A section of the Muara-Tutong Highway from KM32.9 near Kampong Jerudong (Muara-bound) will be temporarily closed from today until March 31 from 8am to 5.30pm.
According to a Public Works Department (JKR) statement, the closure is to allow the Unified National Networks (UNN) to conduct monopole dismantling works and collection of dismantled items.
Road users are advised to exercise caution in the area by adhering to the speed limit and to follow road signs.
Meanwhile, the agency said installations works on circuit breakers at the Highlift Station Stages 4 & 5 at the Bukit Barun Water Treatment Plant will be carried out tomorrow at 2pm.
The work will take a maximum of four hours to complete and will result in a low supply of clean water, especially at high-lying areas. The areas that will be affected include Kampong Batong, Kampong Masin, RPN Perpindahan Lugu, Jalan Pasir Berakas, RPN Lambak Kanan, Mukim Lumapas, a part of Mukim Pengkalan Batu, Kampong Subok, Kampong Belimbing and its vicinity.
The JKR assured that every precautionary measure is being taken to overcome the issue including returning the water supply to normal level as soon as possible.
A satellite view of the road closure along the highway. PHOTO: JKR
PHNOM PENH (PHNOM PENH POST/ANN) – The Cambodian Ministry of Health has reported only 97 new COVID-19 cases, nine of which were imported and all were confirmed to be the Omicron variant.
The ministry also reported 152 recoveries and one new death.
As of March 20, Cambodia had recorded a total of 134,986 Covid-19 cases with 130,956 recoveries and 3,051 fatalities.
Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping has committed another 20 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Cambodia, five million of which are expected to arrive late this month.
Xi made the pledge on March 18 during a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen, according to Kao Kim Hourn, a minister delegate attached to the prime minister.
This comes just over three months after Beijing announced that it would work with Phnom Penh to set up a Sinopharm jab manufacturing venture in Cambodia sometime soon.
According to Ministry of Health secretary of state York Sambath, Sinopharm too has expressed willingness to work with Chinese ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian and the Kingdom on the project.
During the meeting, the two leaders also advocated for more direct flights between the two countries, as well as development projects such as roads and schools, Kim Hourn went on to say.
Health staff picking up confirmed COVID patients to transfer into isolation centres in Cambodia. PHOTO: ANN
MOMBASA, KENYA (AP) – Iconic African wildlife such as elephants, big cats and rosewood trees will be central to discussions of the World Wildlife Conference slated for Panama later this year.
The standing committee meeting of the United Nations (UN) wildlife trade body, called the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which met all of last week in Lyon, France, slated these animals and trees for the main agenda of discussion during the Panama wildlife conference, scheduled for November.
The wildlife body is the highest decision-making organ on global wildlife trade. It is expected to make decisions on the resolutions set in Lyon on flagship wildlife including pangolins, West African vultures, parrots orchids, seahorses, marine turtles, Malagasy ebonies, sharks and rays.
”African nations are providing a strong example to the world of how states can collaboratively take action against illegal international trade in wildlife,” said the Secretary General of the UN wildlife agency Ivonne Higuero.
”In Central and West Africa, there is a new political commitment and engagement to combat the illegal trade endangered species of wild animals and plants.”
Higuero added that African countries had led by example in instituting the African Carnivore Initiative, which aims to conserve lions, leopards, cheetahs and the African wild dog species.
ABOVE & BELOW: A male lion raises his head above the long grass, in the Kenyan savannah; and Nicci Wright, a wildlife rehabilitation expert and executive director of the African Pangolin Working Group in South Africa, holds a pangolin at a Wildlife Veterinary Hospital in Johannesburg. PHOTOS: AP
ABOVE & BELOW: Members of the Local Ocean Conservation group carry a green turtle that was unintentionally caught in a fisherman’s net, before releasing it back into the Watamu National Marine Park coast of Kenya; and two-month-old orphaned baby elephant Ajabu is given a dust-bath in the red earth as she is too young to do it herself at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Orphanage in Nairobi
The powerful UN wildlife agency makes three distinctions for listing of wildlife according to the degree of protection needed. It also spells out commercial rules covering over 38,000 species of plants and animals, requiring member states to penalise any violation of the procedures that it sets.
Each October since 2017, member states have been required to submit data on all seizures of wildlife made in the previous year. Nearly 6,000 species have been seized between 1999-2018, ranging from mammals, reptiles, corals, birds, and fish according to the UN crime office records.
The World Wildlife Seizures Database, which is a global repository of reported wildlife confiscations compiled by the UN office on drugs and crime, is the main tool used to review worldwide illegal commercial trends. Between 1999 and 2018, there were over 180,000 seizures, covering 6,000 species spread across 149 countries represents the network of illegal wildlife trade, according to the database.
Poaching and trafficking records indicate that ivory trade saw a resurgence around 2007 and grew steadily until around 2011, before declining in 2016. The estimated number of elephants in African countries in 2006 was 556,973. This number has since decreased to the current 413,242.
Trends of wildlife trophy seizures accumulated in the last four years reveal that there has been a shift in ivory shipments, with Lagos Port in Nigeria dominating exports and Vietnam leading as main elephant tusks importer. Previously, the Mombasa Port in Kenya held the primacy of illicit ivory shipments and China took the lead as the main importer.
UN records also indicate that the ”largest flow of illicitly harvested rosewood in the past four years is coming out of Africa”. Global imports of tropical hardwood logs totalled 18 million cubic metres in 2018, valued at over USD3 billion. Some 82 per cent of the value of this import demand came from industries based in China, which currently leads the world in furniture manufacturing.
Up until 2013, one of the more prominent non-Asian sources for rosewood was Madagascar, where at least 48 species are known to occur with 47 of them being widespread on the Indian Ocean island nation. A recommendation to suspend trade in species of rosewood from Madagascar was made in 2016 and remains in place to this day.
”The rosewood crisis has been devastating West African forests and the livelihoods of its people for almost a decade,” said the Africa programme manager of the environmental group Raphael Edou.
In 2018, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature classified redwood as ”endangered”. China, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the European Union, Japan and Malaysia remain the main destinations of trafficked rosewood, accounting for three-quarters of all logs seized globally.
Pangolins in Africa are increasingly being hunted for their meat and their scales. The bulk of pangolin exports come from Nigeria, Guinea, Liberia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo and Gabon. According to the wildlife database, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi and Congo-Brazzaville are hubs and logistics nodes of pangolins’ transshipment in Africa, with China as the largest importer. In 2016 due to overexploitation of pangolins, the wildlife body placed a global trade ban.
While the Lyon standing committee this last week highlighted the plight of Africa’s wildlife, decisions aimed at curbing illegal trade and the future of the continent’s iconic species will be decided by officials at the Panama conference.
BRASÍLIA (AFP) – The Brazilian government on Saturday appealed a ruling from a Supreme Court justice that would block the popular messaging app Telegram, a favourite communications channel of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.
Citing Telegram’s failure to comply with orders from Brazilian authorities and remove messages found to contain disinformation, Judge Alexandre de Moraes on Thursday ordered the app blocked immediately in Brazil.
“Telegram’s disrespect for Brazilian law and repeated failure to comply with countless court decisions… is completely incompatible with the rule of law,” wrote Moraes.
But in an appeal filed with another Supreme Court judge, Attorney General Bruno Bianco contended that Moraes’ ruling was “disproportionate” and should be reversed.
The decision comes as Bolsonaro, who has been gearing up to seek re-election in October, faces a slump in popularity.
With more than a million followers on Telegram, he is counting on the app to rally his base.
CONAKRY (AFP) – Rights groups in Guinea on Friday demanded a reconciliation process as a condition for participating in a national conference planned by the military junta, which seized power six months ago.
Coup leader Colonel Mamady Doumbouya – who was sworn in as president last October – has promised to restore civilian rule after a transitional period. But he has so far resisted international pressure to commit to a date.
The head of Doumbouya’s interim government, Mohamed Beavogui, last week announced that a national conference aimed at finding a path forward for the country would be held from March 22.
He stressed the need “to forgive and move forward” in the nation of 13 million people, which has a history of authoritarian rule and political violence. But on Friday, 12 leading Guinean rights groups said in a joint statement that they would skip the conference unless the junta clarified what they termed “undefined and imprecise aims” for the talks.
They also demanded that the junta set up a reconciliation commission after the conference, as a condition for their participation.
Guinea’s strongman Doumbouya deposed elected president Alpha Conde on September 5, defying broad diplomatic condemnation of the coup.
Conde, 84, had drawn fierce opposition after he pushed through a new constitution in 2020 that allowed him to run for a third presidential term.
Dozens of protesters were killed in nationwide unrest ahead of the September coup, and dozens of opposition activists were also arrested. Among the signatories to Friday’s statement were groups representing victims of massacres committed under other former Guinean leaders.
THE WASHINGTON POST – There are a lot of tools in my kitchen that I use on a daily basis, if not multiple times a day – my chef’s knife, cutting board, and skillet just to name a few. But one thing that gets even more use, that is a common denominator that touches, literally, all these items, is my sponge.
And that is part of the problem.
”Because of their construction, sponges provide harbourage for any number and variety of microbiological organisms, many of which may be pathogenic,” according to the Food and Drug Administration’s United States (US) Food Code. In addition to food-borne pathogens, yeasts and molds can proliferate in sponges.
”The majority of people don’t know how to properly handle a sponge when it comes to the maintenance of it,” said extension professor and food safety specialist at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Jason Bolton. Here’s what you need to know about caring for, cleaning and replacing your sponges.
CLEANING AND SANITISING THE SPONGE
Bolton said it’s essential to clean and sanitise your sponge regularly, ideally every day. You can do that through either heat or chemical means. First, wash the sponge with warm water and soap. The easiest next step is to microwave it on high for one minute. Make sure the sponge is still wet – too dry and it can catch on fire – and does not contain any metallic elements, such as in the scrubber, that can spark. Let the sponge cool before handling.
His other preferred method after washing is to soak the sponge in a bleach solution. Because the formula for diluting bleach can vary according to the product, the surface in question and what you’re trying to disinfect, Bolton said to check the label instructions for the bleach.
Assuming your bleach is 8.25 per cent sodium hypochlorite, you’ll need a quarter to a half teaspoon per quart of warm water. Soak the sponge in that solution for one minute.
The Agricultural Research Service, part of the USDA, found that a dishwasher with a drying cycle was almost as effective as microwaving, killing 99.9998 per cent of bacteria on a sponge, as opposed to the 99.99999 per cent in a microwave.
OTHER CARE AND MAINTENANCE TIPS
Moisture is one of the requirements for potentially harmful bacteria to multiply, and that matters because it’s easy to let your sponge sit around wet.
In between uses and cleaning, be sure to wring out whatever water you can. Store the sponge in a clean spot that allows for air circulation and reduces the possibility of cross-contamination, so not in the sink basin or even the dish rack, Bolton said. You can also buy a dedicated sponge holder.
After testing various models, America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) recommends looking for a holder with a large opening for dropping the sponge into, as well as an open construction to allow for efficient drying. It should attach securely enough to the sink to not be easily knocked off in the course of cleaning, which is where a slim profile comes in handy, too. ATK’s winning model, from SunnyPoint, features suction cups, while one of its runners-up from Yamazaki hangs from the faucet.
Whatever you choose, ATK suggests cleaning the holder with hot, soapy water at least once a month.
REPLACING
It’s hard to recommend a hard-and-fast rule for how often to replace a sponge, because much depends on how often it’s used and how it’s maintained, Bolton said. ”If you use it seldomly, you could get two weeks out of it,” is his rough guidance. It’s important to pay attention to the condition of the sponge.
If the sponge is torn, losing pieces or separating between the scrubber and soft side, it’s time to get a new one. Another tell: ”Once a sponge starts to smell, throw it out immediately,” advises the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.
DITCH THE SPONGE ALTOGETHER
Bolton strongly recommends against using a sponge to clean equipment and surfaces that have been in contact with raw meat or fish, which can create cross-contamination problems.
In those scenarios, he recommends using a disposable sponge or a rag that can be used once and put immediately in the washing machine to be cleaned with detergent and hot water (a more eco-friendly alternative to paper towels). You can use clean kitchen towels for the rest of your dishwashing, too.
BERN, SWITZERLAND (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday blasted firms including Nestle for carrying on business as usual with Russia “even though our children are dying”, in a live address to a Swiss rally.
Zelenskyy urged Swiss companies to stop doing business in Russia and told the country’s banks to freeze funds belonging to the Kremlin elite.
Speaking to a rally outside the Swiss Parliament in Bern, Zelenskyy condemned firms that maintained business as usual despite the siege of Mariupol.
The thousands of demonstrators gathered in the square in front of the Federal Palace heard Zelenskyy’s nine-minute speech translated in German, though technical problems interrupted the video from Kyiv.
Zelenskyy criticised Swiss companies for continuing to do business in Russia, singling out food giant Nestle.
The company’s slogan is “good food, good life”, he said.
“Business works in Russia even though our children are dying and our cities are being destroyed,” and while people in Mariupol were “without food, without water, without electricity, under bombardment”.
Zelenskyy criticised Swiss companies for continuing to do business in Russia, singling out food giant Nestle. PHOTO: AFP
Zelenskyy said it was “painful” that those behind the conflict had funds stashed in Switzerland.
“The money of the people who unleashed this war is in your banks. Help fight this. So that their funds are frozen,” he said, urging them to join the “fight against evil”.
Zelenskyy called for them to be stripped of their properties and privileges, to cheers from the crowd.
The number of rich Russians resident in Switzerland has grown in recent years.
Swiss President Ignazio Cassis joined Ukrainian and other diplomats on a stage above a banner reading ‘Solidarity with Ukraine. Stop the war now.’
“I’m deeply impressed, dear Volodymyr, from your willingness to resist, from your willingness to go ahead, and from your willingness and the willingness of your population to overcome this terrific crisis,” he told Zelenskyy.
Cassis said he hoped the guns would soon fall silent and said Switzerland was prepared to mediate or host negotiations.
The Swiss president said he would visit the Polish border with Ukraine today.
NEW YORK (AP) – Looking to watch top Oscar nominees before the 94th Academy Awards air on March 27? There are many ways to get that done, and a trip to the theatre isn’t absolutely necessary. Here’s the way to find the top nominees online, though there are many myriad paths to digitally buy, rent and stream:
THE POWER OF THE DOG
Twelve nominations. Netflix.
The leading nominee received nods for Kirsten Dunst, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smit-McPhee. It also received a best picture nomination and a best director nomination for Jane Campion. Cumberbatch is a rough-hewn Montana rancher with a menacing arrogance in a Gothic story brought alive on the Western plain.
DUNE
Ten nominations. HBO Max.
It’s back on HBO Max, and in the iTunes store and on Amazon Prime Video for a price. The sweeping desert sci-fi saga based on Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel received nods that included best picture and cinematography. It stars Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya. Denis Villeneuve directed.
BELFAST
Seven nominations. Digital rental.
Based on the childhood of Kenneth Branagh, the film notched nominations for best picture, a directing nod for Branagh, best supporting actress for Judi Dench and supporting actor for her screen husband, Ciarán Hinds, among others. Absent was a nomination Jamie Dornan, who stars as a Belfast dad struggling to keep his family safe as the troubles began in 1969. It’s available at a cost on Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, YouTube, Redbox, Vudu and more.
ABOVE & BELOW: Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence in ‘Don’t Look Up’; and Will Smith in a scene from ‘King Richard’. PHOTOS: AP
Benedict Cumberbatch in a scene from ‘The Power of the Dog’
WEST SIDE STORY
Seven nominations. HBO Max and Disney+.
Steven Spielberg’s reimagining of the 1961 classic received nominations for best picture, and director for him. Ariana DeBose was nominated for her Anita. Spielberg, Tony Kushner and Steven Sondheim dug deep to reconsider the iconic Romeo and Juliet tale that has the Sharks and the Jets front and centre in New York City.
KING RICHARD
Six nominations. Digital rental.
Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, the story of Richard Williams – father, coach and driving force behind tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams – has Will Smith in the leading role. It earned nominations for Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, best picture and original song for Be Alive by DIXSON and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, among others. It’s available at a cost on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube and more.
DON’T LOOK UP
Four nominations. Netflix.
Adam McKay’s apocalyptic comedy nabbed nominations that included best picture, original score and original screenplay. The climate change satire that stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence gives Earth six months before a massive comet destroys the planet.
DRIVE MY CAR
Four nominations. HBO Max.
From Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi, the three-hour drama earned nods for best picture and best director, among others. It’s based on a Haruki Murakami short story and follows an actor played by Hidetoshi Nishijima. He seeks a chauffeur and winds up with a taciturn 20-year-old girl, played by Toko Miura. A touching friendship develops against a backdrop of loss and sorrow.
NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Four nominations. HBO Max and Hulu.
The Guillermo del Toro remake of the 1947 neo-noir classic earned nominations that included best picture and cinematography. The cast is star packed, led by Bradley Cooper and Rooney Mara. It’s the story of the brief rise of a handsome hustler, from low level carney to highly paid showman.
BEING THE RICARDOS
Three nominations. Amazon Prime Video.
The behind-the-scenes look at the work and marriage of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz received nominations for Javier Bardem as Desi, Nicole Kidman as Lucy and JK Simmons in a supporting role. Aaron Sorkin has created a loving and sharp dramatisation of a particularly fraught week during the making of the TV classic I Love Lucy.
CODA
Three nominations. Apple TV+.
Apple received its first best-picture nomination with this drama, which also made history as supporting actor nominee Troy Kotsur became only the second deaf actor ever nominated.
(His CODA co-star Marlee Matlin was the first.) The film follows the Rossi family of Gloucester, Massachusetts. Ruby, a high school senior, is the only hearing member of her family and often their only connection to the hearing world.
ENCANTO
Three nominations, Disney+.
There’s something about this Disney animated feature. Rather, there’s something about the music that has tickled many. The soundtrack became the first from a film since 2019 to reach number one on the Billboard chart. Its most popular song, We Don’t Talk About Bruno, became the highest-charting song from a Disney animated film in more than 26 years. The music magic was made by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The story features a charmed family in the mountain hamlet of Encanto. Miranda earned a nomination for original song for Dos Oruguitas, as opposed to the tune that made all the fuss.
FLEE
Three nominations. Hulu.
With the exception of live-action archival footage, this grand jury prize winner at Sundance is entirely animated. It’s the story of Amin, a pseudonym for a refugee boy who filmmaker Jonas Poher Rasmussen befriended in his sleepy Danish town when he himself was 15. Amin didn’t talk about his past in Afghanistan or his family when they were kids. It took Amin some 20 years to open up to his friend. Nominations include both best animated feature film and best documentary.
LICORICE PIZZA
Three nominations. Digital rental.
The 1970s-set romp in director Paul Thomas Anderson’s sunny Southern California is available for a price on Amazon Prime Video, the iTunes store, Google Play and Vudu.
Anderson earned a director nod and the film was nominated for best picture. It’s a charmingly loose love letter to the San Fernando Valley of Anderson’s youth.
THE LOST DAUGHTER
Three nominations. Netflix.
Starring Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley and Dakota Johnson, its nominations include nods for Colman and Buckley.
The adaptation of an Elena Ferrante novel of the same name is a psychological drama that has Colman and Buckley in the same role as young and older versions of the sad and frustrated translator Leda Caruso, set on holiday in Greece.
NO TIME TO DIE
Three nominations. Digital rental.
The 25th film in the James Bond universe has Daniel Craig enjoying the good life in Jamaica after leaving active service, only to be sucked back in again by old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA. Available for a price on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Google Play, YouTube and more. Among its nominations is one for the title song, No Time To Die, with music and lyrics by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell.
THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH
Three nominations. Apple TV+.
Joel Coen directed, with Denzel Washington starring as a grey-haired Macbeth who knows in his aching bones that the witches’ prophecy has given him his last chance to be what he wants, King of Scotland. Washington’s turn at Shakespeare in this black-and-white version earned him a lead actor Oscar nod. Frances McDormand co-stars.
CRUELLA
Two nominations. Disney+.
This dog hater’s origin story has Emma Stone taking a turn as villainous Cruella. The story goes back to when she was known simply as Estella, played as a five-year-old by Billie Gadsdon. Nominations include one for makeup and hairstyling, two of the other stars.
THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE
Two nominations. HBO Max.
The rise-and-fall story of televangelist power couple Tammy Faye and Jim Bakker secured Jessica Chastain her third Oscar nomination. The film also received a nod for makeup and hairstyling – notable for the brash Tammy. Andrew Garfield plays Bakker.
PARALLEL MOTHERS
Two nominations. Digital rental.
Directed by Pedro Almodóvar and starring Penélope Cruz, the Spanish-language drama follows two women who gave birth on the same day at the same hospital. It’s simultaneously personal and political.
Oscar nominations include the fourth for Cruz, who has one Oscar already.
tick, tick … BOOM!
Two nominations. Netflix.
Andrew Garfield earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Jonathan Larson, who upended the theatre world as the creator of Rent. The adaption of an autobiographical musical by Larson, who died suddenly and young in 1996, was Lin-Manuel Miranda’s feature directorial debut and also earned a nod for film editing.
SPENCER
Best Actress nominee. Hulu.
Kristen Stewart’s unhinged Princess Diana earned her the nod after snubs from the British academy and the Screen Actors Guild. Director Pablo Larraín takes a tragic surreal approach in this biopic. Though reviews were mixed, some critics consider it an evocative and artful look at one of the most famous women to ever live.
SUMMER OF SOUL (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Best documentary nominee. Hulu.
Thanks to Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival has received its due. Held in Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park), the film includes performances at the New York festival by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, BB King, The 5th Dimension and more.
THE MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES
Animated feature nominee. Netflix.
The oddball Mitchell family must quell an uprising by the world’s electronic devices while on a road trip to drop off daughter Katie (voiced by Abbi Jacobson) for her first year of film school. Thank goodness for two friendly robots. The best animated feature nominee is directed by Mike Rianda, who made Gravity Falls.
LUCA
Best animated feature nominee. Disney+.
The Disney and Pixar coming-of-age story is about a boy and his summer on the Italian Riviera. Luca is voiced by Jacob Tremblay. He befriends another boy, Alberto, voiced by Jack Dylan Grazer. There’s lots of seaside fun, but the two share a menacing secret. Directed by Enrico Casarosa.
RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON
Best animated feature nominee. Disney+.
Take a trip to Kumandra, where an evil force destroyed the harmony between humans and dragons 500 years ago. The dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, that evil has returned and warrior Raya goes in search of a legendary last dragon to restore order once again.
Team Brunify was not only placed first at the LiveWIRE Hackathon but also won the Special Project Award by Progresif Sdn Bhd as the three-day competition concluded yesterday.
Brunify participated along with five other teams, Bangun, Studapp, Green Tech, SWO Tech and Gene Six selected for the Pitch Day.
The hackathon at the Banquet Hall of the Progresif headquarters building starting on Friday and concluded yesterday with the pitching event. Progresif and DARe (Darussalam Enterprise) supported the event.
Brunify walked home with the BND2,000 and BND1,500 cash prizes while second-placed Studapp won BND1,500 and third-prize winner SWO Tech received BND1,000.
The event’s goal was to encourage participants to collaborate and develop solutions with a focus on six core areas: environment (energy transition and waste management); agrotechnology; Digitalisation; Smart Manufacturing; edutainment (education and arts and culture); and entrepreneurship.
This year’s event drew 25 participants representing Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB), Politeknik Brunei (PB), Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali (UNISSA), and Institute of Brunei Technical Education (IBTE). They were expected to consider softer components such as reshaping business strategies and processes to derive the value of the Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0 prospects.
The LiveWIRE first place winners Brunify. PHOTO: LYNA MOHAMAD
The participants attended workshops by LiveWIRE Brunei counsellors prior to Pitch Day with the goal to provide the participants with skills and knowledge to be used during the weekend event.
The workshops covered core concepts and theories such as the business model canvas, financing, and pitching. A branding and marketing workshop was also included but conducted separately by a Progresif representative.
Industry experts from DARe, Progresif, and Mindtrex Academy were invited in addition to LiveWIRE Brunei counsellors to mentor participants and help further refine their ideas and validate their business proposals.
This gave them perspectives and second-hand experience, allowing them to learn, network, collaborate, and produce results as part of the process.
The pitches from each team was judged by experts based on feasibility, commercial value, team composition, innovation, financial prospects, and the business’ alignment to the six core areas.
The panel of judges were Communication and External Affairs Manager of Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd (BSP) Suriani binti Garip; Deputy CEO of Network Integrity Assurance Technologies Sdn Bhd (NiAT) Siti Nur Aazzah binti Pehin Dato Haji Abdul Aziz; Chief Finance Officer of Progresif Rashid Najeeb and Head of Product Innovation of Progresif Mohammad Haziq bin Haji Mohd Sarip.
Also present during the prize presentation were Corporate Manager of BSP Haji Jaafar bin Haji Bakar, and BSP In-Country Value Manager and Chairperson of Shell LiveWIRE Brunei Hajah Rosita binti Haji Hassan.
The top three winners were presented prizes by Suriani, Siti Nur Aazzah and Rashid while CEO of Progresif Hajah Nurul Haniah binti Haji Md Jaafar presented the Special Award prize.
By the end of the event, participants were expected to be equipped from the experience to generate business ideas and pursue business opportunities with further investment through LiveWIRE programmes such as LiveWIRE Top Ten Innovator and Business Awards.
BANDA, INDIA (AFP) – An all-women team of smartphone-toting, low-caste reporters who chronicle India’s hardscrabble heartland may give the cinema-mad country its first Oscar-winning film, after their own story became a critically lauded documentary.
The journalists of Khabar Lahariya (Waves of News) have built a huge following across Uttar Pradesh, a northern state with more people than Brazil, covering a beat that runs from cow thefts to sexual violence and corruption.
They have earned the respect of their village communities by covering local stories often overlooked by India’s established media outlets, but only after a relentless battle to be taken seriously by authorities – and even their own families.
“Just stepping outside the household was a big challenge… I had to fight many battles,” reporter Geeta Devi told AFP.
“Even my father was dead against me. He said, ‘You can’t do this work, this is not something that women are supposed to do.'”
As with her colleagues, Devi is a member of the Dalit community, the lowest rung in India’s rigid caste system and the victims of an entrenched culture of prejudice and humiliation.
In Banda, a riverside town a few hours’ drive from the Taj Mahal, Devi interviewed a woman rendered destitute after she was abandoned by her husband.
Senior journalist of ‘Khabar Lahariya’ (Waves of News) Geeta Devi interviews a woman who she says was abandoned by her husband, while reporting in Banda district, Uttar Pradesh state. PHOTO: AFP
But as word got around that a Khabar Lahariya reporter was nearby, others approached her to implore coverage of their own woes – municipal neglect leading to a lack of clean drinking water and dirty, overflowing drains.
Some women took her aside to privately share their stories as victims of sexual harassment and violence – issues often hushed up under the weight of small-town stigma.
Formal discrimination against Dalits was abolished a long time ago, but they are still often barred from entering temples or houses belonging to higher castes, and remain targets of violence.
As members of a marginalised community and women in the deeply patriarchal villages of India’s Hindi-speaking heartland, Khabar Lahariya’s correspondents have a unique insight into local affairs, and Devi said she is proud to be part of a team working with a “feminist lens”.
Their endeavours are the subject of Writing with Fire, an Oscar-nominated documentary that has taken the film festival circuit by storm and already won the Special Jury Award at Sundance.
The fly-on-the-wall narrative shows dedicated journalists preparing to transition from their legacy newspaper operations to digital production, unbowed by their encounters with dismissive police and fearsome local strongmen.
“It’s a very inspiring story. It’s a story about women who give hope,” the film’s director Rintu Thomas told AFP at an Academy Awards preview event in Los Angeles.
“I think that is very strong and powerful, especially in the world that we are in right now where there is so much mistrust of the media,” she added.
India is home to the world’s most prolific film industry and cinema holds a rarefied place in national culture, with stars enjoying almost divine status and people often queuing to watch the same movie multiple times.
But no Indian-produced film or documentary has ever won an Academy Award, despite locally shot foreign productions Gandhi and Slumdog Millionaire each winning Best Picture in years past. Parts of India have prospered in the three decades since market reforms brought a jolting end to decades of sclerotic, socialist-inspired central planning.
Khabar Lahariya works in areas left behind by the economic boom, where life has barely changed even as new wealth transforms the country’s urban landscape and culture.
The outlet’s managing editor Meera Devi said her work is driven by a passion for giving a voice to those left out of India’s success story.
“When I fight for the rights of the minorities, tribals and other marginalised sections of society – when these people get heard and get justice, I feel very good,” she said.
Born in a remote village and married at 14, Meera had to fight against the odds to get a college degree. The 35-year-old joined the media house in 2006, soon after it began publishing, initially working on stories of cattle theft and tragic family disputes before moving on to local politics.
Her work has sent crooks to jail and shamed officials into ordering the repair of rundown roads, as well as charting the rising tide of Hindu nationalism in the country’s rural hinterlands.
“The men here are not used to seeing powerful women, especially in a field like journalism. But we are changing that outlook,” she said.
“We have proven that if women are given the right opportunities, we can achieve anything.
Once you give women the freedom they deserve, you simply cannot stop them.”
