Russia-Africa Cooperation: Russia is setting up a new Russia-Africa working group to push strategic investments, industrialisation, infrastructure, and specialist training, with President Putin signing plans to host the next Russia-Africa summit in October 2026. Nuclear Partnerships: Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Russia’s civilian nuclear cooperation with African partners is set to top 20, with a likely agreement with Djibouti in October 2026 and more embassies (including Comoros) being readied. Tokenized Stocks in Comoros’ Tech Orbit: MEXC listed five Ondo tokenized U.S. stock pairs on its spot market (STMicroelectronics, Fabrinet, Trane, Amphenol, Quanta Services), letting users trade via USDT with instant settlement and fractional exposure. Forest Loss From Mining: A study finds mining is driving extra deforestation across Africa—each hectare cleared for mines triggers far more forest loss via roads and settlements, with DR Congo’s cobalt-linked impacts especially severe. Public Spending Skills: SADC officials are training in Johannesburg on cost-benefit analysis to help governments spend limited budgets more effectively on health, education, infrastructure, and climate resilience. Academic Freedom Watch: A global ranking shows steep academic freedom declines in many countries from 2015–2025, including major drops in the U.S. Health Risk Trends: New research links alcohol intake and smoking as top shared risk factors for breast cancer and atrial fibrillation, suggesting large prevention gains if population behaviors shift.