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World’s oldest pupil dies at 99 in Kenya

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A Kenyan great-grandmother, Priscilla Sitieni, who was celebrated as the world’s oldest pupil in 2019 when she registered at a primary school at the age of 94 has died aged 99, local media reports on Saturday.

Sitieni whose resolve to acquire an education in her 90s, had inspired an award wining French film and won praise from UNESCO and other international organisations.

Her grandson, Sammy Chepsiror, who announced the demise of Sitieni, told journalists that “Gogo Priscilla (Granny Priscilla), as she was fondly known, died at home on Wednesday after developing a chest complication.”

“Gogo has been in good health and attending her classes until three days to her demise when she developed chest pains, which forced her out of school.

“We are thankful for the 100 years of her life. She made all of us proud,” Chepsiror said.

According to UNESCO, Sitieni was 94 when she persuaded the headmaster of the local school in her village in Kenya’s Rift Valley to admit her, an act that drew worldwide praise for her with the United Nations hailing her as “a role model for her community and beyond”.

In an interview with the UN agency last year, she said her aim was to motivate young mothers in Kenya to return to school after having children, instead of dropping out due to shame or fear of social stigma.

“I wanted to show an example not only to them but to other girls around the world who are not in school.

“Without education, there will be no difference between you and a chicken. Education is your future. Education remains in your head forever and you cannot lose it once you have it,” she had said.

Her resilience and efforts were documented in a French film titled “Gogo”, which led her to take a plane for the first time last year to visit France and meet first lady Brigitte Macron.

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Trevor Noah set for ‘Off the Record’ world tour

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South African comedian and talk show host, Trevor Noah, has announced a date for his “Off The Record” global tour where he hopes to spread humour and bring his social commentary to audiences across the globe.

The former host of “The Daily Show”, who made the disclosure on his social media pages, said he would kick off his tour on July 29 in Europe.

The multi-award winning comedian known for his insightful commentary, took to his social media platforms on Thursday to share the news of his upcoming international tour.

“Love that we were able to add some US & Canada shows for 2024! See… there’s still a chance for us CA, NJ, CT & Ontario!” he wrote.

According to the itinerary he put up, the tour is set to kick off in countries like Monaco in France, Germany, the United States, Canada, The Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia, bringing his captivating comedic style to audiences across the country.

Noah’s announcement of the “Off the Record” tour was met with enthusiastic responses from his devoted followers, who took to social media to express their joy and anticipation.

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UNESCO removes Senegal’s Niokolo-Koba National Park from list of World Heritage sites in danger

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The United Nations’ Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has removed
Senegal’s Niokolo-Koba National Park from the list of World Heritage sites in Danger after citing positive results achieved by the West African country and its formal commitment to reappraise plans to the development of the property.

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which took the decision during its meeting in New Delhi, India, made the announcement on Wednesday July 24, saying it was satisfied with measures taken by the country to allocate considerable resources to the surveillance of the park in order to combat poaching and illegal gold panning.

The park, which is located in a lush area along the banks of the Gambia River, was included in the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2007 as poaching, basalt mining and other human activities were becoming growing threats.

The gallery forests and savannahs of Niokolo-Koba are home to a rich wildlife, including the world’s largest antelopes.

According to UNESCO, since then, monitoring of emblematic species has been stepped up and considerable resources have been allocated to the surveillance of the park in order to combat poaching and illegal gold panning, as well as to better organize the transhumance of livestock.

The body also commended the setting up of a mine pollution control system, and hailed Senegal for work that has been carried out to improve the fight against the invasive species Mimosa pigra.

The World Heritage Committee called on Senegal to continue its efforts in the coming years in so as to improve the National Park which became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1981.

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