Category: General

RUNDU: A 46-year-old woman's body was found with multiple stab wounds at Tumweneni Sewer Works in Rundu on Sunday, the police said. The Namibian Police Force crime investigations coordinator in the Kavango East Region, Deputy Commissioner Bonifatius Kanyetu told Nampa on Tuesday that the deceased was allegedly stabbed with a sharp object. He said the incident possibly happened around 21h00 or 23h00 between the Ndama and Tumweneni residential areas. According to Kanyetu, the woman was last seen on Sunday after knocking off from work at the security company where she worked as a security guard around 06h00. Her body was found at the sewage yard in the early hours of Monday by a passerby, who alerted the police. Kanyetu further reports that the woman was raped before she was murdered. Her 38-year-old boyfriend was arrested and detained for interrogation as a person of interest. Her next of kin have been informed and police investigation into the matter continue. Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

Professor Solomon Fiifi Ofori-Acquah, a Ghanaian Geneticist, has been appointed to serve on the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council, the United States Health Research Agency Council. Mr Xavier Becerra, the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services in a letter, said the appointment begins immediately and ends October 31, 2026. The Council advises the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Assistant Secretary for Health, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and the Director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute on matters relating to the cause, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart, blood vessel, lung, and blood diseases; the use of blood and blood products and the management of blood resources; and on sleep disorders. It also considers applications for research and research training grants and cooperative agreements and recommends funding for those applications that show promise of making valuable contributions to human knowled ge. The Council may also make recommendations to the Director of, the National Heart, Lungs, and Blood Institute, respecting research conducted at the Institute. The Council meets four times a year-winter, spring, and two meetings in the fall. Professor Ofori-Acquah is the first Professor of Medical Laboratory Sciences at the University of Ghana and former Dean of the School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences. His career started as a trainee Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer in Haematology and Blood Transfusion in 1987 at Farnborough General Hospital, Kent, England. Prof. Ofori-Acquah, who is the Founding Director of the West African Genetic Medicine Centre (WAGMC) became certified to practice clinical laboratory haematology and blood transfusion by the UK's Council for Professions Supplementary to Medicine in 1989. In August 2022, he was appointed Director of WAGMC, which was established initially as an African Centre of Excellence in January 2019 with him as the Centre Leader. Professor Ofor i-Acquah has developed many educational and training programmes and taught and mentored students across the academic spectrum in multiple institutions in Ghana, Europe, and the USA. He has conducted research principally in four areas namely genomics, vascular biology, breast cancer and sickle cell disease over a career spanning nearly thirty years. Professor Ofori-Acquah's work in endothelial cell biology and vascular permeability catalysed his most impactful research to date. He has acquired competencies in governance and administration through formal training in an Executive Leadership programme at Emory University. Professor Ofori-Acquah has served on multiple National and International Committees and Boards. He holds a joint appointment as an Associate Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh in the US. Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr James Carl Vandyck, the Western-South Regional Manager, Stallion Trust and Administration Company Limited, a corporate trustee service provider, has urged cocoa farmers to join the Cocoa Farmers Pensions Scheme to guarantee a decent income during their old age. He said it was prudent for the farmers to take advantage of the social protection policies provided by the Scheme and enjoy some remuneration when on retirement. Mr Vandyck, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Takoradi, said the Scheme was regulated by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) for the sole benefit of registered cocoa farmers and their beneficiaries. He said his outfit had been registered by the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA), which was tasked to register cocoa farmers onto the Scheme. Participation in the Scheme was compulsory for all registered cocoa farmers, he said, and that a mandatory contribution of five per cent of the farmer's sales would be deducted at the sales point. COCOBOD would also contribut e a minimum of one per cent to the cocoa farmers' sales. 'Farmers have the option of selecting from between 2.5 to 15 per cent of cocoa sales in addition to the mandatory contributions, so 25 per cent of the total contributions would be credited to their personal savings account and the remaining 75 per cent credited to a retirement account,' he explained. On the retirement benefit, he said members would receive a lump sum equal to the balance in their personal savings account, and pensions payments from the retirement account, which was guaranteed for 15 years. Mr Vandyck, therefore, urged cocoa farmers to get enrolled onto the Scheme to help safeguard their future from poverty during retirement. Source: Ghana News Agency

Local elections candidates for the Beni Khalled Jawfiya Imada (Nabeul 2 constituency) Sadok Ben Mohamed Jerbi and Manel Othman are continuing their election campaign by meeting with citizens. Jerbi affirmed to TAP that he undertakes to ensure that young people receive better care, notably in matters of employment. Ben Othmen said she will speed up the completion of stalled projects, solve road traffic issues in the region, create youth and leisure spaces, enshrine the principle of health for all and encourage increasing the number of specialised doctors at the local hospital. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

The stock market rebounded by 0.2%, concluding the session at 8,620 points. With a volume of TND 5.5 million, trading benefited from the execution of two block transactions on Assurances Maghrebia stock, totalling TND 2.6 million, according to broker Tunisie Valeurs. The shares of this company were the most sought after during the session. The stock of the third-largest insurer in Tunisia ended the session unchanged at TND 52.790, injecting TND 3.4 million into the market, representing 62% of the trading volume. SOMOCER stock took the spotlight, appreciating by 3% to TND 0.690. Despite thin trading, with a turnover of TND 5,000, SPDIT stock delivered one of the best performances of the session. The investment company affiliated with the SFBT Group saw a 2.4% increase, closing at TND 8.700. Traded at a volume of TND 159,000, SICAF stock stood out as one of the most dynamic stocks on the market. On the other hand, BH Leasing stock experienced the steepest decline of the session. Without any transactions ta king place, the leasing company linked to the BH Group saw a 5% decrease, closing at TND 3.590. Ennakl Automobiles stock also performed poorly during the session, declining by 4.5% to TND 11.160. The stock generated a turnover of TND 49,000 during the session. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse