Inside Track

In order to deal with new technologies like AI and cryptocurrencies, BRICS nations must work together, Ramaphosa, center, said [PPIO]
 
BRICS countries are being urged to embrace the rapidly developing technologies which have carved a fourth industrial revolution but to do so in a fully collaborative approach.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says that while this digital revolution is the next threshold for BRICS countries, they should work together to ensure that emerging economies have a level playing field.

There are far fewer children living under poverty in South Africa, the Child Gauge 2017 report found [Xinhua]
A new report from South Africa’s Children’s Institute is raising alarm bells that development of children in the country appears to be lagging behind.
The South African Child Gauge, published in Cape Town every year since 2005, monitors the progress of children in the country with particular emphasis on their rights.
This year, the report warned that violence against children remained widespread in South Africa.

Flooding will affect most of Europe, the report says; the Danube reached record levels in Budapest in 2013 [Xinhua]
The European Environment Agency (EEA) warned in a report on Wednesday that all regions of the continent are facing severe meteorological conditions in the years ahead, including rising sea levels, flooding and more extreme weather due to global warming.
It says European nations will face a rise in the frequency and occurrence of heat waves, floods, droughts and storms.

“We want to guarantee the rights of EU citizens who are already living in Britain, and the rights of British nationals in other member states, as early as we can,” May said on Tuesday [Xinhua]
On Tuesday, UK Prime Minister Theresa May delivered her much anticipated speech – and 12 objectives – about her intention to move the country to fully exit from the European Union following the June 23 referendum.

The Dianchi Lake and nearby buildings in Kunming, southwest China’s Yunnan Province. The water quality in the Dianchi Lake has been improved as a series of pollution control works, including construction of sewage treatment facilities and wetlands along the lake, were carried out. This year, a total of 88 water environment treatment projects for Dianchi Lake will be started [Xinhua]
The authorities in the Chinese capital Beijing, which is currently under a red alert smog warning, are now turning to ways of tackling water pollution.

The HSBC survey examined RMB use in 1,600 corporations spanning the Middle East and North Africa, Europe and North America, with the bulk in the Asia-Pacific region [Xinhua]
The Chinese currency renminbi (RMB, also known as the yuan) “has ascended to the world’s fifth most widely used payment currency”, an HSBC survey has shown.
The survey, Renminbi Internationalisation Study 2016, found that corporations are more than ever introducing the RMB into their treasury and “integrating it across various business applications each year”.

The city of Beijing has long been looking for ways to curb its vehicle-related smog [Xinhua}
Beijing will ban high-emission vehicles starting mid-December when the city normally experiences severe smog, Chinese officials have said.
According to the Chinese capital’s newly revised extreme weather emergency response mechanism, set to come into effect on December 15, these vehicles will be restricted from roads when the city issues red or orange smog alerts – the city’s two most serious weather and pollution alerts.

Photo taken on November 1, 2016 shows a screen broadcasting Chinese astronaut Chen Dong on the space lab Tiangong-2 [Xinhua]
Chinese President Xi Jinping has congratulated the two astronauts aboard the space lab Tiangong-2 at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on Wednesday, local media reported.

BRICS is home to 43% of the world’s population [Xinhua]BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – account for 43 per cent of the world’s population and 25 per cent of the global economy.
Despite a global economic slowdown, BRICS has been a main economic engine for the world economy.
Countries such as Brazil and Russia, which struggled with recession in the past two years, are expected to turn the corner and post GDP growth in 2017.

With a range of 400 kilometers, S-400 Triumf is designed to shield from air strikes, strategic, cruise, tactical and operating tactical ballistic missiles and medium-range ballistic missiles [Xinhua]
With only hours before the eighth annual BRICS Summit 2016 opens in Goa, India’s defense forces are anticipating the signing of a $5.85 billion deal for five new-generation Russian S-400 ‘Triumf’ air defense missile systems.
The S-400 is believed to be able to engage all types of aerial targets including aircraft and VLO (Very Low Observable) craft.