PL | EN

The Djibouti Cosmodrome and Indian investment in rail transport

Djibouti, with a population of just over one million, will be home to a spaceport comprising seven satellite launchers and three rocket test sites. It will be the first-of-its-kind facility on the mainland. The country’s authorities have signed an initial partnership agreement for a billion-dollar investment with Hong Kong Aerospace Technology Group Limited. Africa’s space and satellite industry is thriving, with its value rising to more than $19.6 billion in 2022. Fourteen countries, of which South Africa, Egypt, Algeria and Nigeria are the most active, have already launched 52 satellites into space.

German Siemens AG has received the most significant order in its history for supplying locomotives from Indian Railways. The contract is for purchasing 1,200 electric freight locomotives over 11 years and their repair and maintenance for 35 years. The contract is worth €3 billion, and most of the work will be done at Siemens’ India facilities. More recently, Siemens signed a contract with Egypt worth around €8bn to build an electric rail network and supply a fleet of locomotives.

Lebanon’s interim government has approved opening lines of credit worth $116m to repair the state electricity networks. Lebanon has been struggling with power cuts that have paralysed public life and the country’s economy for more than two years – households now receive electricity from state sources for about an hour a day, and millions of residents rely on expensive private generator suppliers to supply their homes with electricity.

Read also
Green energy transformation in Africa and Moldova
Green energy transformation in Africa and Moldova
Founded in Kenya by a Congolese refugee, a company called Kakuma Ventures install solar panels and Wi-Fi hotspots under the slogan that green energy is the key to development. Kakuma Ventures has just taken part in the African climate summit organised in Kenya with the participation of several thousand delegates, heads of state and government. […]
Persecution and human rights: Somalia, China, California
Persecution and human rights: Somalia, China, California
Somalis with albinism are persecuted in their country, accused of cannibalism and considered cursed. It is difficult for them to find a job and a place to live – residents are afraid that they will be infected with albinism, too. The number of people with albinism in Somalia is unknown because there is no available […]
The new map of China and diplomatic relations in Asia
The new map of China and diplomatic relations in Asia
Publishing the official map of China on the Chinese Ministry of Natural Resources website sparked a reaction from neighbouring countries. India lodged a formal protest because the map shows the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and the Doklam and Aksai Chin plateaus as official Chinese territory. While the situation on the China-India border has been […]
The future of travel: train or plane and contrails
The future of travel: train or plane and contrails
The future of travel: trains or planes? In May 2021, the French government banned domestic flights if the same distance can be covered by train in less than 2.5 hours. This law applies to 5,000 flights from 200,000 domestic flights in France annually, saving 55,000 t CO₂ – 0,23% of French aviation industry emissions. British […]
Bird protection: kakapo, southern takahe and migratory birds
Bird protection: kakapo, southern takahe and migratory birds
Eighteen takahē – large, flightless birds were released in the Lake Whakatipu Waimāori valley on New Zealand’s South Island. They haven’t been seen there for about 100 years. This is an excellent success in efforts to restore one of the rarest creatures in the world. These birds were officially declared extinct in 1898. They were […]
Previous issues