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🇳🇪🇲🇱🇧🇫 The AES Confederation unveils its official logo

The logo symbolizes the unity and solidarity of the three member nations: Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, according to the local press.

The emblem is accompanied by the slogan: "One Space - One People - One Destiny".

☀️🌳 It features a radiant sun and a majestic baobab tree, "a symbol of life and diversity."

👉🏾 It also features silhouettes of people, signifying the "diversity and interdependence" of the peoples of the Sahel.

Three stars symbolize the three member countries.

The logo was unveiled after a meeting of authorities from Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso in Bamako.

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🇪🇹 Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and other high-level officials inaugurate the restored National Palace

The restoration of the National Palace is a part of Abiy Ahmed's wider initiative to preserve Ethiopia's history and culture, according the Prime Minister's Office.

🗣 "The National Palace now stands as a testament to our nation’s journey, embodying the resilience, artistry, and vision of our people. By restoring it to its former glory, we honor our past and create a lasting symbol of pride and inspiration for future generations,” the statement said.

The Prime Minister's Office also announced that the Palace Museum is now open to the public.

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❗️ A Ukrainian military airfield and one of the enterprises of the country's military-industrial complex were hit by Russian high-precision weapons and drones, the Russian MoD reports

More key statements from the ministry's briefing:

🟠 The Russian Tsentr group continued to advance into the depths of the enemy's defense;

🟠 The Russian army repelled 12 enemy counterattacks;

🟠 The Armed Forces of Ukraine lost up to 505 servicemen, as well as a Leopard tank;

🟠 The Russian Black Sea Fleet destroyed eight Ukrainian unmanned boats.

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🇳🇬🛢 Nigeria's Warri refinery partially resumes operations after a decade-long shutdown

The 125,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery, shuttered in 2015 due to disrepair and crude shortages, is currently operating at 60% capacity, according to government officials.

This marks a significant step in the government's ongoing efforts to revive its state-owned refineries, whose disfunction has plagued the nation, forcing Africa's largest oil producer to rely heavily on fuel imports.

👉 While the government aims to fully restore all four state-owned refineries (including the 110,000 bpd Kaduna plant and other units in the Niger Delta) this year, the Warri refinery's partial return follows the recent reactivation of the 60,000 bpd Port Harcourt refinery.

The news comes alongside the launch of a privately-owned 650,000 bpd refinery in Lagos built by billionaire Aliko Dangote, adding further capacity to Nigeria's refining sector.

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🇹🇩🇸🇩 Chadian leader extends a message of fraternity to his Sudanese counterpart

Mahamat Idriss Deby congratulated Abdelfattah Al-Burhan on Sudan's Independence Day, celebrated on January 1, using the occasion to express his delight with the "good relations of friendship, cooperation and fraternity that exist between our two countries and our two brotherly peoples."

Marshal Deby assured the president of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council of his "full commitment to working towards the strengthening of these relations and striving for lasting peace in the best interests of both nations."

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🇷🇺🇨🇳 Political trust between China and Russia keeps reaching new levels, says President Xi Jinping

🗣 "Under our strategic leadership, political mutual trust and strategic cooperation are constantly reaching a new level," Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his New Year greetings to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as quoted by the Xinhua news agency.

Xi Jinping highlighted the completion of the China-Russia Eastern gas pipeline, increased practical cooperation, and the successful launch of cultural exchange initiatives further deepening the countries' friendly ties.

🗣 "The two sides support each other in their work as chairs of the BRICS mechanism and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, making significant contributions to strengthening solidarity and cooperation among countries of the Global South," Xi said.

He added, "Amid accelerating global changes and an unstable international situation, China and Russia have always followed the path of non-alliance, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third parties."

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🇨🇫🇷🇺 Russian-style New Year's Eve in the Central African Republic

Students and guests of the Russian House in Bangui celebrated the New Year by learning about the Russian traditions of this holiday, the authorities report.

🎄 They made wishes as the Kremlin chimes rang out;

🎄 They also learned the hussar-style custom of opening champagne;

🎄 Then, the guests made New Year's toasts;

🎄 Finally, they watched the cult Soviet film "The Irony of Fate," which has been shown on TV during the winter holidays for almost 50 years.

Several traditional Russian New Year dishes were served, including Russian salad and mimosa salad.

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🇧🇫 Burkina Faso aims to nearly quintuple its solar energy production within 5 years

🗣 "By 2030, it is planned to increase solar capacity to around 1043 megawatts-peak," Rimtalba J.E. Ouédraogo, the country's prime minister, stated during a Q&A session with members of the parliament on December 27.

This is a significant increase from the country's current capacity of 225.8 megawatts-peak, according to Ouédraogo.

The plan also includes raising the cumulative gas-fired thermal capacity to 600 megawatts, he added.

The projected increase in overall electricity supply will be accomplished through the following initiatives:

Building new thermal power plants with a combined capacity of around 252 megawatts;

Developing a nuclear power plant in collaboration with the Russian company Rosatom;

Implementing emergency measures, including the repair and maintenance of existing power plants;

Reinforcing transformer stations, source substations, and transmission lines connecting those facilities.

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🇷🇺🇪🇺 An "umpteenth act of political censorship": Moscow responds to EU blocking Russian media's Telegram channels

These include RT and RIA Novosti, the latter being a member of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, to which Sputnik also belongs.

🗣This decision by almost all EU members resonates as a "consolidation of their policy of suppressing any hotbed of dissent," says Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

Zakharova pointed out that this move "contradicts all [the West's] international obligations to guarantee free access to information and media pluralism".

In doing so, the West is seeking to "replace the objective picture of the world with a simulation of reality produced by the mainstream media and social networks controlled by the ruling elites".

The Russian diplomat called on international organizations to give an assessment of these actions, indicating that they will not go unanswered.

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🇨🇮🫘 Dry spell reportedly threatens the quality and yield of Cote d'Ivoire's upcoming cocoa harvest

The world's leading cocoa producer is currently experiencing its dry season (mid-November to March), but last week's lack of rainfall in key cocoa-growing regions has sparked worries about the main crop (October-March) and the subsequent mid-crop (April-September), Western media reported.

Farmers in the Daloa, Bongouanou, and Yamoussoukro regions reported no rainfall whatsoever last week, levels significantly below the five-year average. This lack of moisture, they fear, could damage bean quality and lead to reduced yields starting in February.

While sufficient pods remain for January harvesting, the ongoing drought could negatively affect the main crop's final stages and the crucial early development of the mid-crop.

Farmers plan to closely monitor conditions throughout January, emphasizing the need for regular rainfall every 10 days to stimulate flowering and pod development for a strong mid-crop beginning in April.

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