Latest news with #EFA
Al-Ahram Weekly
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Ahly, Pyramids FC play in Champions League, Zamalek, Masry in Confederation Cup: EFA to CAF - Egyptian Football
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced on Sunday that they informed the Confederation of African football (CAF) with the names of the Egyptian Clubs that will participate in the major continental tournaments next season. According to an EFA statement, Ahly and Pyramids FC would participate in the CAF Champions League as the holders and runners-up of the Egyptian Premier League 2024/2025 season, respectively. Meanwhile, Zamalek and Masry will play in the CAF Confederation Cup. The White Knights are Egypt Cup winners, while the Port Said-based club ended the league competition in fourth place. The new season of the Champions League and the Confederation Cup will kick off next September. Pyramids FC recently won the Champions League title after beating South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns in the final. Meanwhile, the 12-time African Champions Ahly were eliminated from the semi-final. On the other hand, Zamalek was eliminated from the quarter-final of the Confederation Cup last season, while Masry also said goodbye in the same round. (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.) Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
See - Sada Elbalad
16 hours ago
- Sport
- See - Sada Elbalad
Official: Al-Ahly and Pyramids FC in the Champions League
Amir Haggag The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) notified the Confederation of African Football (CAF) of the participation of Al-Ahly and Pyramids FC in the new edition of the CAF Champions League, as the first and second placed teams in the Egyptian Premier League competition last season (2024-25). Zamalek, the Egypt Cup champion, and Al-Masry, the fourth-placed team in the league table, will also participate in the CAF Confederation Cup. The Egyptian Professional Clubs Association set August 8 as the start date for the new 2025-26 Premier League season, following its recent meeting with the EFA and the heads of the Premier League clubs, and after agreement with the EFA and Hossam Hassan, the national team coach. The Egyptian Football Association announced the end of the Egyptian Premier League in May 2026. This is the second consecutive season in which the association has fulfilled its pledge to finish the competition in line with the schedules of the major European leagues, following years of confusion and postponements that disrupted the league's schedule. The league's start date, set for August 8th instead of the 15th, was brought forward so that players can play three or four rounds with their clubs before the national team's training camp in September to resume its 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The league also aims to end the competition well before the World Cup, allowing the national team to set up its training camp in preparation for the tournament in a timely manner. This comes as part of the Egyptian Football Association and the association's efforts to provide the national team with every means of comfort and success. The new season will see the participation of 21 teams, following the decision to abolish relegation last season. The league will be held in a two-stage format, with the first stage being played in a single-round league format. The teams will then be divided into two groups: a crowning group, which includes the teams competing for the title and continental championship qualifying spots, and a relegation group, which will compete to remain in the league. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Lifestyle Get to Know 2025 Eid Al Adha Prayer Times in Egypt Business Fear & Greed Index Plummets to Lowest Level Ever Recorded amid Global Trade War Arts & Culture Zahi Hawass: Claims of Columns Beneath the Pyramid of Khafre Are Lies News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks Videos & Features Video: Trending Lifestyle TikToker Valeria Márquez Shot Dead during Live Stream News Shell Unveils Cost-Cutting, LNG Growth Plan Technology 50-Year Soviet Spacecraft 'Kosmos 482' Crashes into Indian Ocean News 3 Killed in Shooting Attack in Thailand
Gulf Today
11-06-2025
- Gulf Today
Villagers step up to halt Sierra Leone deforestation
Lucie Peytermann, Agence France-Presse Deep inside a Sierra Leone national park, a mother of seven was about to set dozens of tree trunks ablaze to make charcoal. Producing the cheap fuel in this way is illegal in the protected rainforest near the capital of a country highly vulnerable to the ravages of climate change. But Aminata Sankoh, a widow who said she had no other choice for making a living, defiantly shrugged off a stern warning from a group of villagers who monitor the forests as part of a groundbreaking grassroots initiative. "You are saying you are not affected by this deforestation, that there will be tree planting — but it will affect your own great grandchildren!" chided group leader Caesar Senesie. The extent of the deforestation in the humid tropical forest and what remains of the primary forest is clear as far as the eye can see. Some has been taken over for marijuana plantations — Sierra Leone is battling drug problems — and land grabbing is also rife to satisfy demographic pressures. Nearly a third, or 5,600 hectares (13,837 acres) of the forest within the Western Area Peninsula National Park has been lost or severely degraded since 2012. Last year alone "intensive deforestation" led to the loss of 715 hectares, or the equivalent of 1,330 football pitches, according to the World Food Programme. UNESCO says the area is home to between 80 and 90 per cent of Sierra Leone's biodiversity. But charcoal is the only way for many Sierra Leoneans to cook in the face of power cuts and soaring energy prices. Finding the illicit charcoal producing sites means venturing deep into the forest by road and on foot, but an AFP team managed to visit the area. Groups of men fended off exhaustion as they carried out backbreaking work in stifling 35-degree Celsius (95-Fahrenheit) heat, stacking up tree trunks covered with stones. Near Sankoh, the widowed mother, a mound several metres wide began to smoke. The worn-out 45-year-old said her husband died four years ago and to feed her children and pay for their schooling, she took a job breaking stones on construction sites. But two years ago, she made a decision. "I used to break stone... but I am not doing it any longer because I was struggling a lot. So I decided to come to the forest and do charcoal burning," she said. Faced with the failures in protecting the forest as well as land seizures, units comprising 40 villagers have been set up. "Even at night, when we have a fire break out, I call my guys, we move straight away," Senesie, the group leader, said. "We, the community, are the solution to protect the forest," he added. Funded by the Global Environment Facility, the initiative was launched by the Environmental Foundation for Africa (EFA) NGO, with support from the government and the United Nations Development Programme. People carry out illegal activities in the national park "because they can and believe that they will get away with it every time", Tommy Garnett, EFA founder and executive director, said. He blamed poverty, ignorance and greed for driving the deforestation. "This situation is destroying our natural heritage at an alarming rate," warned Garnett, who for 30 years has been involved in conservation projects in Sierra Leone and other west African countries. Sierra Leone is the 11th most vulnerable nation to the impact of climate change out of 191 countries ranked by the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative. Faced with the inefficiency and the alleged corruption of some forest rangers — who, under-equipped and underpaid, sometimes turn a blind eye — campaigners are banking on involving the worst hit local communities. Garnett said that paying villagers an incentive of $60 a month to make daily patrols and collect evidence had shed more light on what was happening in the forest than a decade of official patrols. EFA has replanted 103,000 trees in the past year, with the goal of an additional 500,000 by 2028. A few kilometres (miles) away, another unit of villagers from the "Mile 13" settlement were doing their bit under Sulaiman Barrie, who angrily complained of recent forest fires in the vicinity. "This was never the Sierra Leone we knew... This was never the Mile 13 I knew when I was just a boy," an emotional and exhausted Barrie said, smoke from the fires still rising above the mountains behind him. "We are standing now in a protected area... where we have all sorts of animals," he said. The community must "step up and protect the forest", he insisted. The government has also taken steps, Tamba Dauda, director of surveys within the lands, housing and country planning ministry, said. "We are quite aware of the massive deforestation that is ongoing," he said, highlighting the establishment of a land and environmental crime unit within the police to pursue perpetrators. Despite such efforts, Joseph Rahall, founder of the NGO Green Scenery, warned that the forest's very survival was at stake. "We are beyond the emergency level," he said. "If we don't manage the Western Area Peninsula very well, in 10 to 15 years there will be no forest."
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New Hampshire establishes Parental Bill of Rights, universal school vouchers
CONCORD, N.H. – New Hampshire's governor Kelly Ayotte signed two bills Tuesday to give parents more control over their children's education. House Bill 10, which cites the 'fundamental liberty' parents have to take care of their children, creates a 'Parental Bill of Rights'. It allows parents to opt their children out of health or sex education, and to exempt them from vaccinations for religious reasons. NH House passes bill to ban cell phones in schools The bill also allows parents to view their children's records and any educational material being taught to them, along with affirming the right of parents to choose to enroll their children in private, religious, or home schooling. Senate Bill 295 revises the requirements for school vouchers in the state. The state's Education Freedom Account (EFA) program offers grants to families who are home-schooling or enrolling their children in private school. Previously, these grants were only available to families with an income of less than 350 percent of the federal poverty level, or $112,525 a year for a family of 4 as of this year. SB 295 removes this limit so that families of all events are able to apply for the grant. Hassan, Noem lock horns over habeas corpus Each bill passed in a near-party line vote. Democrats in New Hampshire's legislature were unanimous in their opposition to SB 295, with the House Democratic Office calling the bill a handout for millionaires that will cost the state over $50 million dollars. But New Hampshire education commissioner Frank Edelblut said the EFA program 'has already transformed lives by giving families access to the educational pathways that best fit their children's needs'. HB 10 also prompted criticism from House Democrats, who warned that the bill could make it harder to protect vulnerable children, while Ayotte said she was proud to sign the bill, saying it ensured 'parents are the central voice in their children's education.' New Hampshire bakery wins free speech case over a painting of doughnuts, pastries The parental bill of rights will take effect July 1, and the changes to the EFA program will be effective August 9. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ayotte says two priority bills she signed back parental rights
Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed into law two of her signature priority bills Tuesday, a parental rights law to give them access to information about their children in schools and one allowing parents of any income level to receive a taxpayer-paid Education Freedom Account (EFA). Surrounded by legislators, education choice advocates and school children, Ayotte said the two bills put the state on the right course for education reform that emphasizes choice and promotes families. 'Giving parents the freedom to choose the education setting that best fits their child's needs will help every student in our state reach their full potential,' Ayotte said. 'I'm proud to sign this into law today along with the Parental Bill of Rights, which ensures parents are the central voice in their children's education. I thank the House and Senate for working to get these across the finish line.' But critics maintain that both bills harm the public school system. They contend the parental rights measures (HB 10 and SB 72) could make it harder for educators to report cases of suspected child abuse to authorities. They opposed the EFA legislation (SB 295) since this expansion is estimated to add another $17 million a year to a program that was already costing taxpayers $30 million annually. 'All students deserve a high-quality education and the support they need to thrive. Unfortunately, expanding the unaccountable voucher scheme will exacerbate the already inequitable public education funding system in New Hampshire,' said Megan Tuttle, president of the National Education Association of New Hampshire. 'Limitless vouchers will take millions of dollars out of public schools to subsidize private school education for a few at the expense of nearly 90% of students who attend community public schools.' Outgoing Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut had been one of the leading advocates for EFAs, which were created in a 2021 state budget trailer bill that then-Gov. Chris Sununu signed into law. "New Hampshire's Education Freedom Account program has already transformed lives by giving families access to the educational pathways that best fit their children's needs,' Edelblut said. 'Expanding this opportunity through universal eligibility is a bold and forward-thinking move that reimagines what education can be, providing every student with the opportunity to reach their full potential and experience a bright future. We are proud to support this expansion and eager to see the lasting impact it will have on student success across our state.' Limiting EFA expansion was proposed The EFA law went far beyond what Ayotte had asked for from legislators four months ago. Currently, EFAs are limited to families making up to 350% of the federal poverty level or just over $100,000 a year for a family of four. The bill would eliminate that income eligibility limit while initially setting a cap on 10,000 EFAs given statewide. Currently, there are about 5,600 families that receive EFAs, averging about $5,100 a year. Ayotte had only wanted the expansion of EFAs to apply to families that have their children in public schools. According to surveys, more than 75% of those who have received EFAs already had their children enrolled in private schools. 'New Hampshire parents are grateful and relieved that more doors are finally open,' said Kate Baker Demers, executive director of the Children's Scholarship Fund, the nonprofit group that administers the EFA program for the state. 'They've known what their children needed — and now, thanks to this law, more families can access the freedom to choose what works best. This isn't about politics. It's about possibility.' Several leaders of education choice groups praised Ayotte's move on the EFA. "Gov. Ayotte knows that every young Granite Stater has unique needs to fulfil their education. Today, she ensured that every family is empowered with resources to find what works best for them,' said Nick Murray, public affairs manager for yes. every kid. 'We look forward to working with her administration to ensure New Hampshire's EFA program continues to serve families' needs in the best ways possible.' EdChoice President Robert Enlow said New Hampshire becomes the 19th state to offer these vouchers to all students. 'What New Hampshire has done isn't just expand eligibility — it's set a new benchmark for what educational freedom should look like,' Enlow continued. 'We're proud to support the Granite State in realizing the vision Milton Friedman outlined nearly 70 years ago — one in which every family has the freedom to choose, and every child has the opportunity to thrive.' State Sen. Victoria Sullivan, R-Manchester, sponsored the EFA bill that became law. House Democratic Leader Alexis Simpson said a byproduct of the parental rights bill will be to target transgender students who will no longer be able to confide in 'one trusted adult' at school about their views about gender identity that their parents don't know about. "Today, Gov. Kelly Ayotte and State House Republicans turned our classrooms into political battlegrounds. They've passed a bill that forces teachers to out LGBTQ+ teens to potentially abusive parents and makes it harder for educators and DCYF to protect vulnerable kids who need help the most. They've made teachers' jobs a nightmare and put children at risk, all in the name of a hateful culture war. Nobody asked for this.' House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, was the prime author of the parental rights bill. 'By advancing education freedom and the Parental Bill of Rights, we've reaffirmed a simple truth: parents, not bureaucracies, should make decisions about their children's lives. This legislation gives families real choices and ensures their values are respected,' Packard added. klandrigan@
