In’tl, local firms partner to reduce gas flaring

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal signals a further tightening of unemployment benefits as France seeks to reduce an unexpectedly large budget deficit. Meanwhile, the government rules out new taxes, despite calls from French lawmakers to tax corporate windfalls and share buybacks. We take a closer look in this edition.

Members of St. Francis Catholic Church reenact the Stations of the Cross, suffering and death of Jesus during Holy Friday in Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria.

Nigeria has begun the rollout of the MenFive vaccine in high-risk areas, securing millions of doses to protect children from all five strains of meningitis. The potentially fatal disease poses a grave threat to young children globally, with sub-Saharan Africa being particularly vulnerable to it.

Pakistan and Iran inked a 25-year supply deal in 2009, and Tehran completed building the over 900-kilometer-long Iranian section of the pipeline 10 years ago. But construction on the Pakistani side has been held up, drawing Iranian consternation. Islamabad has now announced its intention to soon begin constructing the first 80 kilometers of the pipeline link from the Iranian border to the Pakistani port city of Gwadar, in a bid to avoid a potential Iranian lawsuit for breach of contract.

Nigeria's government says the rise will only affect 1.5 million consumers, mostly manufacturers. But analysts believe the hike will lead to higher inflation and result in job losses and closures of businesses.

A decade on, the world has largely forgotten about the Chibok girls, who were kidnapped by Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamist militants. But for victims and their families, like Solomon Maina, who is still waiting for news about his daughter, the tragedy is ongoing.