40,000 vaccine doses to be sent to Libya from Malta

Aug 13 2021

Libya will be supplied with 40,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses from Malta, along with an unspecified number of test kits to help fight the pandemic. Times of Malta revealed that the consignment will be sent to Tripoli on a government-chartered flight, making it another donation after test kits were sent to Tunisia were sent last week. Libya informed the World Health Organisation that it has had 271,981 confirmed cases since January 2020.

With a population of around seven million, 3,781 have died due to COVID-19, with only 764,233 vaccine doses having been administered as of Monday. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, urged governments not to administer booster shots until more countries vaccinate more of their population.

He stated how more than 80% of the vaccination doses have gone to high or upper-middle income countries, despite amounting for less than half of the world population. He stated that despite understanding national concerns to protect their people, it should not come at the expense of poorer countries as rich countries use more doses.

Malta, along with other countries, have announced plans to administer booster shots. The elderly and those with compromised immune systems will start to receive their booster jab starting mid-September.

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Photo Source: npr

Malta has registered over 540 annual grassfires

Aug 13 2021

The hot summers and record breaking heat waves have been having their toll on the island’s environmental landscape. Between the 1st of June and the 10th of August, the Civil Protection Department in Malta recorded 513 grass/rubbish fires. The average amount of fires across the Maltese islands for the past five years has registered at 543. Rabat, Zebbug, Siggiewi and Qormi registered the highest number of recorded fires this year at 28, 28, 26 and 25 respectively.

This concerning news has prompted local authorities to take note of what other countries have been experiencing. Australia, Greece and most recently Italy have been experiencing massive flames which forced people to evacuate entire areas as the fires engulfed fields and households. Fires caused due to global warming have taken the helm of such incidents, with activists such as Steve Zammit Lupi calling out to act as soon as possible and keep the remaining vegetation left on the island safe and secure.

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Photo Source: Steve Zammit Lupi

Messi accepts part of PSG fee in crypto fan tokens by Malta based company

Aug 13 2021

Minister for Economy and Industry Silvio Schembri congratulated companies working in the blockchain sector based in Malta haven their work achieve success as Lionel Messi accepts part of his PSG pay in crypto fan tokens. After leaving Barcelona, the 34-year-old world famous player signed a two year contract with Paris St Germain with the option of a third year with the team. PSG revealed that tokens were included in his welcome package which racked up an estimated 30 million Euros.

Fans are a type of cryptocurrency which allows holders to vote on minor decisions related to clubs. Increasingly seen by clubs as a source of new revenue, Socios.com, which provide the PSG tokens, say that nearly $200 million has been generated through their use. CEO of Socios.com Alexandre Dreyfus said that PSG was benefitting from its token and that other clubs could use this blueprint for their own dealings. He said that this could be the start of a new trend as fan tokens and Socios.com play an increasingly prominent role across sport at the highest possible levels.

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Photo Source: Reuters, Silvio Schembri FB

Will we see Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo play together next season ?

Aug 13 2021

According to Spanish newspaper AS, football fans will see Messi and Ronaldo finally play on the same team this next season. The report goes on to say that French superstar Kylian Mbappe will be the player they will sacrifice as, reportedly, the Parisians already know that Mbappe’s intention is to join Real Madrid once his contract expires this summer.

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Signing Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar has been PSG’s president Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s dream ever since the three players battled it out for the 2015 Ballon d’Or. Nasser is said to be very interested in swapping the two players, albeit Ronaldo is significantly older than Mbappe. It is said that Ronaldo will reportedly join once he’s 37 and will have a two year contract. This means he will play in a less demanding league once he turns 39-years-old.

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