Saying Goodbye to Pink October - Awareness March Against Breast Cancer. By Sofonie Dala, Angola

 Part 1 

Our motto is: "Lower cancer and never cancer"

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. 

A long march, praises and fervent prayers marked the last Sunday of October.

This is how we are ending the Pink October - fighting breast cancer together with the Seventh-day Adventist Church's Women's Ministry. 

On this day the Angolan population woke up surprised by our movement on the road.

We went to the road with a long march where dozens of women and girls including some male representatives took part in this initiative.

Every year thousands of women become fatal victims of breast cancer. We are losing our families, friends, sisters and neighbors due to this malignant tumor.

Especially the poorer women who only discover the disease in the final stage due to the lack of financial resources to consult a good hospital with good specialists who can diagnose the disease on time.

We mobilized hundreds or even thousands of people who came across us on the street.

Breast cancer is a very serious disease that needs to be fought. We encourage women to regularly consult a doctor for the early diagnosis of cancer. Reasons why we are here in the fight against breast cancer.

Interview with the district director of the Ministry of Women.

Good morning sister!

Please introduce yourself and tell us a little about this program.

Good morning my dear sister!

My name is Ana Victorino Paulino, director of the Women's Ministry of the popular neighborhood district!

As you can see here all women in uniform, we organized this march to raise awareness about breast cancer and uterine cancer. We marched from the 1st of May region to the Santa Ana de Luanda wake.

One of the main reasons for this march is to be able to rescue many women who are being affected and oppressed by breast cancer and cannot get rid of them alone.

When they see the population or a group of women stunned, they will feel motivated to fight.

We have prepared special messages for many women to wake up and do the consultation and control of breast or uterine cancer. We are in the church not only to worship God but also to be able to rescue souls, doing social work and also working with the state.

This is the reason for the participation of these women to be able to manifest and fight cancer.

Our motto is: "Lower cancer and never cancer".

We know that with divine power we will overcome cancer. The local police support us and accompany us to the point of arrival.

We managed to reach a good part of the population of Luanda and we saw the satisfaction on the faces of many who appreciated us along the way.

So thank you very much, we have the feeling of mission accomplished.

And which church organized it?

This was a particular initiative of one of the districts of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (District Popular Neighborhood).

October 30th: Never cancer, and that's how we ended the month.

OK thank you.

Thank you, kisses.

A classic picture of Peau d'orange. One of the signs of breast cancer.

Breast skin VS Orange skin

In Africa, breast cancer kills more women over age 40 than HIV/AIDS & Malaria Combined. Unfortunately, there is no basic awareness about breast cancer in Africa.

The sequel follows...

Don't miss the next chapter.

Kenya to renegotiate railway loan deal with China

 Kenya wants to renegotiate a multibillion-dollar loan from China that was used to build a major railway.

Transport Minister Kipchumba Murkomen, told lawmakers that Kenya is up to date on its payments but cannot continue with the current 20-year schedule.

Answering questions from a parliamentary committee, Murkomen said the country will have to ask for an extended period to pay, especially in regard to the loans used to build what is known as the Standard Gauge Railway.

Kenya borrowed U.S.$5 billion to build the railway line from the port of Mombasa to the city of Naivasha, west of Nairobi.

The railway was opened for business in 2017 and the government forced businesses to transport goods by rail to help repay the loan.

Kenya’s previous government is accused of excessive borrowing to finance development projects, which has also increased corruption. China also financed a 27-kilometre expressway in Nairobi, costing U.S.$734 million.

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Iran admits for the first time to sending drones to Russia

 But Teheran claims drones were sent well before the war began

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister on Saturday acknowledged for the first time that his country has supplied Russia with drones, insisting the transfer came before Moscow’s war on Ukraine that has seen the Iranian-made drones divebombing Kyiv.

The comments by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian come after months of confusing messaging from Iran about the weapons shipment, as Russia sends the drones slamming into Ukrainian energy infrastructure and civilian targets.

“We gave a limited number of drones to Russia months before the Ukraine war,” Amirabdollahian told reporters after a meeting in Tehran.

Previously, Iranian officials had denied arming Russia in its war on Ukraine. Just earlier this week, Iran’s Ambassador to the U.N. Amir Saeid Iravani called the allegations “totally unfounded” and reiterated Iran’s position of neutrality in the war. The U.S. and its Western allies on the Security Council have called on Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to investigate if Russia has used Iranian drones to attack civilians in Ukraine.

Even so, Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has vaguely boasted of providing drones to the world’s top powers. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has extolled the efficacy of the drones and mocked Western hand-wringing over their danger. During state-backed demonstrations to mark the 1979 U.S. Embassy takeover on Friday, crowds waved placards of the triangle-shaped drones as a point of national pride.

As he acknowledged the shipment, Amirabdollahian claimed on Saturday that Iran was oblivious to the use of its drones in Ukraine. He said Iran remained committed to stopping the conflict.

“If (Ukraine) has any documents in their possession that Russia used Iranian drones in Ukraine, they should provide them to us,” he said. “If it is proven to us that Russia used Iranian drones in the war against Ukraine, we will not be indifferent to this issue.”

Source: AP News

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Somalia, Egypt leaders discuss war on Al-Shabaab

ALGIERS – The president of Somalia Hassan Sheikh held a meeting with his Egypt counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the sidelines of a 2-day Arab Leagues forum in Algeria.

The presidency said both the head of the state briefed el-Sisi on the ongoing military operations against Al-Shabaab in central Somalia and the government’s stabilization plans.

The talks also highlighted the drought and climate change impact in Somalia, where half of the population [8 million] is facing hunger and risk famine by the end of this year.

For his part, el-Sisi welcomed the Somali government’s gains against Al-Shabaab and pledged support to win the war against the Al-Qaeda-linked militant group.

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The Global Fund for Widows 14th Annual Gala in NYC Nov 10

 The Global Fund for Widows 14th Annual Gala on Thursday, November 10, 2022, in New York City at the Central Park Boathouse. We have the privilege of honoring several prominent Nigerians, including First Lady Madam Ajoke Muhammed, Former First Lady of Nigeria.

This year, our distinguished honorees include:

DISTINGUISHED WIDOW OF THE YEAR

First Lady Madam Ajoke Muhammed, Former First Lady of Nigeria

ADVOCATE OF YEAR

Madam Aisha Muhammed Oyebode, Former First Daughter of Nigeria and widow advocate

african leadership Award

Mr. Lekan Akinyanmi, CEO, Lekoil Nigeria Limited & Chairman, Cambridge Growth Partners

SPECIAL GUEST & MASTER OF CEREMONIES

Ms. Zain Asher, CNN International Anchor

Empowering communities through access and inclusion aligns well with GFW’s core focus of financial inclusion and skills-building. We have proven that once a widow is financially stabilized through our innovation in financial inclusion – the WISALA (Widows Savings and Loan Association), her first expenditures relate to the education, safety, and health of her children and herself. The WISALA is a micro-bank created to address the funding gaps of traditional microfinance that exclude widows due to the requirements for furnishing of collateral and male co-signatories, both of which a widow has lost. To date, GFW has launched over 120 WISALA micro-banks throughout Africa, empowering over 21,000 widows and sustaining over 54,000 of their children.

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Nigeria’s famous “Pilot Sisters” to run at Lagos Marathon 2022

 The famous Makinde siblings, Oluwafunmilayo, Oluwaseun and Mopelola, who took after their father to become pilots, are on course to make history at the 2022 Lagos Women Run.

The trio have expressed readiness to take time off their busy schedule to join other p

While speaking with journalists in Lagos on Thursday, Oluwafunmilayo Makinde-Marcus, a corporate pilot and the youngest of the sisters, said she is excited at the prospect of joining other women from different walks of life at the Lagos Women Run.

“This is going to be my first marathon and I am looking forward to it. As much as I want people to learn from me, that’s me pouring out. I also want to learn from others…,” she said.

“Though I am presently in the aviation sector working, I am looking forward to other women in other sectors to also learn from them”

 

For Makinde-Marcus, joining a course that seeks to improve the lot of other women is enough motivation for her even though there is a one million Naira prize money for the winner of the Lagos Women Run event.

Tayo Popoola, the coordinator of the Lagos Women Run, said the event has continued to show it transcends sports, as it has constantly provided a platform for the advancement of women in society.

articipants in the 12 November 10 km road race in Lagos.

Poopola, while revealing that over 25,0000 runners will grace this year’s race, thanked the Lagos State Government, Lagos Sports Commission, sponsors and the media alike for making the Lagos Women Run one of its kind among global road races.

“There are many people that will be coming from outside of Lagos for this race, so we want to showcase the beauty of our state. This year we will be going on a loop starting from TBS, towards Awolowo Road, Falomo bridge through Olusola down and finish at Onikan.

“In this year’s edition, we are expecting about 25,000 runners in the categories of the elites and the fun runners,’’ she said.

Meanwhile, both the Lagos State Athletics Association Chairman Solomon Alao and his vice Yemisi Tinubu have applauded the organisers of the Lagos Women Run for doing a great job over the years even as they pledged their continued support for the unique race.

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