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Day: 9 August 2021

Princess Charlene: “Rhino horn is not cool!”

by: Cassandra Tanti
09/08/2021

Princess Charlene has launched her anti-poaching campaign for rhinos in Africa, Chasing Zero, with a very simple message and dramatic self portrait.

“If we don’t do something to save our rhinos and endangered animals soon, it will be too late,” says the Princess on her Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation South Africa website. “With our #chasingzero initiative, we can stop the atrocity of wildlife poaching and educate people about conservation and preservation. Your support and contributions make an enormous difference.”

Princess Charlene shared the campaign with her 281,000 followers on Instagram, including a black and white photograph of herself in traditional dress and dramatic makeup.

As encouragement for people to donate to the cause, the Princess is offering two tickets to the Monaco 2022 F1 Grand Prix including flights and accommodation, as well as other exciting prizes.

In a recent interview with South Africa Radio 702 host Mandy Wiener, the Princess revealed that she had partnered with her husband’s Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation to help save the rhinoceros.

“There is a deterioration of a species, the rhinoceros, that has walked this planet for millions of years and is on the verge of extinction. Something needs to be done about this. I am using every network and every means possible to get the attention of the world, to get everyone behind me to stop this,” said Princess Charlene, who also revealed that she is unlikely to return to the Principality until October due to a severe ear infection.

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Photo from HSH Princess Charlene’s Instagram page

Europe: Greece gets €4 billion in EU pandemic recovery fund

by: Cassandra Tanti
09/08/2021

Greece on Monday received €4 billion, its first tranche of money from an €800 billion EU recovery fund meant to help the bloc bounce back from the impact of the pandemic and at the same time make their economies greener and more digitalised.
The European Commission on Monday disbursed the €4 billion to Greece in pre-financing, equivalent to 13% of the country’s grant and loan allocation under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
Greece is one of the first countries receiving a pre-financing payment under the RRF. The pre-financing will help to kick-start the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in Greece’s recovery and resilience plan.
The Commission will authorise further disbursements based on the implementation of the investments and reforms outlined in Greece’s recovery and resilience plan. The country is set to receive €30.5 billion in total over the lifetime of its plan (€17.8 billion in grants and €12.7 billion in loans).
Today’s disbursement follows the recent successful implementation of the first borrowing operations under NextGenerationEU. By the end of the year, the Commission intends to raise up to a total of €80 billion in long-term funding, to be complemented by short-term EU-Bills, to fund the first planned disbursements to Member States under NextGenerationEU.
Part of NextGenerationEU, the RRF will provide €723.8 billion to support investments and reforms across Member States. The Greek plan is part of the unprecedented EU response to emerge stronger from the Covid-19 crisis, fostering the green and digital transitions and strengthening resilience and cohesion in our societies.
Greece’s sustainable reforms include financing the interconnection with the Cyclades Islands and increasing the potential for renewable energy sources as well as storage capacity, supporting the digital transition, and strengthening active labour market policies to increase full-time employment, also for long-term unemployed and disadvantaged people.
“I am delighted that today Greece will receive the first disbursement of funds under NextGenerationEU,” said President Ursula von der Leyen. “This is the start of the implementation of Greece’s ambitious recovery and resilience plan, Greece 2.0, and the beginning of a greener and more digital future for the country. The European Commission will stand right by your side, to make this plan a success.”
 
 
 
 

Contemporary art trade show returns to the Big Top

by: Stephanie Horsman
09/08/2021

International contemporary art trade fair art3f is back in the Principality this month giving art lovers and collectors a chance to discover new talent as well as uncover treasures from already established artists.   

The Chapiteau of Fontvieille will be hosting the art3f art trade fair for the first time ever in Monaco from 21st to 23rd August. Known for being a showcase for up and coming talent and for offering amazing pieces at reasonable prices, the art3f exhibition boasts a warm and friendly atmosphere for art lovers to mingle with artists, learn about art and perhaps find just the right piece to add to one’s home.

The fair’s website calls the event “unbiased and uninhibited”, exhibiting more than 3,000 works from a carefully selected group of painters, sculptors, photographers and ceramists, over 200 in all. The artists are on site to answer questions, giving the event an air of intimacy not always experienced at gallery shows.

A bar and restaurant will also be available for “gourmet breaks”.

Art3f’s first stop this year is the Principality and will be followed by shows in Paris, Luxembourg, Lausanne, Marseille and Nantes, to name a few.

 
 

 

First AS Monaco game of season ends in draw

by: Stephanie Horsman
09/08/2021

AS Monaco hit the pitch against Nantes at home in front of fans for the first time in 10 months, ending the evening with an acceptable but not wholly satisfying final score of one to one.
On a night that saw the return of supporters, new uniforms and the debuts of Monaco’s newest recruits, Jean Lucas and Myron Boadu, fans of the Red and Whites had high hopes for the night.
As it turned out, they didn’t have quite the ending they had hoped for, but still came out with a respectable one to one tie against a well-organised Nantes team.
“We had hoped for a victory, but the other team did too,” said Coach Niko Kovac after the game. “They only had one chance and made it count. For our part, we had a lot of chances without being able to score more. We’re a little disappointed, but that’s football. We started off the same way last season (2-2 against Reims), and now we must move forward.”
Monaco’s Gelson Martins opened scoring 14 minutes into play, giving him the distinction of making the first Ligue 1 goal of the season. He knocked it through the far left post after a fantastic pass from teammate Caio Henrique.
The team played well, but not as well as they should have considering they had possession for three-quarters of the match and had three times the number of attempts on goal, outgunning Nantes on that front 15 to five. Still, the tries mean nothing without the conversions.
Coach Kovac acknowledged this saying, “Last season we didn’t concede a lot of goals in these phases of the game. Mistakes can happen, and sometimes they can cost you a goal, at other times not. We had plenty of possession and we created chances for ourselves. We will have a better result next time.”
Despite not securing the win, it was a good enough start to a season which will no doubt ramp up quickly.
Monaco returns on Tuesday at 8pm with another home game, this time in the rematch against Sparta Prague for the third preliminary round of Champion’s League play, followed by more Ligue 1 action on Friday at 9pm where they head to Lorient.
 
 
 

 Marie-Pierre Gramaglia stepping down 

by: Stephanie Horsman
09/08/2021

Minister of Public Works, Environment and Town Planning Marie-Pierre Gramaglia has announced she will be retiring from her post on 1st September.
After more than a decade heading up the Ministry of Public Works, Environment and Town Planning, Marie-Pierre Gramaglia will be departing her position on 1st September, making way for Céline Canon-Daigoni to take her place.
Gramaglia has been a trailblazer in the Monaco government, being the only woman currently to head a governmental department. On top of this, her job was to oversee construction projects in the Principality, a traditionally masculine field.
Gramaglia was trained at the Centre for International Intellectual Property Studies in public and private international law and also became a qualified notaire. She started her career in the private sector before turning to public service in 1993. Amongst her many roles, she was technical advisor to the Finance Department in 2005 and Director of Electronic Communications in 2008.
In 2011, she was elevated to her current position where she became known as “Madame Chantier”.
Canon-Daigoni, who is a graduate of University of Aix-Marseille and IAE Lille, followed up her undergraduate studies by going on to obtain a Master of Science at Staffordshire University.
She started out at auto parts manufacturer Mecaplast before joining the management team at the Department of Economic Expansion, then Fiscal Services from 2001 to 2010. After, she was named Secretary General to the Department of Health and Social affairs, where she simultaneously took on the role of Deputy Chair at the Monaco Institute of Sports Medicine. In 2018, she took on the job of Secretary General at the Oceanographic Institute.
Now she will overseeing the Principality’s construction projects, including the new expansion of the Princess Grace Hospital.