No image available
/ 28 May 2008

Kenya: We have learned our lessons

Kenya President Mwai Kibaki said on Wednesday that his country has learned its lesson from post-election violence and promised to focus on improving the economy. Kenya, long considered one of Africa’s most stable countries, suffered weeks of political violence that claimed at least 1 500 lives after the disputed December general elections.

No image available
/ 28 May 2008

Japan pledges to double aid to Africa

Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda pledged on Wednesday to double Tokyo’s aid to Africa by 2012 to spur growth and attract private investment — a model that helped propel post-war Japan into economic prosperity. Japan will provide up to -billion in flexible, low-interest ”soft loans” to Africa over the next five years.

No image available
/ 17 December 2007

Mixed response to microchip ball

A revolutionary football embedded with a microchip drew a mixed response after being tested at the Club World Cup. Players and coaches were divided over the quality of the ball, designed to put an end to goal-scoring disputes by alerting the referee when it has crossed the line.

No image available
/ 18 May 2006

Small fish in a big (soccer) pond

If the forecasts are to be believed, Japan’s players in next month’s World Cup are small fish in a big pond. An aquarium in Yokohama is organising a piscine World Cup, in which fish the colours of national teams fight for a ball packed with bait in a tank holding two goal posts.

No image available
/ 15 December 2005

Japan to collect first samples of Earth’s mantle

An ambitious Japanese-led project to dig deeper into the Earth’s surface than ever before will be a breakthrough in detecting earthquakes, including Tokyo’s dreaded ”Big One”, officials said on Thursday. The drilling vessel Chikyu is scheduled to collect the first samples of the Earth’s mantle in human history.