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That has officially given it the edge over Egypt, the previous tourism leader on the continent, and who also shattered its own arrival record, welcoming 15.7 million visitors in 2024. While no governing body tracks arrival numbers for every African nation, both UN Tourism and the World Travel & Tourism Council confirm that North African nations outpace sub-Saharan ones in terms of tourism volume. Morocco’s new tourism benchmark marks an astounding 20% jump from 2023 and more than a 33% increase over 2019 pre-pandemic levels when the Arabian destination received 13 million visitors. It has also put the Kingdom of Light two years ahead of its tourism projections.

India Meteorological Department (IMD), authorities have said, citing restrictions on non-essential foreign travel at government expense. Mominul Islam, the acting director of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), on Friday confirmed receiving the invitation from the IMD a month ago, saying: «The India Meteorological Department invited us to their 150th anniversary celebrations. We maintain good relations and continue to collaborate with them.» «However, we are not going to the event as there is an obligation to limit non-essential foreign trips funded by the government,» Islam told bdnews 24. He emphasised the regular contact between the two agencies, noting his recent visit to India on December 20, 2024, for a separate meeting with Indian meteorologists.

Tripura should focus on making products needed in the defence sector by using bamboo and rubber which grow aplenty in the northeastern state, speakers at an awareness session said here on Friday. The Kolkata-based Bharat Chamber of Commerce (BCC) organised the one-day awareness session. Aerospace and Defence expert Balpreet Singh highlighted the capabilities of Tripura that could be leveraged by the MSME and startups. Rubber could also be utilised in manufacturing tyres, tubes, gloves, uniforms and other gears used in the defence sector, he said.

Britain’s Treasury chief is travelling to China this weekend to discuss economic and financial cooperation between the countries, as the U.K.‘s Labour government seeks to reset frayed ties with Beijing

State-run Pakistan International Airlines has resumed direct flights to Europe following a decision by the European Union’s aviation safety agency to lift a four-year ban over safety standards

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Deep Bajaj, 42, co-founder of femtech brand Sirona Hygiene, doesn’t make new year resolutions.

Kamala Harris is competent to run for presidency again in four years, outgoing US President Joe Biden said Friday, noting that the decision on this would finally be on her. «I think that's a decision she might think she's competent to run again in four years. That'll be a decision for her to make,» Biden told reporters at a news conference here. Biden made history in 2020 by appointing Harris as the first ever Indian American, African American and woman as the Vice President of the country. In the summer of 2024, after a disastrous presidential debate with Donald Trump in Atlanta, Biden withdrew from the race and went ahead to endorse Harris for presidency. Harris soon became the Democratic Party's presidential nominee.

data tariffs to attract investments from foreign companies that rely on affordable fast broadband connectivity for delivering essential services, said senior government officials. The Centre's aim is to leverage the country's much lower data rates compared with markets such as China, US, Russia, UK, Australia, and South Africa to entice foreign companies engaged in delivering services such as ride hailing, online food delivery, telemedicine, digital payments and online education, the officials told ET. The government also plans to highlight to potential investors India's rapid adoption of 5G services and the rising availability of affordable 5G phones in the world's second-largest mobile phone market.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Dear reader, Hello and welcome to the first edition of 2025 of Climate Change And You. It’s been two months since Sayantan and I started the newsletter, and it has been a busy time in terms of climate news.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: The Union government is looking to fire up manufacturing activity—a crucial engine of economic growth that’s significantly slowed—by announcing factory clusters near major infrastructure projects and changes to tax and customs duties in the upcoming Budget.

Japan has imposed several previous rounds of sanctions, and the latest step comes a month after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reaffirmed the country's policy at an online G7 summit in mid-December. «It is Japan's contribution as part of the international effort toward achieving global peace and resolving the problems surrounding Ukraine because of Russian invasion,» Hayashi said.

Constellation is buying power natural gas and geothermal power provider Calpine in a cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $16.4 billion, joining together two of the country’s biggest power companies

Henley Passport Index of the year 2025 has crowned Singapore as the most powerful passport of the world while granting its citizens visa free access to 195 out of 227 global destinations, reported CNBC Travel. This achievement actually marks a pretty significant milestone in global mobility while demonstrating the diplomatic and international standing of Singapore. According to CNBC Travel, Japan actually closely follows in second place with 193 visa free destinations while Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea and Spain share third place together whereas each country is offering access to 192 destinations. The rankings actually highlight the continued dominance of Asian and European nations in international travel freedom. The United Arab Emirates emerged as a notable climber while rising 32 places to enter the top 10 with access to 185 destinations, asserted CNBC Travel. At the same time, on the other hand, the US eventually experienced a significant decline while dropping seven places to ninth position.

DPIIT) said Friday. “The report we are getting is that startups are returning to India. Angel tax (removal) is one issue that has helped bring some startups,” Bhatia said. Budget FY25 had abolished the angel tax or Section 56(2) VII B of the Income Tax Act that was introduced in 2012 as an anti-abuse measure aimed at tax avoidance and curbing money laundering through inflated valuations. Under this provision, if a closely held company issues shares at a price exceeding fair market value (FMV), computed in accordance with prescribed methodology, the difference is to be taxed as income from other sources.

A spokesperson of the Immigration department at Karachi's Jinnah International Airport said, among them, 14 had Pakistani passports, while 244 were deported on emergency travel documents. «We arrested 16 deportees at the Karachi airport, including one with a suspicious identity, while the rest were released after questioning,» he said.

Trump Inauguration 2025: Donald Trump's inauguration as the 47th President of the United States is scheduled for January 20, 2025. As the nation anticipates this significant event, attention turns to the lineup of performers who will grace the ceremony. While official announcements are pending, several artists are speculated to participate, drawing from past affiliations and performances.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Think 15% vacancy rates are only a problem for owners of office towers? America has a serious housing shortage, but not for the type of apartments that real-estate investors have been building in record numbers. The national vacancy rate for multifamily apartments reached 8% in the last quarter of 2024—higher than it was before the pandemic.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has been at loggerheads with the federal government since the general elections in February 2024. Several leaders of the PTI are currently in talks with the government and Khan on Wednesday said his party will participate in the third round of talks to help ease the political tension in the country. «There is a plan to impose a ten-year dictatorship in Pakistan, of which two years have already passed. Judges or police officers who become a party to oppression are rewarded with promotions here,» Khan said in a tweet on X on Thursday.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Angela Merkel wrote a 736-page memoir to secure her crumbling legacy. The effort is backfiring.

Interpol has issued its first Silver Notice to locate assets laundered across borders as part of a pilot project in which India is also a participant, the global body said Friday. In its response to a PTI query on the notice, the Interpol said in a statement it has issued the first Silver Notice on the request of Italy which has sought information about the assets of a senior mafia member. The Lyon-based international police cooperation organisation said the pilot project has participation from 52 members including India. At present, the Interpol has eight types of colour-coded notices which allows a member country to seek specific kind of information worldwide. The Red Notice allows a country to request the detention of fugitive living in another country.