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Day: 5 May 2021

Lebanon school reopens thanks to Monaco associations

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2021

Through the hard work and generosity of three local organisations, the Fréres Saint-Joseph school in Beirut has been able to reopen its doors to 300 students after it was destroyed by the devastating explosions of 2020.

The associations – AMADE, Les Amis du Liban and Monaco Aide et Présence pour le Liban, banded together to rebuild the school severely damaged by the explosions that rocked the city of Beruit last summer on 4thAugust 2020.

The school, Fréres Saint-Joseph, is home to 300 vulnerable students ranging from kindergarten to high school and had structural damage to all 24 of its classrooms as well as administrative facilities.

The mobilisation efforts of the three organisations have seen students welcomed back to a safe environment conducive for learning and have given the school a facelift. In addition to renovating and fitting out classrooms, sanitary facilities and a new playground have been built.

Additionally, a new dedicated school bus servicing students who were deprived of a means of transportation due to the explosions has been donated to the establishment thanks to the support of the Monaco government.

A mission by AMADE last April secured the necessary approvals to begin the works, and upon completion, the school made a special plaque that now sits on the façade commemorating the involvement and assistance of the Monegasque actors.

The aide doesn’t stop there. Ongoing assistance for running costs is being provided through the partnership with the associations, making it possible for tuition to be covered for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Without this support, several parents would be unable to pay as a result of the current economic crisis in the country, disallowing these students a chance for a proper education.

Technical support is also being provided by the Lebanese association Paradis d’Enfants, offering the teaching staff their expert advice on structuring lessons and giving them the most modern teaching techniques.

 

Photos provided by AMADE
 
 

Monaco gearing up for E-Prix weekend

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2021

An audience of 6,500 local spectators and small gatherings on terraces and yachts will be allowed for this weekend’s E-Prix. But what will the competition look like?
La Rascasse, the Grand Hotel Hairpin and Casino Square are all part of the Monaco Grand Prix vernacular, conjuring images of legendary races made of this legendary course. Today, motorsport fans have even more to love, with the fairly recent addition of the Monaco E-Prix, the all-electric car race that is welcoming its fourth edition this weekend.
Twenty-four top-notch e-car pilots will be taking to the streets of Monaco on Saturday 8th May, and for the first time ever, they will be following the full 3.3-kilometre course as their petrol-fuelled brethren.
Dutchman Nick de Vries currently sits at the top of the E-Prix standings, followed by Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne and Britain’s Sam Bird. At the previous Monaco E-Prix, Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne took the top spot, and this year, with the new track, it is anyone’s to win.
Monaco resident and E-Prix driver Lucas DiGrassi said it best when speaking to automobilsport.com, declaring, “Monaco is made for Formula E.”
“For me, it’s the race that I am looking forward to the most,” said DiGrassi. “With the long version of the circuit, we now drive past all of the iconic places. It will be a great experience for us as racing drivers and the scenes will also be fantastic for all of the spectators watching on TV. To race near my home, where I go jogging or shopping every day, is very special.”
This year’s event will be slightly different in the way it is run, wholly due to the ongoing health crisis, but organisers are confident the excitement will still be palpable.
The event will follow the same guidelines set out by the government for the recent Historic Grand Prix: a grandstand maximum capacity of 6,500 seated spectators, with attendance limited to local residents, students, workers and clients of Monaco’s hotels, as well as to those who have received direct invitations from the Automobile Club of Monaco. Tickets are free and can be purchased at ticket offices on the Promenade Honoré II as well as the Tourism Office on Boulevard des Moulins.
Unlike the Historic GP, small gatherings will be allowed on terraces and yachts for the E-Prix. There is a limit of one person per square metre on land, and a maximum of 12 people on boats.
 
 
 

Hospital receives generous donation

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2021

Philanthropist couple Angela and Jean Garavagno have presented the Princess Grace Hospital with a cheque of €2 million, allowing the facility to purchase state-of-the-art equipment and fund critical projects.

The generous donation was handed to the Princess Grace Hospital Centre (CHPG) on Tuesday 4th May by the well-loved local philanthropists.

During the handover ceremony, the couple expressed their thanks to the hospital and also unveiled a donor’s plaque engraved with their names to commemorate the event.

“Being in contact with the CHPG for many years, we have been able to fully appreciate the organisation and efficiency of the various departments as well as the perfect friendliness of the staff. This is the reason why we have decided to make this well-deserved donation,” said Mr and Mrs Garavagno.

According to Director of the CHPG Benoîte de Sevelinges, their donation will allow the hospital to acquire a neuro-navigation system in ENT, a robot for transcranial magnetic stimulation in psychiatry, and a system of hemodynamic monitoring for cardiology. It will also help fund projects for clinical research, palliative care and quality of life at work.

This is not the first act of generosity displayed by the Garavagnos. In April 2019 they donated two villas to be used for social purposes to the Italian town of Trinità near Cuneo. One was given to the Municipality, the other to an elder care facility. This kindness spurred the government to offer them honorary citizenship for “high social and welfare value” just three months later in July 2019.

 

‘Celebrating DeFi and NFTs’

by: Cassandra Tanti
05/05/2021

Blockchain, DeFi and NFT startups looking to raise funds will be able to meet with a select group of qualified investors at this year’s annual Global Blockchain Congress in Dubai in June.
The 7th edition of the flagship Global Blockchain Congress by Agora Group is taking place on 21st and 22nd June 2021 in Dubai.
The theme this year is ‘Celebrating DeFi and NFTs’ and the event will boast an impressive line-up of speakers including keynote addresses by Executive Chairman and CEO of DMCC Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Managing Partner of the Blockchain Founders Fund Aly Madhavji, Managing Editor of Cointelegraph Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr, and many more.
The event is a closed door, exclusive congress between investors and hand-picked Blockchain projects looking to raise funds. It is the only event of its kind and will bring together qualified investors – VCs, private equity firms, family offices, crypto funds and High Net Worth Individuals – with Blockchain, DeFi and NFT start-ups looking to raise funds.
“Pitches are good and all, but have you ever sat on a table for eght hours with 30 minutes of one-on-one meetings with 50 rotating investors? Agora is next level,” says Nikita Sachdev, Co-Founder of LunaPR.io. “I went to this conference last year, and it was like speed dating with investors.”
According to Agora Group, the first six editions of the Global Blockchain Congress have hosted more than 450 investors, allowing over 90 blockchain start-ups to raise millions in funds for their projects.
Topics to be covered this year include ‘What do regulators think of NFT’s?’, ‘The DeFi insurance sub-sector’, and ‘Covid’s impact on the future of Blockchain’.
Only 15 Blockchain and DeFi start-ups will be introduced to around 60 investors with a budget of over $5 billion.
To participate, apply here:  http://bit.ly/The7thGBC
 
 
Monaco Life with Agora press release
 
 

UN puts drowning on international agenda

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2021

The Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation has welcomed a move by the United Nations to adopt a new resolution on drowning prevention with Monaco as co-sponsor.
Called the UN Resolution on Global Drowning Prevention, the initiative will provide a framework for action for all member countries. This topic has been near and dear to the heart of the Princess Charlene Foundation since 2012, which has publicly applauded the plan on social media.
In order to heighten awareness and as a call to action, the UN has named 25th July as World Drowning Prevention Day.
The resolution was introduced at the UN General Assembly in New York by the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN, Rabab Fatima, who said “Drowning is a major cause of global mortality, accounting for a greater loss of life annually than to maternal mortality or malnutrition. The imperative to act on drowning is not simply moral or political. The economic cost is equally untenable.”
Several voluntary proposals to member states have been given and include developing national drowning prevention plans, implementing recommended interventions including barriers, supervision, swim skills, rescue and resuscitation training, and boating regulation as well as introducing water safety, swimming and first aid lessons as part of school curricula.
Additionally, the resolution aims to address large data gaps by asking member states to include drowning in their vital statistics and civil registries in order to get a clearer picture of drowning-related mortality rates.
There have been 2.5 million recorded deaths caused by drowning worldwide since 1990. The vast majority, 90%, have occurred in low and middle income nations and many could have been avoided if programmes existed to teach people, especially children and adolescents, swimming basics.
Drowning impacts children and teens in rural areas, especially in Oceania and Asia, and is one of the primary causes of childhood deaths for one to nine-year-olds in these regions.
 
Photo source: Pixabay