S63 Productions – Innovative | Interractive | Real

S63 Productions

Innovative | Interractive | Real

Featured
Daily Dose
About Us
Contact Us

Driven By Passion, Acting By Necessity.

This is why...

The basic pillars and principles of journalism dictate that we bring to the fore and remind the captains of industry or the movers, shakers, and decision makers the status, standards and living of society in order to ignite positive change.

Read More about us

Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
Youtube

Our Production Focus

Championing social change and goodwill through poignant accounts, cultivating conversations and challenging the status quo.

Covering
It all

Championing social change and goodwill through poignant accounts, cultivating conversations and challenging the status quo.

Play Video

Annotation 2020-06-02 182233

Beyond All Senses

Imagine working in the service industry without hearing your customers.

_

birds-nest-3404743_640

Disrupted Nest

A series showcasing the fate of our endangered animal and plant species.

_

Play Video

Annotation 2020-06-02 182233

Rabiul Quluub

"The Spring of Hearts," is an educative animated miniseries targeting children.

Play Video

Play Video

Video Of The Month

Over his 24 year-rule, the late President Daniel Arap Moi’s, Kenya’s second president, was responsible for the execution and subsequent cover-up of a number of massacres. Among them were the Bulla Karatasi Massacre in 1980, the Malka Mari Massacre in 1981, and the Lotirir Massacre in 1984.

VIEW MORE VIDEOS

From The Archives

All
Climate Change
Global Warming
Uncategorized
Wildlife

Annotation 2020-06-02 182233

Annotation 2020-06-02 182233

birds-nest-3404743_640

Annotation 2020-06-02 182233

leopard-2895448_640

browse the archives

africa-4612846_1920

—Pngtree—youtube subscribe button transparent_5370058

Stay in the loop

Subscribe to Studio63

Get all videos served HOT in your inbox. We shall not spam you.

Leave this field empty if you're human:

Our Partners

From Our Social Circles

Studio 63Follow

Studio 63 is an innovative media production platform with an ambition to empower and bring social impact awareness to society through impactful narratives.

Studio 63 @Studio63_ke·

South African #circumcision rituals,which used to happen every June and December have been called off, due to the pandemic.The ritual, known in local Xhosa language as "#Ukwaluko", the secretive rite of passage marks a boy's transition into adulthood.#s63 #COVID19 #SouthAfrica

Reply on Twitter 1294297152341106698 Retweet on Twitter 1294297152341106698 Like on Twitter 1294297152341106698 Twitter 1294297152341106698

Studio 63 @Studio63_ke·

Indian art teacher Sagar Kambli has created a congratulatory work of art for US Senator Kamala Harris, after she was picked as Joe Biden’s running mate for the 2020 US presidential election.#s63 #India #KamalaHarris #JoeBidenKamalaHarris #JoeBiden #Election2020 #US #Trump #art

Reply on Twitter 1294274233523208193 Retweet on Twitter 12942742335232081931 Like on Twitter 12942742335232081931 Twitter 1294274233523208193

Studio 63 @Studio63_ke·

Doctors in Sierra Leone are warning patients against avoiding #hospitals for fear of contracting #COVID19,as Child #malaria spikes in the country.#Doctors Without Borders,which runs a free #hospital in #Hangha,said it has received 40 percent fewer #patients since late March.#s63

Reply on Twitter 1294259415445573633 Retweet on Twitter 12942594154455736332 Like on Twitter 12942594154455736334 Twitter 1294259415445573633

studio63_ke

Indian art teacher Sagar Kambli has created a cong

Indian art teacher Sagar Kambli has created a congratulatory work of art for US Senator Kamala Harris, after she was picked as Joe Biden’s running mate for the 2020 US presidential election.

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris launched their joint White House bid on Wednesday, with the newly-minted vice presidential nominee saying Americans are "crying out for leadership" to overcome the triple crisis of a pandemic, racial injustice and a ravaged economy.

Making their first appearance as running mates, before a small crowd of reporters and staffers at a Delaware high school closed to the public due to coronavirus concerns, the Democratic duo vowed to end Donald Trump's presidency and, in Biden's words, "rebuild this country."

"Everything we care about," said Harris. "It's all on the line."

A formidable 55-year-old US senator from California and a daughter of immigrants, Harris has already made history as the first woman of color tapped for a major party presidential ticket.

Describing a country at the crossroads, she left little doubt of her determination to go on the attack, saying Trump "just isn't up for the job" and has left the nation "in tatters."

"America is crying out for leadership, yet we have a president who cares more about himself than the people who elected him," said Harris.

The daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants to the United States sought to tap into the nationwide upheaval over police violence and racial disparities.

"We're experiencing a moral reckoning with racism and systemic injustice that has brought a new coalition of conscience to the streets of our country demanding change," she said.

Joe Biden said that Harris' story as the child of immigrants and a woman of color who fought her way to the top ranks of US legal and political circles would inspire the country.#s63

South African circumcision rituals, which used to

South African circumcision rituals, which used to happen every June and December have been called off, due to the pandemic.

The ritual, known in local Xhosa language as "Ukwaluko", the secretive rite of passage marks a boy's transition into adulthood.

The initiates, whose ages range between 15 and 17-years-old spend at least three weeks secluded in the bush, where they are circumcised and taught to be responsible men.

South African 17-year-old Sinoyolo was looking forward to becoming a "man" this year.

His uncle had made arrangements for him to travel to the mountains overlooking the South African city of Port Elizabeth in December for his initiation.

But this year, for the first time in living memory, the ritual has been called off because of the coronavirus.

"If we send them there and find that one boy is positive (for the virus), it means all 20 of them will be infected," said Afra Msutu, a Xhosa chief.

"When you go to the mountains and get circumcised, for the first seven days you are very vulnerable," he added, noting that initiates stay in close quarters with access only to a traditional doctor.

Most of the fatalities occur at the hands of unqualified organizers who fail to provide proper care, leading to dehydration and infection.

Sinoyolo, whose full name has been withheld to protect his identity, admitted to the misgivings he had felt over his Ukwaluko.

"I was a little bit scared because most of the guys who went to the mountain said it was very hard there," Sinoyolo told AFP in the Port Elizabeth township of Kwazakhele.

The Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa suspended June initiations in April, around one month after the country went into lockdown.

Msutu said that "unprecedented" decision was later extended to the whole year after it became clear the pandemic would last months.

South Africa has the world's fifth highest number of coronavirus infections, with more than 568,000 confirmed cases.#s63

A senior leader of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood

A senior leader of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood died on Thursday in an Egyptian prison where he was serving multiple sentences including terror-related charges, his lawyer said.

Essam Al-Erian, 66, was arrested in 2013 following the army’s ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi on the back of mass protests against his brief rule.

“The authorities notified me of his death, and I informed his family to arrange for receiving his body (for burial),” lawyer Abdelmoneim Abdelmaqsood told AFP.

“It was a natural death,” he added.

Egyptian media reported that Erian died of a heart attack, following an argument with a fellow inmate.

But Human Rights Watch deputy regional director Joe Stork said the responsibility for Erian’s death rests “entirely” with the Egyptian authorities.

He called on Cairo to launch an “effective” investigation into the death.

Erian was the vice president of the Brotherhood’s political wing, the now-dissolved Freedom and Justice party.

He was sentenced in multiple cases on charges including, incitement to violence, murder and espionage.

According to Abdelmaqsood, the cases brought against Erian carried sentences amounting to “a total of 150 years” in prison.

Since Morsi’s overthrow, the authorities have cracked down on the Muslim Brotherhood’s rank and file, jailing thousands of members and supporters.

They have also blacklisted the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.

But the Islamist group has consistently denied any link to violence.

Authorities placed Erian on their terror blacklist, a designation which has allowed them to freeze his assets.

Morsi himself died in custody in June 2019, after failing ill during a court hearing.

Morsi’s rule was marked by deep divisions in Egyptian society, a crippling economic crisis and often-deadly opposition protests.#s63

Doctors in a rural Sierra Leone hospital may be ac

Doctors in a rural Sierra Leone hospital may be accustomed to treating severely ill infants, but they recently admitted one of the worst cases they had ever seen.

An 18-month-old with pallid skin and thinning hair arrived on the wards in the eastern town of Hangha in July, suffering from an alarming combination of pneumonia, diarrhea and malaria.

Even in a country with one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world, the toddler’s case was abnormally critical.

“She couldn’t sit and stand, she was too weak,” said Adama Ansumana, holding her daughter on her lap in the intensive care unit.

The girl recovered, but doctors are warning that extreme cases such as hers are growing more common as patients avoid hospitals for fear of contracting COVID-19.

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF), which runs the free hospital in Hangha, near the city of Kenema, says it has received 40 percent fewer patients since late March.

The dangers of avoiding healthcare are especially acute for children during the ongoing rainy season, when malaria cases spike.

“We are facing a malaria pandemic, with severe malnutrition of most of the children that arrive at the hospital,” said Laure Joachim, a pediatrician.

The number of children affected nationwide is unclear, but is likely high.

Health ministry records seen by AFP show that malaria cases usually account for about a quarter of hospital referrals in the West African state. The disease also kills thousands every year.

This year, NGOs and the government have to surmount a creaking health system and pervasive coronavirus misinformation to provide treatment.

Sierra Leone, though rich in diamonds, is one of the world’s poorest countries.

It is still recovering nearly two decades after the end of civil war which claimed some 120,00 lives, and from the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak which killed around 4,000 people in the country.#s63

Afghan authorities said they had started to releas

Tel Aviv City Hall lit up with the flags of the Un

Tel Aviv City Hall lit up with the flags of the United Arab Emirates and Israel, after the two states agreed to normalize ties in a landmark US-brokered deal on Thursday, only the third such accord the Jewish state has struck with an Arab nation, in which it pledged to suspend annexation of Palestinian lands.

The bombshell news was broken by US President Donald Trump, in a tweet hailing a "Huge breakthrough" and a "Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends.”

Trump said leaders from both nations would sign the deal at the White House in roughly three weeks, evoking memories of previous Middle East peace signings in Washington.

Normalizing diplomatic ties between Israel and Washington’s Middle East allies has been Central to Trump’s regional strategy to contain Iran, an arch foe of both US and Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the agreement as a "historic one" which would launch a "new era" for the Arab world and Israel.

However, Palestinians were quick to strongly reject the deal, calling it a "betrayal" of their cause, including their claim to Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Palestinians also announced they were withdrawing their ambassador from the Emirates, and demanded an emergency Arab League meeting.

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which runs the coastal Gaza Strip, quickly said the agreement "does not serve the Palestinian cause.”

In a tweet, UAE leader Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan stressed that "during a call with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, an agreement was reached to stop further Israeli annexation of Palestinian territories."

However, Netanyahu said shortly afterwards in a televised address that he had only agreed to delay, not cancel, the annexations, the plans remained "on the table" and that he would "never give up our rights to our land.” #s63

Mesut Ozil insists he is the only person who will

Mesut Ozil insists he is the only person who will decide when he leaves Arsenal after the German star was frozen out by Gunners boss Mikel Arteta.

Ozil has not played for Arsenal since the coronavirus hiatus amid reports the club are keen to get his huge salary off the wage bill.

The 31-year-old earns a reported £350,000-per-week ($458,000), but has rarely provided good value since his 2013 move from Real Madrid.

Ozil was absent as Arsenal beat Chelsea in the FA Cup final on August 1, but he will not allow the club to force him out before his contract expires in June 2021.

Holding out hope of winning back his place next season, Ozil told the Athletic, “Things have been difficult but I love Arsenal. I'll decide when I go, not other people.”

"I'll give everything I have for this club. Situations like these will never break me, they only make me stronger.”

Ozil fell out of favour with Arteta's predecessor Unai Emery, but started all 10 of Arsenal's Premier League games after the former Gunners midfielder took charge in December.

However, he has not featured in their past 13 matches in all competitions, with Arteta saying his exile was down to "football reasons.”

Arteta and many Arsenal players accepted a 12.5 percent pay cut in April as a result of the financial fall-out from the coronavirus.

But Ozil did not vote for the cut.

Ozil fears there is now an agenda against him that will make the rest of his time at Arsenal uncomfortable.

"I guess that's because it is me and people have been trying for two years to destroy me, to make me unhappy, to push an agenda they hope will turn the supporters against me and pain a picture that is not true," he said.#s63

A shallow 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck southeas

A shallow 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck southeast of the Tanzanian financial centre of Dar es Salaam late Wednesday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The offshore quake struck at a depth of 15.5 kilometres (9.6 miles) just after 8 pm (1700 GMT) local time. The epicentre was 66 kilometres southeast of Vikindu, USGS said.

Vikindu is just outside Dar es Salaam.
There were no immediate reports of damage, but the tremor was felt as far away as Nairobi in neighbouring Kenya.

Deep quakes tend to cause less shaking than shallower ones, which have far more potential for destruction.

Quakes are rare in East Africa.

Earthquakes along the coast of Tanzania are relatively rare, however, Wednesday’s tremor was the strongest in decades.

The seismic activity there still results from the tectonic processes along the Eastern African Rift Valley, although it runs further inland.#s63

Singapore began destroying nine tonnes of seized I

Singapore began destroying nine tonnes of seized Ivory on Tuesday, the largest action taken globally in recent years, including contraband tusks which came from more than 300 African elephants.

The destruction by an industrial rock crusher was held on the eve of World Elephant Day, and aims to prevent the items from re-entering the market and disrupt the global supply chain of illegally traded ivory, Singapore’s National Parks Board said.

A spokeswoman for the board told AFP it would take three to five days for all of the ivory---seized between 2014 and 2019---to be crushed, after which the fragments will be incinerated.

“This ivory crushing event, the largest globally in recent years, demonstrates Singapore’s strong determination and commitment to combat the illegal trade on wildlife,” the board said in a statement.

The items include 8.8 tonnes of ivory seized last year in Singapore’s biggest haul worth Sg$17.6 million (US$13 million), it said.

Singapore also launched a Centre for Wildlife Forensics to “identify and analyze specimens involved in the illegal wildlife trade.”

By using DNA analysis and other methods to study the specimens, the center can determine where the items were poached from, a useful tool in the fight against illegal wildlife trade.

Elephant ivory is coveted because it can be fashioned into items like combs, pendants and other exotic jewellery.

The global trade in elephant ivory, with rare exceptions, has been outlawed since 1989 after the population of the African animals dropped from millions in the mid-20th century to about 600,000 by the end of the 1980s.#s63

Belgian tycoon George Forrest has sold his majorit

Belgian tycoon George Forrest has sold his majority stake in the Commercial Bank of The Congo (BCDC) to Kenya's Equity Group Holdings, the Kenyan firm announced on Wednesday.

The Forrest group has operated in the vast central African country, mainly in the southeastern mining region, since 1922 when it was a Belgian colony.

It bought two-thirds of BCDC's equity in 2009, a century after it was set up in the mineral-rich country.

Today the BCDC is the DR Congo's second largest private bank, and Equity's statement quoted Forrest as saying he hoped it would become the country's biggest.

Equity Group Holding, which has been present in DR Congo since 2005, acquired the 66.53 percent stake in the bank for $95 million, making it the second largest commercial Bank in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Equity had earlier on acquired ProCredit, a German bank, now Equity Bank Congo.

In a statement Equity Group CEO James Mwangi said the merger of the two entities will produce a subsidiary, which will contribute more than 20 per cent of the Group’s total balance sheet.

Equity’s acquisition comes as the country's leading private bank, Rawbank, is implicated in a vast anti-corruption investigation.

It is suspected of involvement in the embezzlement of public funds earmarked for major projects launched by President Felix Tshisekedi soon after he took office early last year.

Forrest, 79, is among the wealthiest business leaders in French-speaking Africa.#s63

Barlamaanka Soomaaliya ayaa Sabtigii la soo dhaafe

Barlamaanka Soomaaliya ayaa Sabtigii la soo dhaafey caalamka ka yaabiyeen kadib markii ay ku badeleen sharci in mudo ah laga soo shaqeeynaayey oo ku saabsanaa habka haweenka looga badbaadin lahaa rabshadaha mid ogolaanaayo guurka gabdhaha da’ada yar iyo midka khasabka ah.

Guurka gabdhaha da’ada yar ayaa ah mid si weeyn looga dhaqmo dalka Soomaaliya iyadoo nambarada Qaramada midoobay ay tusinaayaan 45% oo haweenka Soomaaliyeed in la guuriyo ayaga oo aan gaarin da’ada 18 sano, halka 98% oo ka mid ah haweenka Soomaaliyeed ay soo mareen gudiinta fircooniga.

Golaha wasiirada ee Soomaaliya ayaa sanadkii 2018-kii ansaxiyey sharciga Dembiyada Galmada oo loogu talagalay in lagu ciqaabo noocyo badan oo ah xadgudubyada ku saleysan jinsiga oo ay ku jiraan kufsiga, guurka caruurta iyo ka ganacsiga galmada.

Sharcigaan ayaa in mudo labo sano ah horyaaley barlamaanka balse, maalintii Sabtigii ayaa sharci lid ku ah sharcigaan oo fasaxaayo guurka gabdhaha da’ada yar la horkeenay golaha shacabka taasi oo ka dhex dhalisay buuq iyo muran dalka gudahiisa iyo dibaddiisaba.

“Sharcigaan wuxuu ku saabsan yahay wada-hadal. Xildhibaan kastaa wuxuu leeyahay ra'yi isaga u gooni ah. Waxaan dooneynaa in laga dodo kadib la ansaxiyo,”ayuu yiri Cabdiwali Sheekh Ibraahim, oo ah ku xigeenka afhayeenka baarlamaanka aqalka hoose, mar uu warbaahinta la hadlay.

Cabdiweli kama uusan hadlin sababta loo soo diyaariyey sharcigaan cusub, laakiin wuxuu sheegay inay tahay tallaabo ay qaaday wasaaradaha caddaaladda, haweenka iyo horumarka aadanaha iyadoo lala tashanayo culimada Islaamka.

Ari Gaitanis, af hayeenka howlgalka qaramada midoobay ee Soomaaliya (UNSOM), ayaa ku tilmaamay sharcigaan cusub "talaabo gadaal u celinaayo" xuquuqda haweenka iyo gabdhaha Soomaaliyeed. UNSOM ayaa ugu baaqday in barlamaanka uusan ansaxinin sharcigaan.

Deeq bixiyeyaasha caalamiga ah ee Soomaaliya ayaa sidoo kale walaac ka muujiyay sharcigaan cusub. Ben Fender, danjiraha Ingriiska ee Soomaaliya, ayaa bartiisa twitterka ku soo qoray, "Tani waa fursad weyn oo ay xildhibaanada siineeyso inay go'aan ka gaaraan mustaqbalka Soomaaliya."#s63

In excerpts from a new book published in The Times

In excerpts from a new book published in The Times on Saturday, Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle blamed "viper" courtiers for widening their rift with the royal family.

The new biography, “Finding Freedom: Harry And Meghan And The Making Of A Modern Royal Family”, which was written by journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand was officially released in Britain and the United States bookshops on August 11.

The book sheds light on the couple's acrimonious split with the royal family.

The Duke, 35, and the Duchess of Sussex, 39, said they did not contribute to the book, which much of its content was provided by friends of the couple.

The book, serialized in The Times, claims that Prince Harry felt "unprotected" by his family, laying bare his split from brother Prince William and his wife the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton.

According to the book, Kate even refused to make eye contact with her sister-in-law at their final engagement in March.

The book apparently quotes Prince Harry referring to senior courtiers as "vipers" who felt the global popularity of the couple was overshadowing the family and "needed to be reined in", according to extracts.

The book, suggested Prince Harry, was the driving force behind the couple's move away from the family, with Meghan telling her husband that she "gave up my entire life for this family.”

The couple, who now live in Los Angeles, were in the headlines this week for taking legal action against one or more paparazzi whom they accuse of taking pictures of their son Archie without permission.

Pressure from tabloids dogged Prince Harry throughout his life, and he blames them for the death of his mother Princess Diana.

Meghan, told a friend that tabloid criticism was like "death by a thousand cuts", according to the new book.

The authors are sympathetic to the couple, and say the book will "correct the record" on the acrimonious split.#s63

Sri Lanka’s coronavirus lockdown has helped redu

Sri Lanka’s coronavirus lockdown has helped reduce the death toll from clashes between elephants and humans, conservationists said.

A record of 405 elephants were killed by humans in the country last year, up from about 360 in 2018. A total of 121 people were killed by elephants, up from 96 the year before, according to government data.

Most of the killed elephants are shot dead or poisoned by farmers trying to keep them off their land.

The beasts are considered sacred in the majority-Buddhist island and are protected, but prosecutions are rare.

Most of the humans are killed by elephants who have seen their habitat drastically reduced, rampaging in villages looking for food.

Sumith Pilapitiya, a conservationist and former director-general of the government’s wildlife department, estimated the number of elephant deaths decreased by 40 percent during the coronavirus lockdown, which started in March and officially ended in June.

Pilapitiya told AFP, “The Asian elephant is classified as ‘endangered’ so we cannot afford to lose elephants at that rate.”

He expressed hope that a “significant reduction” during the shutdown---which included nationwide stay-at-home orders, with people only allowed out to buy essentials---would bring down the overall toll for the year.

Sri Lanka’s elephant population declined to about 7,000, according to the latest census, down from 12,000 in the early 1990s.#s63

Google added an earthquake alert system in Califor

Google added an earthquake alert system in California on Tuesday, saying it is working on letting Android-powered smartphones double as tremor detectors.

Android phones will receive warnings triggered by a “ShakesAlert” earthquake early-warning system implemented on the West Coast by the US Geological Survey and partners.

ShakeAlert uses signals from hundreds of seismometers across the state to trigger warning messages that “an earthquake has begun and shaking is imminent,” according to the system’s website.

“We saw an opportunity to use Android to provide people with timely, helpful earthquake information when they search, as well as a few seconds warning to get themselves and their loved ones to safety if needed,” principal software engineer Marc Stogaitis said in a blog post.

People anywhere with smartphones powered by Google’s Android operating software, were also invited to let handsets be part of a crowd-sourced network for detecting earthquakes.

Smartphones are typically equipped with tiny accelerometers which sense movement and can catch shaking caused by earthquakes, according to Stogaitis.

Android phones which detect what might be earthquake activity can automatically send a signal to a data center, where computers quickly interpret motion and location data in aggregate to determine whether a quake is happening, according to Google.

Earthquake alerts are starting in California because the state has an extensive seismometer network in place. The alerts are expected to spread to other locations during the coming year as the phone-based detection network is established.#s63

On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin annou

On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the Health Ministry has given regulatory approval for the world's first COVID-19 vaccine, after less than two months of human trials.

"This morning, for the first time in the world, a vaccine against the new coronavirus was registered" in Russia, Putin said during a televised video conference call with government ministers.

Putin added that the vaccine, developed by Moscow's Gamaleya Institute in coordination with Russian defense ministry, offers “sustainable immunity" against the coronavirus and that one of his daughters has been inoculated.

"One of my daughters got vaccinated, so in this sense, she took part in the testing," Putin said, adding that she had a slight temperature after a second injection and "that's all".

He however didn't specify which of his two daughters, received the vaccine.

Russia’s Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said that clinical trials involving several thousand participants would continue, with medical workers, teachers and other risk groups being given the first priority.

Putin’s announcement came after scientists in the West raised concerns about the speed of development of Russian vaccines, suggesting that researchers might be cutting corners after coming under pressure from authorities to deliver.

Scientists in both Russia and abroad have questioned Moscow's decision to register the vaccine before Phase 3 trials, which normally lasts for months and involves thousands of people.

Vaccines typically take several years to test and produce on a large scale, but Putin emphasized that the vaccine underwent the necessary trials and the vaccination will be voluntary.

According to officials, a large-scale production of the vaccine will begin in September, with mass vaccinations set to start as early as October.#s63

Sudan has been a top producer of peanuts for so lo

Sudan has been a top producer of peanuts for so long that the nutritious variety is called the "Sudani" but a government export ban has left traders reeling.

Rimaz Ahmed, commercial director of Abnaa Sayed Elobeid, one of Sudan's major agricultural export companies, was stunned by the sudden decision of the trade ministry to ban the export of raw peanuts.

The government says it wants Sudan to process the nuts inside the country to earn more money. The two main customers for Sudan's peanuts were China and Indonesia.

The export ban was a shock for many in the African nation, which, according to the UN, is the fifth largest peanut producer, with 14 percent of world production.

Protein-rich peanuts, which are also called groundnuts, provide rural employment and much needed foreign exchange.

Before the trade ban, peanuts were Sudan's fifth biggest international earner after gold, sesame oil and livestock.

For Sudan, peanuts are a flagship product, like another of its major exports, gum arabic.

"It is as if France banned the export of wine overnight, or if Italy stopped selling its spaghetti abroad," Ahmed said.

Sudan produced 1.5 million tonnes in 2019, worth 205 million dollars, according to central bank figures, up from 59 million dollars earned in 2018.

Trade Minister Madani Abbas Madani defended halting exports "to maximise the market value of peanuts and the added value of Sudanese products, in light of climate change which affects the quality" of the product.

For the government, the hope is that Sudan can earn more money through selling products from processed peanuts such as oil or butter.#s63

An Upper Islamic Sharia court in northern Nigeria

An Upper Islamic Sharia court in northern Nigeria sentenced a singer to death on Moday, for committing blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed, judicial officials said.

The court in the city of Kano ordered 22-year-old Yahaya Aminu Sharif to die by hanging for derogatory expressions against the Prophet in one of his songs.

Sharia courts in majority Muslim northern Nigeria, handed down death sentences for adultery, murder and homosexuality before but to date no executions have been carried out.

"The court handed down the death sentence as enshrined in Islamic laws based on irrefutable evidence and the convict's admission of guilt," spokesman for the Kano region justice ministry, Baba-Jibo Ibrahim said.

Sharif was accused of blaspheming the Prophet in a song he shared on social media in March, which caused riots in the city.

Mobs burnt the singer's family home and took to the streets demanding his prosecution.

Ibrahim said Sharif had legal representation during the four-month trial, which was held behind closed doors for security reasons.

Sharif, a Muslim singer, belongs to a separate branch of Tijaniyya Sufi order, whose beliefs are considered heretical because of their different interpretation of some basic Islamic principles.

His conviction is the second death sentence to be passed for blasphemy since around a dozen states in the north reintroduced a stricter version of Sharia law in early 2000s, where Sharia courts run parallel to state and federal justice system.

On Monday, the same court sentenced a 13-year-old boy, Umar Farouk, to 10 years in prison with menial labor for blasphemy, according to judicial official Ibrahim said.

Farouk was found guilty of using foul language against God during an argument with a friend.

"The court considered the boy's age as a minor and sentenced him to 10-year jail term as a penitence and to make him reform," said Ibrahim.

Both convicts have one month to appeal the sentences.#s63

Mexican journalist Julio Cesar Zubillaga, shudders

Mexican journalist Julio Cesar Zubillaga, shudders when his young daughter asks him why "they" want to kill him.

He spoke up after a fellow reporter's murder and quickly felt the consequences, death threats and a gun attack on the office where his paper is printed.

He describes southern Mexico's status as among one of the most dangerous regions in the world for journalists.

Zubillaga helped prepare the corpse of Pablo Morrugares, a journalist with digital newspaper PM Noticias, after gunmen killed both him and the policeman guarding him in a restaurant in Iguala in southern Guerrero state.

"It was a brutal assassination. I saw how Pablo looked. I had to dress him for those who wanted to come and see him off, but fewer than four colleagues came. Everyone is afraid. We live in terror," he told AFP.

The following day, Zubillaga received threats on social media and on Tuesday gunmen opened fire on the offices of the Diario de Iguala, where his newspaper is printed.

"At least 10 journalists from Iguala have received death threats" from criminal groups, said Zubillaga, who has pleaded with the leftist government of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to provide protection.

Three other journalists have been murdered in Mexico this year, Jorge Armenta, Victor Alvarez and Maria Elena Ferral.

To protect himself, the 51-year-old editor rarely stays long at the same address and regularly changes his route to work.

"The most painful part for me is to get home and have my youngest daughter ask me: 'Papa, why do they want to kill you? How long are you going to live?'" Zubillaga said.

"Many don't want to speak, let alone publish," said another journalist, speaking anonymously after having had to leave the city because his life was at risk. "You're in the crossfire."

"One group threatens you for publishing this or that information, and another (its rival) for not publishing it." The journalist said.

Since 2000, more than a hundred Mexican journalists have been killed and 92 percent of the cases remain unsolved, according to press groups.#s63

Big Tech firms delivered robust results on Thursda

Big Tech firms delivered robust results on Thursday, underscoring growing consumer reliance on giants like Amazon during the pandemic as well as their extraordinary economic power, the subject of a heated US congressional hearing a day earlier.

The results from Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google parent Alphabet, ironically the same firms whose chief executives were in the spotlight at an antitrust hearing in Congress this week, were largely better than expected.

The reports illustrated the increasing importance of social networks, digital content and connected devices which have been seen as a lifeline to pandemic-hit consumers.

Apple profits rose eight percent to $11.2 billion and revenues were up 11 percent to $59.7 billion in the three months ending June 27.

The California tech giant saw a modest increase in iPhone sales, with more significant rise for accessories and services such as its apps and digital content.

"In uncertain times, this performance is a testament to the important role our products play in our customers' lives and to Apple's relentless innovation," chief executive Tim Cook said.

Analyst Daniel Ives at Wedbush Securities said the results show momentum for Apple as it readies its new iPhone 12.

"The stage is setting up for a massive pent up iPhone 12 cycle heading into the fall," Ives said in a research note.
Amazon meanwhile said profits nearly doubled to $5.2 billion on sales that climbed 40 percent to $88.9 billion.

"This was another highly unusual quarter, and I couldn't be more proud of and grateful to our employees around the globe," said Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos.

Amid rising sales in its grocery, video and cloud computing operations, Amazon has told investors it expects to spend all its profits this year on costs related to keeping employees and customers safe during the pandemic.#s63

Kenyan Olympic gold medalist and world 3000m steep

Kenyan Olympic gold medalist and world 3000m steeplechase champion Conseslus Kipruto, has been ruled out of next week's season opening Diamond League in Monaco, after testing positive for coronavirus.

Kipruto, 25, was among 11 elite Kenyan athletes who were granted visas to compete in the August 14 race.

However, after undergoing a mandatory COVID-19 screening at a hospital in Eldoret on Friday, Kipruto’s test came back positive.

"It is unfortunate that the test came back positive, and therefore I can't be part of the team," Kipruto said.

Adding, "it's very disappointing that having trained so hard through this pandemic induced period, I may not be able to compete this year. But my health is more important."

The athlete however said he had no symptoms and was awaiting further advice from his doctors.

Kenya’s squad travelling to the competition include, the women's 3000m steeplechase record holder Beatrice Chepkoech, world 1500m champion Timothy Cheruiyot and Hellen Obiri, the two-time women's 5000m champion.#s63

Load More… Follow on Instagram

S63 Productions

Innovative | Interractive | Real

+254 769 769 975

info@s63productions.com

Merchant Square, Riverside Drive, Block A, 3rd Floor

© 2020 Studio 63 Productions | Site by Brainverse Technologies

Shopping Basket