DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ 'Silver economy' boom: China transforms kindergartens into senior care homes as demographic crisis deepens
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Anniek Bao | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Plagued by shrinking birth rates and a rapidly aging population, tens of thousands of Chinese kindergartens have scaled back operations, closed down entirely or pivoted industries to survive. One preschool in the eastern province of Zhejiang still operates as a daycare, but instead of serving children, they're now catering to senior citizens. Last year, Zhuang Yanfang, 56, repurposed her kindergarten in the city of Jinhua, Zhejiang, into a senior nursing center. Conversely, as preschools suffer, the senior care industry is thriving in China's aging population crisis. "China's aging will only intensify," said Harry Murphy Cruise, an economist at Moody's Analytics.

Persons: Zhuang Yanfang, Harry Murphy Cruise, Cruise Organizations: China's Ministry of Education, China's Communist Party, Office, State Council, Moody's Locations: Zhejiang, Jinhua, China

☆ This US man failed Spanish in school. Now he’s running a language school in Spain
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-22 | by ( Silvia Marchetti | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Ted Purdom, from San Anselmo, California, graduated in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in English and enrolled in an overseas language program, aiming to learn Spanish. He ended up in Mallorca, the capital of the Balearic islands off the east coast of Spain, for the nine-month program. A friend told him about another program that placed American “language coaches” in Spain, called “Auxiliares de Conversación,” (conversation assistants), run by the Spanish Ministry of Education. So that November he opened The Bridge English Academy in Manacor, converting a former wine store into classrooms to give English language courses to locals. Then there’s the fact that the islanders’ first language isn’t Spanish, but Mallorquin, a dialect of Catalan.

Persons: he’d, Ted Purdom, ”, Purdom, –, “, – Lluïsa, Apollonia, Neme Jimenez, iStock, ” Purdom, Llombards, Dennis Fischer Organizations: CNN, University of Oregon, Spanish Ministry of Education, Mallorca, English Academy, San Francisco Bay Area Locations: California, Mallorca, San Anselmo , California, Balearic, Spain, Spanish, Oviedo, Asturias, Mallorca’s, Palma, Manacor, American, kickstarting, San Francisco Bay, Francisco, Bay

☆ TikTok says it's not spreading Chinese propaganda. The U.S. says there's a real risk. What's the truth?
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dilanianmug.Jpg | Ken Dilanian | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +11 min

Is TikTok trying to secretly influence Americans at the behest of the Chinese government? And an analysis of the ownership structure of TikTok parent company ByteDance, obtained by NBC News, argues that the company is deeply entangled with some of China’s major government propaganda organs. The most recent one, published last month, found that TikTok suppresses anti-China content compared to YouTube and other social media platforms. In recent years, according to media reports, Chinese government entities have increasingly taken golden shares in technology companies. “This report establishes that TikTok algorithms actively suppress content critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) while simultaneously boosting pro-China propaganda and promoting distracting, irrelevant content,” the researchers wrote.

Persons: —, TikTok’s, China —, ’, TikTok, ” Democratic Sen, Mark Warner, — Casey Blackburn, National Intelligence —, ”, ByteDance, Blackburn, Strider, ” Strider, Wu Shugang, “ Organizations: Congress, D.C, Justice Department, NBC News, Network, Research, Rutgers University, YouTube, Department, U.S ., Appeals, District of Columbia, Supreme, Strider Technologies, Communist Party of China, ” Democratic, U.S, of Economic Security, Emerging Technology, National Intelligence, TikTok, Chinese Communist Party, CCP, Net Investment, Technology, Communist Party, China Central Radio, Television Station, Beijing State, Administration, Investment, China’s Ministry of Education Locations: United States, Washington, U.S, China, Tibet, TikTok, People’s Republic of China, Tiananmen, Hong Kong, ”, Xinjiang, Beijing

☆ China is telling Gen Zers to beware of online dating and rock music because they might be traps by spies or the West
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-05 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewOfficials in China have been telling young people that spies or foreign powers could be out to trick them through casual activities such as online dating and listening to pop music. National authorities raised these red flags at least twice recently, amid a wider push from China's leader, Xi Jinping, to bolster Chinese national security by getting citizens to be more proactive. The South China Morning Post reported that a new foundational textbook for college students warned them about pop culture and rock 'n' roll as oft-used tools for foreign subversion. AdvertisementThe Ministry of State Security has meanwhile cautioned young people to beware of part-time job offers and online dating prospects that might be "secret-stealing traps" laid by foreign spies. The idea here is that the spies target students in scientific research fields to trick them into disclosing sensitive information or sending photos of classified sites.

Persons: —, Xi Jinping Organizations: Service, Business, China Morning Post, Ministry of Education, of State Security, Ministry of State Security Locations: China, Beijing

☆ A doll, old letters and house keys: How displaced Palestinians are holding onto identity
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Billy Stockwell | Sana Noor Haq | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

“I cried for my area, my house, and everything around me,” Al-Hasanat told CNN in June. Several Palestinians told CNN they could take only their most significant personal items on long and hazardous journeys of displacement. Israeli strikes destroyed several of the university’s buildings in the early days of the war, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. Students told CNN days spent on campus have been replaced by repeated displacement and bloodshed. Courtesy Raghad Ezzat HamoudaWith no end to the war in sight, other Palestinians told CNN they have held onto their house keys as a reminder of home.

Persons: Ahmed Al, Hasanat, Al, ” Al, “ Ayten, Dad, ’, ‘, ’ ”, Khan Younis, Ahmad Salem, “, ” Ahmed Al, Fadi Adwan, WAFA, ”, Haya Ismail, Refaat Alareer, Ismail, Dina, Dr, ” Ismail, Fadi, Rochelle Davis, –, Adwan, Ezzat Hamouda, Hamouda, Tamam –, Raghad Ezzat, Scott Webster, Israel, Davis, Samah, Ayten Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Bloomberg, Getty Images Israel, Hamas, Ministry of Health, Islamic, of Gaza, UN, Ministry of Education, Higher, Students, Georgetown University, “, Palestine, IDF, Government Media Office, Museum of, Palestinian, University of Sydney, Amnesty, Getty, Shifa, UNICEF, Government Media, Palestinian Ministry of Health, West Bank Locations: Gaza, Al, Mughraqa, Palestine, Israel, Palestinian, Rafah, Gaza City, Deir Al, Beit Lahia, Ramallah

☆ I have fond memories of high school in America. I'm worried my daughter won't feel the same in Singapore.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-17 | by ( Jason Erik Lundberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

I live in Singapore and lecture in the creative writing and publishing graduate program at Nanyang Technological University, but have also taught at the high school, undergraduate, and community college levels. In 2007, my now-ex-wife (a Singaporean citizen) and I decided to move to Singapore from the US. For the most part, I enjoyed my classes, as well as my extra-curriculars, which in high school consisted of marching band, French club, and physics club. It's possible that, in the 30 years since graduating from high school, my memories have become rose-colored, but I do remember feeling like I had a good balance between my school life and my personal life. The author gets concerned about the amount of pressure put on his daughter by teachers.

Persons: Jason Erik Lundberg Organizations: Service, Nanyang Technological University, Business, Straits Times, Ministry of Education Locations: Singapore, Oklahoma, North Carolina

Rescue teams are digging through the mud and debris trying to find survivors near Mai Mahiu, in Kenya’s Nakuru County, Gov. In Mai Mahiu, Kihika said a serious situation was unfolding as floodwaters swept away people and homes. Access to Mai Mahiu, 20 miles north of the capital Nairobi, had been difficult as part of the road had been cut off from recent heavy rains, Kihika said. Other video shows vast flooding around the Tana River, with large parts of the surrounding area underwater. Heavy rains in East Africa have also affected Tanzania and Burundi.

Persons: Susan Kihika, Isaac Maigua Mwaura, Mai Mahiu, Kihika, ” Kihika, Tana, Andre Kasuku, downpours, El Niño, Jagan Chapagain, Kassim Majaliwa Organizations: Kenya CNN —, Gov, CNN, Kenya Red Cross Society, of Education Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, Mai Mahiu, Kenya’s Nakuru County, Mai, Mororo, Tana River, Garissa, North Eastern Kenya, Tana, Kona, Tana River County, East Africa, Tanzania, Burundi, Tanzanian

☆ China's crashing birthrate will leave millions of teachers jobless in the coming years
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China's birthrate has plunged, with the number of newborns in 2023 falling by 500,000, to about 9 million. AdvertisementDecades of China's one-child policy have created a demographic nightmare for the world's second-largest economy, and millions of school teachers could soon be left without a job as birthrates tumble. If those classes don't scale back, China could see a surplus of 1.5 million primary school teachers and 370,000 middle school teachers by 2035, according to a Tuesday report from the South China Morning Post. Last year marked the second consecutive year that China's population shrank, according to the country's National Bureau of Statistics. Total primary school students, too, declined in 2022 for the first time in a decade.

Persons: China's birthrate, —, it's Organizations: Service, South China Morning, country's National Bureau of Statistics, Education, China National Academy of Educational Sciences, Terry Group, Terry, UN Locations: China, Beijing, Hangzhou

CNN has contacted the Unification Church for an official comment but has not yet heard back. Previous controversiesThis is not the first time the Unification Church has been at the center of a controversy. The Sapporo District Court made a landmark ruling in favor of 20 former Unification Church members who had sued the group as part of the case. However, he also notes that some of its members felt happy and at peace after making donations to the Unification Church. Some critics of the Unification Church say the government’s actions don’t go far enough as it could still operate as a non-religious group.

Persons: Japan CNN —, Shinzo Abe, Tetsuya Yamagami, Abe, Yamagami, Reverend Sun Myung, Abe’s, Fumio Kishida, Kishida, Sakurai Yoshihid, Naomi Honma, ”, Nobutaka Inoue, What’s, don’t, Sakurai, ” Sakurai, Kimiaki, Nishida, Toshiyuki, – Organizations: Japan CNN, Unification, Family Federation, World Peace, Court, NHK, Unification Church, Reverend, CNN, Reuters, Japan’s Ministry, Cultural Affairs, Hokkaido University . CNN, National Lawyers Network, Kokugakuin University, Japan’s Ministry of Education, Japan Society for Cult Prevention, Osaka University Locations: Tokyo, Japan, South Korea, Sapporo

Most of the people participating in the trend are in their 20s, citing various reasons for quitting ranging from low wages to burnout. LiangAccording to China’s LinkedIn equivalent Maimai, out of 1,554 employees across various sectors surveyed from January through October 2022, 28% resigned that year. A similar movement, dubbed the Great Resignation, had taken off in the United States, with almost 50 million people quitting their jobs in two years. Despite the proliferation of higher education degrees, China’s economy doesn’t currently require as many high-skilled workers and it takes time to transform the economic structure, she said. The resignation trend could affect fertility, but it’s not yet clear how, she said.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN —, Liang, “, ”, Nancy Qian, they’ve, Jade Gao, Qian, ” Qian, Yao Lu, Veyron Mai, ” Lu, Young Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, CNN, ” CNN, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, Getty, Ministry of Education, Columbia University, University Locations: China, Hong Kong, China’s Zhejiang, United States, West, Beijing, AFP, Yibin, Foshan, Taizhou

☆ China to impose hefty fines, penalties for illegal education tutors
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Students stand at a school during a flag-lowering ceremony on the first day of the new academic year in Shanghai, China, September 1, 2021. The announcement made by the Ministry of Education on state run CCTV on Tuesday, is the most recent measure by authorities to reform China's education sector and alleviate the academic pressure on students. However, problems such as unlicensed after school tutoring continues to "varying degrees" and the problem of individual institutions "taking money and running away" still occurs, the ministry said. The high cost of education has been cited as a key factor by young Chinese for not wanting to have children. ($1 = 7.2910 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Farah Master and the Beijing newsroom; Editing by Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Aly, Farah Master, Michael Perry Organizations: REUTERS, country's Education Ministry, Ministry of Education, Beijing, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG KONG, Beijing

Government data shows 100 public school teachers in South Korea – mostly elementary school teachers – killed themselves from January 2018 to June 2023. Under the law, anybody who suspects a case of child abuse can report it to the authorities without needing to provide evidence. South Korean teachers holding signs that call for "truth," to commemorate the death of a teacher, in Seoul on September 4. Call for changeBut protesters and teachers say they won’t be satisfied until the child abuse law is amended. South Korea has the highest suicide rate among OECD nations, with that rate increasing among teenagers and young adults in their 20s, according to the country’s health ministry.

Persons: Chung Sung, Cho Hee, Cho, Jung Yeon, ”, –, Yoonjung Seo, Lee Joo, “, ” Lee, Yoon Suk Organizations: South Korea CNN, Korean Federation of Teachers ’, country’s Education Ministry, Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, Seoul Seoi Elementary School, Getty, Authorities, Teachers, South, Korean Teachers and Education Workers ’ Union, CNN, CNN Education, Reuters, OECD, Ministry of Education, Korean Federation of Teachers ’ Associations Locations: Seoul, South Korea, “, South

Critics say the move is a part of a sustained effort to indoctrinate school children and stifle any independent thinking. Russian President Vladimir Putin has always maintained that Moscow’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine is an effort to liberate the country from a “Nazi regime” and Western influence. No critical thinking allowedMany countries introduce school children to patriotic ideas and civic values. According to independent human rights monitor OVD-Info, there have been almost 20,000 people detained for protesting against the war in Russia. This complete crackdown on freedom of speech means there isn’t a force in Russia that can counteract school propaganda.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Sergey Kravtsov, ” Kravtsov, Katerina Tertytchnaya, “ There’s, ”, Putin, Yuri Kadobnov, Sergey Lavrov, Kirill, ” Ian Garner, ” Tertytchnaya, ” Garner, Garner Organizations: CNN, country’s Ministry of Education, Nazi, Russian, Russian Federation, RIA Novosti, University College London, Ministry of Education, Schools, Getty, Kremlin, University of Chicago’s, Political, Students Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Crimea, Moscow, AFP, Russian, France, Russians, China

☆ China takes major step in regulating generative AI services like ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

China also urges platforms to “participate in the formulation of international rules and standards” related to generative AI, it said. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT have taken the world by storm. Generative AI refers to the technology that underpins platforms like ChatGPT. In the global race to build guardrails for how governments tap AI, China had gained a significant head start, US Senator Mark Warner warned last month. So far, Baidu, Alibaba and JD.com’s generative AI services are either in the trial stage or being tested by corporate users.

Persons: —, Olivier Morin, Mark Warner, ” Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Cyberspace Administration, Ant, Baidu, Getty, China, Politico’s Global Tech Summit ., ” Citi, National Development, Reform Commission Locations: Hong Kong, China, Beijing, AFP, United States

Seoul, South Korea CNN —Raising a child in South Korea is no easy task. As a result, the hagwon industry in South Korea is massive, and profitable. Of the nearly 60,000 middle and high school students surveyed nationwide, almost a quarter of males and one in three females reported experiencing depression. Activists say South Korea needs deeper change instead, such as dismantling entrenched gender norms and introducing more support for working parents. Some agreed the private education sector needed reform, but doubted the effectiveness of this move.

Persons: Lee Ju, Lee, “, ” Lee, Anthony Wallace, Jung Yeon, Lee –, Yelim Lee, hagwons, ”, Critics, Kim Hong Organizations: South Korea CNN, South Korean, College, Education, Getty, South, Ministry of Education, Organization for Economic Co, Development, OECD, Ministry of Health, Twitter Locations: Seoul, South Korea, AFP, South Korea's, South, Haiti, Iceland, United States, United Kingdom, Korean, Korea, Japan

☆ Why Chinese students are taking graduation photos looking ‘more dead than alive’
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

These are graduation photos, and their theme is “being more dead than alive,” according to the accompanying caption. Urban youth unemployment is at record levels, reaching 20.8% in May, and an influx of new job seekers will only increase the competition. Li Nian, a PhD student who graduated this past week, is among those to have posted “more dead than alive” style photos. After being inspired by examples online, Li took her own graduation photos, which are funny despite the tiredness depicted. “I thought I would remember such graduation photos for the rest of my life,” she told CNN.

Persons: sprawled facedown, banister, –, Ren Yong, …, commiserate, ”, Li Nian, Li, Goldman Sachs, ” Young, lockdowns, “, can’t Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Urban, Students, Wuhan University, China’s Ministry of Education, CNN, Communist Party, Twitter, Weibo, ” Locations: Hong Kong, China, Nanjing, Spain, Italy

Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi CNN —Textbooks in Saudi Arabia have been changing. On Israel and the Palestinians, IMPACT-se found moderation, but not yet full acceptance of Israel. “Some in Israel want to see normalization with Saudi so badly that any interaction about Israel will be framed as something positive towards normalization,” he said. In Saudi Arabia, support for normalization stood at 5%. But Podeh and the other experts all agreed: public perceptions of Israel will be shaped by much more than textbooks.

Persons: ”, Mira Al Hussein, Kristin Diwan, Islam Aziz Alghashian, ” Alghashian, Israel, “, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Elie Podeh, “ It’s, ” Podeh, It’s, Diwan Organizations: Abu Dhabi CNN, Monitoring, School Education, IMPACT, Zionism, United, United Arab Emirates ’, University of Edinburgh, ISIS, Muslim Brotherhood, CNN, Saudi Center, International Communication, Ministry, Education, Gulf States Institute, Saudi, Abraham Accords, Arab Center Washington DC, Department of Islamic, Eastern, Hebrew University Locations: Jerusalem, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, United States, Israel, London, Saudi, Palestine, United Arab, Scotland, “, al Qaeda, Washington

☆ UN in talks about possibly handing over Afghan teaching projects to Taliban
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Charlotte Greenfield | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Aid officials say that the Taliban had signalled international organisations could no longer be involved in education projects, in a move criticised by the U.N. but not yet confirmed by Afghan authorities. A spokesperson for the Taliban did not respond to request for comment. International organisations have been heavily involved in education projects, and UNICEF made an agreement with the Taliban to run community classes before they took over the country. Two humanitarian sources told Reuters this month that aid agencies had been told provincial authorities had been directed to stop the involvement of international organisations in education projects, possibly within weeks. The Taliban took over Afghanistan after a 20-year insurgency against U.S.-led forces with a speed and ease that took the world by surprise.

Persons: Afghanistan's, Samantha Mort, Charlotte Greenfield, Nick Macfie Organizations: UNICEF, REUTERS, Afghan, de, Ministry of Education, Reuters, Education, United Nations, Taliban, U.S, Thomson Locations: Jalalabad, Afghanistan, New York

☆ Russia is asking its schoolchildren to knit socks for soldiers and write poems about the Motherland in an all-out effort to get support for the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Peter Gelling | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russian schools are introducing programs promoting the military to encourage support for the Ukraine war. Russia asked students to knit socks for soldiers and write poems about military history, NYT reported. Russia is now asking its students to knit socks for Russian soldiers, a seemingly antiquated effort that feels like a throwback to the Soviet era. Russian Ministry of EducationWith Russia stagnant on the battlefield, propaganda steps inRussia first invaded eastern Ukraine in February 2022. But much of the Russian military equipment is outdated, and soldiers have complained of equipment shortages.

Persons: —, Wagner, Bakhmut, Alexandra Arkhipova Organizations: Service, The New York Times, The Times, Times, Russia's Ministry of Education, Russian Ministry of Education, Russia, Wagner Group Locations: Ukraine, Russia, The, Soviet, Crimea, Donetsk, Russian, Bakhmut, Ukrainian

☆ Malawi: Their son was banned from school for 3 years because of his dreadlocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Although it is not a legal requirement in Malawi, an unwritten policy enforced across government schools meant his son was being denied admission because of his hair. “I felt oppressed,” Nansolo said as he recalled the staff of a state-run secondary school in Zomba, southern Malawi. Then, in 2020, the Malawi High Court placed an interim order compelling public schools to enroll Ishmael and other Rastafari children until a final ruling was reached. Despite this victory, Malawi’s Rastafarian community still faces numerous challenges. Lack of jobs is a big challenge for the Rastafarian community because those in offices are reluctant to employ Rastas,” Nansolo said.

☆ Israel demolishes Palestinian West Bank school
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Emily Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] Israeli troops take position during clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops after Israeli machinery demolish a school near Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank May 7, 2023. REUTERS/Mussa QawasmaJERUSALEM, May 7 (Reuters) - Israeli authorities demolished a Palestinian school in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, drawing harsh condemnation from the European Union. "We got ready to come to school and when we arrived we didn't find the school," student Mohammed Ibrahim told Reuters. Israel has often cited a lack of building permits, which Palestinians and rights groups say are nearly impossible to obtain, in destroying Palestinian structures in the West Bank, an area it captured in the 1967 Middle East war. The Gush Etzion Regional Council, which represents a nearby block of Jewish settlers in the West Bank, welcomed the demolition.

☆ Madagascar suspends schools as cyclone Freddy approaches
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Lovasoa Rabary | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ANTANANARIVO, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Madagascar's government on Tuesday suspended schools and transport in the path of tropical cyclone Freddy, which was likely to make landfall in the southeast of the country by evening. The cyclone is expected to hit Mananjary district, about 270 km from the capital Antananarivo, with winds of nearly 155 km per hour, Madagascar's meteorological services said. All traffic in cyclone Freddy's projected path was suspended overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, the country's ministry of transport and meteorology said. Cyclone Freddy is expected to make landfall nearly a month after storm Cheneso battered the island nation of 29 million, killing 33 people and forcing thousands from their homes. "It is expected to cause locally devastating winds and a very dangerous sea state near the impact zone in Madagascar," UNOCHA said on Monday.

☆ ChatGPT failed miserably in Singapore's 6th-grade tests, averaging 16% for math and 21% for science. Days later, it was getting answers right.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

OpenAI's ChatGPT failed math and science tests that sixth-graders in Singapore take. It made errors in simple addition and could not comprehend any diagrams, per The Straits Times. It scored an average of 16 out of 100 marks for the three mathematics papers it took, per The Straits Times. ChatGPT fared a little better at the science papers, getting an average of 21 out of 100 marks. But on Monday, when Insider tested ChatGPT on two PSLE science questions — one from 2020 and another from 2022 — it got both questions right.

☆ Jamaica PM will not face corruption charges, despite 'evidence'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 16 (Reuters) - Jamaica's anti-corruption agency said on Thursday that the prime minister will not face any charges after investigating a potential conflict of interest around government contracts awarded to a construction company between 2006 and 2009. The prime minister's office could not be reached for comment about the latest development that he had been cleared. Holness said yesterday that he "strongly disagree(d) with the findings of the Integrity Commission regarding conflict of interest based on mere associations." He previously presided over the Ministry of Education, which awarded 10 contracts totaling almost JMD$22m ($140,000) over a two-year period to Westcon. Reporting by Isabel Woodford in Mexico City and Kate Chappell in Kingston; Editing by Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SYDNEY, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Australia is preparing for the arrival of thousands of Chinese students, the education minister said on Monday, days after China's education ministry warned students enrolled overseas that online learning would no longer be recognised. Tens of thousands remain offshore after pandemic restrictions and strained diplomatic relations led many to return home. Phil Honeywood, chief executive officer at International Education Association of Australia, an advocacy body for international education in Australia, said there were currently about 40,000 Chinese students still offshore. "We anticipate a lot of Chinese students will be scrambling as we speak to get on flights to Australia. The move by China's Ministry of Education has been met with anger from Chinese students.

Search resuls for: "Ministry of Education"

25 mentions found