Tag: Steps

  • Estate planning: 3 key steps to consider

    Estate planning: 3 key steps to consider

    No matter how old you are or how much money you have, it’s worth creating an estate plan.
    Estate planning: 3 key steps to consider
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  • Summary of Canada’s Anti-Spam Law

    The status of the recently introduced Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) has been under the limelight for sometime now. It does not seem likely that this law will come into force until late 2013, until all the operational details are made official. Meanwhile, it’s important to understand the recent developments, the progress made by the CRTC (Canada Radio-Television Telecommunications Commission), and the steps to be taken before the law is made official…

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    http://www.associationofmarketing.org/articles/view.php?article_id=7540

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  • WHO Director-General calls on G20 to Fight, Unite, and Ignite against COVID-19

    Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, addressed Heads of State at today’s extraordinary G20 Leaders’ Summit focused on COVID-19. 

    He told them, “You have come together to confront the defining health crisis of our time: We are at war with a virus that threatens to tear us apart – if we let it.“

    He welcomed the G20‘s initiative to find joint solutions and work together: “This is a global crisis that requires a global response.”

     “Fight, unite, ignite“

    Dr Tedros’ call was clear. First, he urged leaders to fight without excuses, without regrets – thanking countries who have already taken steps and urgently asking that they do more.

    Second, he encouraged them to unite, stressing that no country can fight this alone, and calling on all countries to build on the solidarity already sparked by the crisis.

    Third, he exhorted them to ignite a global movement to ensure this never happens again. 

    He welcomed G20 leaders‘ commitment “to do whatever it takes to overcome the pandemic” to protect lives and livelihoods, as well as restore confidence and shore up stability currently threatened in trade and other sectors, and to commit to take all necessary health measures and seek to ensure adequate financing to contain the pandemic and protect people, especially the most vulnerable.“

    The G20 committed to support and further strengthen WHO’s mandate in coordinating the response, and called for full funding of WHO‘s Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan.

    G20 members pledged to work together to increase research and development funding for vaccines and medicines, strengthen international scientific cooperation, and leverage digital technologies.

    In turn, they tasked WHO and other relevant organizations with assessing gaps in pandemic preparedness and report the findings of this assessment to the G20 Finance and Health Ministers, in order to establish a global initiative on pandemic preparedness and response together.

     

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    https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/26-03-2020-who-s-director-general-calls-on-g20-to-fight-unite-and-ignite-against-covid-19

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  • COVID-19: Should Education Hit A Pause Or Are We Just Unprepared In Nigeria? By Olabisi Deji-Folutile

    COVID-19: Should Education Hit A Pause Or Are We Just Unprepared In Nigeria? By Olabisi Deji-Folutile

    Olabisi Deji-Folutile
    Olabisi Deji-Folutile

    COVID-19: Should Education Hit A Pause Or Are We Just Unprepared In Nigeria? By Olabisi Deji-Folutile 5Olabisi Deji-Folutile


     

    The world is facing its most trying and unprecedented times as the last few weeks have been most challenging for almost everybody.  What started in Wuhan, China, as an epidemic, has put the entire world in disarray.  Major streets across the globes have become empty. Both the rich and the poor are being ravaged by the plague of COVID-19, which the World Health Organisation has rightly described as a pandemic. Work places have been shut; religious and social gatherings banned and many countries are on total lockdown, in a bid to curb the spread of this viral disease. Expectedly, schools are also affected across board.  Every day people are being told to embrace social distancing and suddenly things like human contacts, hitherto considered as free gifts of life, are becoming very expensive.

    No one knows when this whole chaos will end, so people are making different kinds of adjustments to cope with the situation while it lasts. Many companies have shifted their operations online. Likewise, many schools have opted for e-learning, making use of available technology for teaching and learning.

     Universities around the world are making use of communication technology to ease the effects of the global pandemic on their academic calendars.   In China, universities are going for online teaching instead of in-class teaching; the ones in Australia have moved their classes online just as UK universities have suspended face-to-face teaching.  Turkey started its remote university classes on March 23. In Kenya, universities have activated communication between lecturers and students via social media platforms and emails while classes have gone totally online in the Philippines and Kyrgyzstan.  Teachers in France have been working with their students on Zoom.  

    Just a few days ago, Ghana’s President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, directed the ministry of education to collaborate with the ministry of communications in rolling out open learning programmes in response to the closure of all educational institutions in the country. In the same vein, Mount Kenya University’s Vice-Chancellor Peter Wanderi, has announced the extension of online teaching platforms for regular students to facilitate the learning process.  And to take care of the over six million students that have experienced disruption to their studies, ten North African and 12 Arab countries have begun work on an e-learning initiative to facilitate open and online education.

    These are some of the steps being taken across the globe to bridge the gap created by school closure in the wake of COVID-19.  Unfortunately, while all these activities are going on in other parts of the world, Nigerian government has not said anything about steps being taken to take care of its students’ community.  Rather, the only message from the Federal Government was a total closure of all tertiary institutions and FG-owned unity schools till further notice. A statement issued by the National Universities Commission simply said universities would remain   shut   for one month while the Education Minister, Adamu Adamu, said tertiary institutions would remain shut indefinitely.

     Assuming government has been overwhelmed by the burden of controlling the spread of COVID- 19, hence its silence on options for learning for its teeming student population, one would have expected the higher institutions themselves to at least say something, but as it is, they too are not helping matters. The silence in our universities has been deafening. To worsen the situation, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, decided to choose this time, of all times, to embark on an indefinite strike. One wonders how the academic body   manages to feel comfortable being on a strike at a time when researchers across the globe   are busy looking for solution to a pandemic that is ravaging the entire world.  This kind of action makes one query the essence of having Research and Development as a core component of tertiary education in Nigeria when researchers can be nowhere to be found at a critical time of societal needs.

    By now, our researchers should be adding their voices to the various efforts being made towards developing a vaccine or cure for COVID-19. After all, universities are expected to proffer solutions to societal problems.  This is a wrong time for ASUU to embark on an indefinite strike. This should be a time of strategising and proffering solutions. This is really the time for everyone to get involved. Besides, I think Nigerian universities should also be more forthcoming on their responses to the challenges posed to their students by COVID-19.

    As it is, religious organisations are doing far better in terms of their responses to the effects of this pandemic on their primary constituencies.  Many of them have devised other means of getting the attention of   their members following several government directives prohibiting either gatherings or limiting the number of people allowed to congregate at a time.   Almost all the churches have switched to online platforms for their services.  How come religious organisations are working hard to keep their flocks and both government and higher institutions in Nigeria are just moving on as if all is well?  No word on how to keep the students busy or keep them engaged using available online technology! Should teaching and learning be restricted to the classrooms alone in this 21st century?

     Nigeria has always been described as a religious society. Corona Virus has further exposed the smartness of our religious bodies and the dullness of those in charge of our public educational institutions.  This is not an attempt to blame any religious organisation for having the foresight to deploy technology in reaching their audiences. Instead, it is a wakeup call to managers of our educational institutions to adopt and use available technology to help their students at a time like this.

    Apart from the National Open University of Nigeria, which basically runs online, I doubt if there is any other public university in the country that has capacity for online teaching.  This is in spite of the launch of the Nigerian Communication Satellite known as NIGCOMSAT by the Nigerian Government first in 2007 and then NIGCOMSAT-IR in December 2011, to provide critical ICT backbone infrastructure to support e-learning, among others in the country. 

    What is the essence of investing so much money in a communication satellite if it cannot be deployed at a time of need?   Those in charge of NIGCOMSAT, the commercial arm of Nigeria’s space centre, have consistently claimed that the technology has the capacity to cover the entire Africa.  If that is the case, why is the country still struggling to deploy internet connectivity facilities to its schools to aide e-learning?  If we are truly a serious country, by now, all the schools in urban and rural areas should have been connected to the e-learning services.

    No doubt, COVID-19 has exposed Nigeria’s unpreparedness for e-learning. But, we can’t afford to remain where we are. That is why it is important for every institution to start thinking of how to deploy available technology in the world for the good of their students at this critical period.   Universities should as a matter of urgency migrate online. This shouldn’t be another season of waiting and probably wasting for the Nigerian student.  There is no reason why any higher institution worth its name should suspend all academic activities until the end of Corona Virus with all the available resources and technology in the world today. The minimum expected of them is to upload teaching resources online for students to have access to them.  At least this will give the students the opportunity to learn on their own.

    This is also an opportunity for telecommunications companies like Glo, MTN and the rest of them to make a difference in Nigeria’s educational institutions. They can as part of their corporate social responsibility decide to boost internet facilities in universities and other educational institutions; or provide data at cheaper rates to help poor students have access to the internet for online learning.

    I know there are obvious stumbling blocks to digital learning in Nigeria. Many students don’t even have access to devices while the cost of buying data is still high. These challenges and others have provided    telecommunications companies a huge opportunity of making a difference in Nigerian higher institutions by providing e-learning solutions and broadband connectivity to universities and other higher institutions.

    They can as part of their corporate social responsibility decide to boost internet facilities in universities and other higher institutions; or help poor students who have limited or poor internet access to enhance online learning.

    Olabisi Deji-Folutile is the Editor-in-Chief of Franktalknow.com and member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. Email: bisideji@yahoo.co.uk

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    COVID-19: Should Education Hit A Pause Or Are We Just Unprepared In Nigeria? By Olabisi Deji-Folutile
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  • Minister expresses confidence in TNB’s preparedness during MCO

    Minister expresses confidence in TNB’s preparedness during MCO

    Minister expresses confidence in TNB’s preparedness during MCO 6

    KUALA LUMPUR: Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah has expressed confidence on the preparedness of Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) in revving up its capacity to meet electricity supply demand in the Peninsula during the Movement Control Order (MCO).

    “I have seen the preparation made by TNB and I am very confident of their efforts. While Malaysians obey the order to stay home, TNB’s employees play an important role in ensuring that the electricity supply is stable.

    “I am also informed that TNB is ready to ensure that electricity supply to hospitals, including health clinics in both urban and rural areas, is assured,“ he said in a statement issued by TNB today.

    The government has decided to extend the MCO, which started on March 18, for another two weeks until April 14.

    Shamsul Anuar, who visited the Southern and Metro Regional Control Centres and the National Load Dispatch Centre at the TNB headquarters in Bangsar here, said TNB plays an important role as the country find ways to contain Covid-19.

    The minister was accompanied by his deputy, Ali Biju; Energy and Natural Resources Ministry secretary-general Datuk Zurinah Pawanteh, ministry deputy secretary-general Noor Afifah Abdul Razak, and Energy Commission chief operating officer Abdul Rahim Ibrahim.

    Shamsul Anuar and the entourage were briefed by TNB president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.

    Since the start of the MCO, TNB has taken proactive steps by placing 79 sets of mobile generators with various capacities nationwide. Portable power sets have also been mobilised and stand ready when needed.

    The electricity supply system to dedicated health centres for Covid-19 cases, including the Sungai Buloh Hospital and Kuala Lumpur Hospital, has also been strengthened. – Bernama

    Minister expresses confidence in TNB’s preparedness during MCO
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  • Your 2013 Mid-Year Check-In — 5 Steps to End 2013 With a Bang Rather Than a Whimper

    With 2013 half over, it’s time to pause, take a breath, and see if you’re on track with your goals. This is an essential part of running a successful business — taking structured time throughout the year to work ON your biz and make sure the path you’re on is, in fact, the path you want to be on. Read on for 5 Steps to completing your mid-year check-in…

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    http://www.associationofmarketing.org/articles/view.php?article_id=7919

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  • Higher step count linked to lower yearly risk of death, up to a point

    Higher step count linked to lower yearly risk of death, up to a point

    An analysis of the daily steps taken by about 5000 people in the US has found that a higher step count is linked to a lower yearly risk of death, although the effect tails off above 12,000 steps
    Higher step count linked to lower yearly risk of death, up to a point
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  • Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus

     

    Geneva, 23 March 2020: FIFA, the international governing body of football, and the World Health Organization (WHO) have teamed up to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) by launching a new awareness campaign led by world-renowned footballers, who are calling on all people around the world to follow five key steps to stop the spread of the disease. 

    The “Pass the message to kick out coronavirus” campaign promotes five key steps for people to follow to protect their health in line with WHO guidance, focused on hand washing, coughing etiquette, not touching your face, physical distance and staying home if feeling unwell. 

    “FIFA and its President Gianni Infantino have been actively involved in passing the message against this pandemic since the very beginning,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the virtual launch of the campaign at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. “Be it through campaigns or funding, FIFA has stood up to the coronavirus, and I am delighted that world football is supporting WHO to kick out the coronavirus. I have no doubt with this type of support that together we will win.” 

    “We need teamwork to combat the coronavirus,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “FIFA has teamed up with WHO because health comes first. I call upon the football community worldwide to join us in supporting this campaign to pass the message even further. Some of the greatest players to have played the beautiful game have put their names to the campaign and are united in their desire to pass the message to kick out COVID-19.”

    Twenty-eight players are involved in the video campaign, which is being published in 13 languages.

    Sami Al Jaber (KSA), Alisson Becker (BRA), Emre Belözoğlu (TUR), Jared Borgetti (MEX), Gianluigi Buffon (ITA), Iker Casillas (ESP), Sunil Chhetri (IND), Youri Djorkaeff (FRA), Han Duan (CHN), Samuel Eto’o (CMR), Radamel Falcao (COL), Laura Georges (FRA), Valeri Karpin (RUS), Miroslav Klose (GER), Philipp Lahm (GER), Gary Lineker (ENG), Carli Lloyd (USA), Lionel Messi (ARG), Mido (EGY), Michael Owen (ENG), Park Ji-sung (KOR) , Carles Puyol (ESP), Célia Šašić (GER), Asako Takakura (JPN), Yaya Touré (CIV), Juan Sebastián Verón (ARG), Sun Wen (CHN) and Xavi Hernández (ESP).

    A video campaign, which will be published on player and FIFA digital channels, is also being provided as individual localized files to the 211 FIFA member associations and media agencies, together with a graphics toolkit for implementation on social media to further pass the message. 

     

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus 7

    Hands:

    “It starts with your hands,” says Alisson Becker, WHO Goodwill ambassador for health promotion, Liverpool FC and Brazil goalkeeper, and The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper, 2019. “Please wash your hands frequently with soap and water or an alcohol-based solution.”

    Such frequent washing with soap and water, or preferably with an alcohol-based hand solution, kills viruses that may be on your hands. It is simple, but it is very important.

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus 8

    Elbows:

    “Cover your nose and mouth with a bent elbow or tissue when you sneeze or cough,” says Carli Lloyd two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup winner from the United States. “Dispose of tissue immediately and wash your hands.”

    Droplets spread the coronavirus. By following respiratory hygiene, you protect the people around you from contracting viruses, such as cold, flu and coronavirus.

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus 9

    Face:

    “Avoid touching your face, particularly your eyes, nose or mouth to prevent the virus from entering your body,” adds FC Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi, The Best FIFA Men’s Player in 2019, and a multiple FIFA Ballon d’Or winner.

    Hands touch too many surfaces and can quickly pick up viruses. Once contaminated, hands can transfer the virus to your face, from where the virus can move inside your body, making you feel unwell.

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus 10

    Distance:

    “In terms of social interaction, take a step back,” says Han Duan, who represented China PR 188 times in an international career that spanned 11 years. “Stay at least one metre distance from others.”

    By maintaining such social distancing, you are helping to avoid breathing in any droplets from someone who sneezes or coughs in close proximity.

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus 11

    Feel – know your symptoms:

    “If you feel unwell, stay home,” concludes Samuel Eto’o, former FC Barcelona and Cameroon striker, who represented his country 114 times. “Please follow all instructions provided by your local health authorities.”

    If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention and call in advance.

    Keep informed as local health authorities provide the latest information on the situation in your area. Please follow their specific instructions, and call in advance to allow them to direct you to the appropriate local health facility. This serves to protect you and to help prevent the spread of virus and other infections.

    FIFA have also pledged $10 million to support the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for WHO.

    For more information, please consult @WHO and follow the latest information online. 

     

     

    Pass the message: Five steps to kicking out coronavirus
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