News & Events

Brunei’s Prince Abdul Mateen, once described as one of Asia’s most eligible bachelors and dubbed the “hot royal”, has married his fiancée Yang Mulia Anisha Rosnah in a lavish 10-day wedding celebration. The 32-year-old son of the Sultan of Brunei tied the knot with the 29-year-old granddaughter of one of the sultan’s special advisers.

The royal engagement was announced in October 2022, with the wedding festivities kicking off on January 7th, 2023. The celebrations culminated on Sunday with a glittering ceremony at the opulent Istana Nurul Iman palace, attended by dignitaries and royalty from across Asia and the Middle East.

Prince Mateen cut a dashing figure in his ceremonial military uniform, while his bride stunned in a long white gown and dazzling jewels. Their wedding signifies the union of two prominent Bruneian families at a time when the oil-rich Sultanate aims to boost its international profile.

Once dubbed Asia’s most eligible royal bachelor, Prince Mateen has over 440,000 Instagram followers who admire his playboy lifestyle. His bride Anisha owns a fashion and tourism company in Brunei. Their lavish nuptials included a 7-day celebration leading up to the wedding day.

The festivities highlight Brunei’s immense wealth and the prestige still commanded by its royal family, even as the Sultanate’s oil reserves decline. For now, Brunei’s ‘hot royal’ Prince Mateen continues to make headlines with his high-profile wedding.

Read the original article here: https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/bruneis-prince-abdul-mateen-officially-marries-yang-mulia-anisha-rosnah-in-lavish-10-day-royal-wedding/ar-AA1mYf6y

inDrive, a global mobility and urban services platform operating across 46 countries including 9 in Africa, was named the world’s second most downloaded ride-hailing app in 2023 for the second consecutive year according to data.ai. inDrive also reached a milestone by ranking as the fourth most downloaded travel app worldwide.

Total downloads of the inDrive app amounted to 66.6 million in 2023 based on data from Google Play and the App Store. Data.ai attributed inDrive’s robust growth to adding new services like finance, freight, and courier delivery beyond its core ridesharing offering. Over the past year, inDrive launched in over 8 new cities across Africa and two in the U.S. Furthermore, inDrive agreed to add electric motorcycles to its fleet in the Asia-Pacific region after obtaining the regulator’s permission to offer services there.

As inDrive scales quickly, it leverages its unique peer-to-peer pricing model to challenge the lack of affordable transportation and limited earning opportunities, thereby addressing injustice. This remains inDrive’s overarching mission. inDrive continues expanding its ridesharing to new geographies while adding services like finance, freight, and delivery. Its peer-to-peer pricing model aims to increase affordable transit options and earnings potential to promote equity. Even while experiencing rapid growth, inDrive remains committed to its goal of providing just transportation and economic opportunities.

Read the original article here: https://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/indrive-remains-the-worlds-second-most-downloaded-ridehailing-app-and-ranks-as-fourth-most-downloaded-travel-app-worldwide?lang=en

Cameroon made history by becoming the first country to introduce a routine vaccination program against malaria. The Central African nation is one of 20 African countries planning to roll out the groundbreaking vaccine this year, according to the global vaccine alliance Gavi.

The new vaccine, called RTS,S and sold under the brand name Mosquirix, was developed by British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) over nearly 40 years. It targets Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite and the most prevalent in Africa. Mosquirix is designed as a four-dose vaccine for young children around 5 months of age.

Mosquirix is the first-ever vaccine shown to provide partial protection against malaria in young children, who are most at risk from the deadly disease. By introducing it routinely, Cameroon hopes to prevent thousands of malaria deaths and cases annually.

Africa bears the brunt of the global malaria burden, accounting for over 90% of the world’s 200 million cases and 400,000 deaths per year. Health experts hope the rollout of Mosquirix across the continent will be a game-changer in efforts to eliminate malaria.

Read the original article here: https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/cameroon-rolls-out-worlds-first-malaria-vaccine-2024-01-22/