight months of this year, the cumulative volume of green electricity transactions in Xinjiang reached 1.174 billion KWH, 93.83 times that of the whole year of 2022.

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/tulufan-xinjiang-for-the-first-time-a-new-energy-plant-and-station-has-achieved-all-green-electricity-operation-302253902.html

SOURCE State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company

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KuCoin’s Alicia Kao Shares Insights on How AI is Accelerating Mass Crypto Adoption at TOKEN2049 Singapore

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6 mins ago

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September 20, 2024

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VICTORIA, Seychelles, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Alicia Kao, Managing Director at leading global cryptocurrency exchange, KuCoin, shared her vision on how crypto exchanges are the drivers that hold the keys to unlocking mainstream crypto adoption. Speaking at the OKX Main Stage at TOKEN2049 in Singapore on a panel session titled “Exchanges at the Helm: Driving Crypto from Niche to Mainstream,” Alicia shared that “accessing information about blockchain has become significantly easier…at KuCoin, we leverage complex data analysis algorithms using our trading bots to help users trade more efficiently.”

Industry stakeholders from all groups were in attendance for the panel, comprising investors, crypto enthusiasts, and more. The focus was on the crucial role of cryptocurrency exchanges in paving the way for crypto adoption and the eventual integration of digital assets into mainstream financial systems. Alicia and her fellow panelists explored both the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead for the crypto industry.

Alongside Alicia, the panel also featured leaders from leading crypto exchanges such as Ben Zhou, Co-Founder and CEO of Bybit; Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget; Vivien Lin, Chief Product Officer of BingX; and Sonia Shaw, President of CoinW, and moderated by Michael Casey, Chairman of the Decentralized AI Society.

In addition to the panel discussion, KuCoin cemented its position as a leading centralised exchange (CEX) with a prominent presence on the show floor and activations that showcased the platform’s latest developments. The KuCoin Arcade also drew significant attention, offering an engaging and immersive experience with interactive crypto-themed games and activities.

“As we wrap up another edition of TOKEN2049 in Singapore, I’m once again filled with optimism for the future of the crypto industry. The energy, innovation, and collaboration displayed over the past two days have been immensely inspiring. At KuCoin, we will continue striving to be the driving force in this ever evolving space to build a more inclusive, decentralised, and prosperous financial future” added Alicia as TOKEN2049 concluded.

About KuCoin

Launched in September 2017, KuCoin is a leading cryptocurrency exchange with its operational headquarters in Seychelles. As a user-oriented platform with a focus on inclusiveness and community engagement. It offers over 900 digital assets across Spot trading, Margin trading, P2P Fiat trading, Futures trading, and Staking to its 34 million users in more than 200 countries and regions. KuCoin ranks as one of the top 6 crypto exchanges. KuCoin was acclaimed as “One of the Best Crypto Apps & Exchanges of June 2024” by Forbes Advisor and has been included as one of the top 50 companies in the “2024 Hurun Global Unicorn List”. Learn more at https://www.kucoin.com/.

 

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SOURCE KuCoin

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PayPal Ventures Reinforces Support of Chaos Labs with Additional Investment

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6 mins ago

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September 20, 2024

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SINGAPORE, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Today, PayPal Ventures, the global venture capital arm of PayPal, announced an additional investment in Chaos Labs, an industry leader in onchain risk management. This investment underscores PayPal Ventures’ confidence in Chaos Labs’ potential and their blockchain products.

Chaos Labs’ recent launch of Edge, a new decentralized oracle protocol, has garnered significant attention within the industry. Edge has already secured a remarkable $30B over the last 2 months and has been adopted by leading exchanges such as Jupiter, the top perpetuals exchange on Solana, and GMX, the leading exchange on Arbitrum.

Edge offers a comprehensive, low-latency oracle solution, combining accurate price data with actionable market intelligence. Its advanced architecture ensures the security and efficiency of DeFi applications while providing insights into market dynamics and security risks. Edge monitors the market for specific risk signals, performs the offchain data parsing and computation, and outputs one actionable data point.

Omer Goldberg, CEO and Founder of Chaos Labs, said, “We’re excited to receive the strong confidence and additional support from the PayPal Ventures team. Edge by Chaos is the culmination of our entire company’s work and expertise. Edge Price, Risk, and Proofs deliver meaningful and unmatched contextualized risk and price data for assets including stablecoins and other real-world-assets, in addition to the crypto assets and venues that provide access to them.”

Last month, Chaos Labs announced a $55 million Series A funding round led by Haun Ventures, including prominent new investors such as F-Prime Capital, Slow Ventures, and Spartan Capital, and existing investors including PayPal Ventures. Chaos Labs has experienced significant growth, tripling its customer base and securing billions in trading volume, loans, and incentives.

PayPal Ventures’ investment aligns with PayPal’s ongoing commitment to the blockchain ecosystem. In May 2024, PayPal launched its stablecoin, PYUSD, on the Solana blockchain.

Amman Bhasin, Partner at PayPal Ventures, said, “Our continued investment in Chaos Labs reflects our belief in their vision to create a safer crypto ecosystem and move more financial services on chain. Chaos Labs has emerged as a leading risk authority in the sector and we are thrilled to witness their evolution as they launch innovative products like Edge to mitigate oracle vulnerabilities.”

Chaos Labs will receive the total investment in PYUSD on-chain. A simulation will be shown live on-stage on September 20th at the annual Solana Breakpoint conference in Singapore.

About Chaos Labs

Chaos Labs leads the blockchain risk management industry with innovative solutions for the evolving onchain financial landscape. Chaos Labs enables protocols to verify stability across all market conditions, merging offchain observability with onchain risk parameter adjustments. Backed by leading venture capital firms, Chaos Labs continues to set new standards for security and responsiveness in onchain finance. Founded in 2021, Chaos Labs is headquartered in New York City.

About PayPal Ventures

PayPal Ventures is the global corporate venture arm of PayPal. We invest for financial return in companies at the forefront of innovation in fintech, commerce enablement, digital infrastructure, and crypto/blockchain technologies. Through the expertise, experience, and vast network of PayPal Ventures – and the companies we invest in – we are helping to bring transformative solutions to market faster. For more information, please visit: www.paypal.vc 

 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paypal-ventures-reinforces-support-of-chaos-labs-with-additional-investment-302253911.html

SOURCE Chaos Labs, Inc.

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