Latest Current Affairs – February 15 2018
- Cyril Ramaphosa elected President of South Africa
Cyril Ramaphosa has been elected president of South Africa by a parliamentary vote. The appointment as head of state of Ramaphosa, 65, who became interim leader following Zuma’s late-night resignation on 14 February was announced by South Africa’s chief justice in Cape Town, who presided over the vote.
- Ethiopian PM Hailemariam resigns
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn suddenly resigned on 15 February in what he described as a bid to smooth reforms, following years of violent unrest that threatened the ruling party’s hold on Africa’s second most populous nation.
The resignation – unprecedented in Ethiopia’s history – followed a wave of strikes this week in towns near the capital and demonstrations successfully demanding the release of more opposition leaders.
- Former Facebook India MD joins Dailyhunt as President
Banking on the rapid growth of regional language internet users, Umang Bedi, who resigned as Facebook India and South Asia managing director last October, has joined news and regional language content app Dailyhunt as president.
Dailyhunt, formerly known as Newshunt, is owned by Bengaluru-based mobile consumer products and solutions company, Verse Innovation Pvt. Ltd. The company’s investors include Matrix Partners India, Sequoia, Omidyar Network, Falcon Edge and Bytedance.
- Nitish Kumar inaugurates ambitious pump canal project
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has inaugurated an ambitious pump canal project at Kahalgaon town in the district which would cater to a vast strech of land within the state and neighbouring Jharkhand.
The Bateshwar Nath Pump Canal Project, which has involved a cost of Rs 389 crore. The project would cater to a total area of 27,603 hectares of which 22,716 hectares are in Bihar and the remaining in Jharkhand.
- PM inaugurates Convention Centre in Itanagar
The Prime Minister has inaugurated the DorjeeKhandu State Convention Centre. This Convention Centre has an auditorium, conference halls and an exhibition hall.
The Prime Minister also dedicated the State Civil Secretariat Building to the nation, and laid the Foundation Stone of the Academic Block of the TomoRiba Institute of Health and Medical Science.
- India Signs Second Loan Agreement with New Development Bank for USD 100 Million
The Loan Agreement for financing of Rajasthan Water Sector Restructuring Project for the Desert Areas was signed between Government of India and the New Development Bank (NDB) on 13th February 2018 at New Delhi. This is the first tranche loan of USD 100 million approved by the NDB under the Multi Tranche Financing Facility of USD 345 million for this project.
The objective of this Project is to rehabilitate the 678 km long Indira Gandhi Canal system built during 1958-63 to prevent seepage, conserve water, and enhance water use efficiency as mandated by both national and state level policies on water use.
- SCO summit will be held in Qingdao in June 2018
The upcoming summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is scheduled to be held in the coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province of China in June 2018.
The SCO includes Pakistan, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and India.
- Observer states include Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia.
- Pakistan and India attained full membership status of the organisation at the Astana summit in 2017.
- Secretary-General of SCO is Rashid Alimov
- Anand, Gujrathi guide Mumbai to crucial win in Pro Chess League
World rapid chess champion Viswanathan Anand and grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi helped Mumbai Movers to hold on to their top position at the points tally in the Eastern Division of the Pro-Chess league.
Anand and Gujrathi helped Mumbai defeat Volga Stormbringers with a 9-7 score to tally 5 points and stay ahead of Armenia Eagles and Delhi Dynamites by a point after the 6th round of the world’s first online chess league.
- Longest-serving Dutch PM, Ruud Lubbers, dies aged 78
The Netherlands’ longest-serving prime minister, Ruud Lubbers, who pulled his country out of recession while struggling to reform the Dutch welfare state, died aged 78.
Lubbers, who became premier at the age of 43, led three successive governments from 1982 to 1994 as the Netherlands headed toward greater European integration and the single currency.
