Category: Uncategorized

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 11 (Bernama) — The Universal Peace Federation (UPF) is hosting “Summit 2022 and Leadership Conference,” a five-day international summit with related peace events at the Jamsil Lotte Hotel in Seoul, South Korea.

World leaders from dozens of countries gather from Aug 11-15, 2022, to address paths to global peace, with a special emphasis on Africa, the Asia Pacific Region and reconciliation between North and South Korea.

UPF is a non-governmental organisation with General Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. It has been hosting dozens of forums and events that promote peacebuilding with leaders of 157 nations that have diplomatic ties to North and/or South Korea, in an effort to explore prospects for the peaceful reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula.

According to a statement, the highlight of the Aug 12 opening ceremony is a presentation of a resolution to propose the development of a Peace Charter, which follows on the foundation of the Seoul Resolution signed at World Summit 2022 on February 2022 in Seoul by former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Later that same day, participants will hear about a recent UPF Fact-Finding Delegation for Peace on the Korean Peninsula from experts on Korea. In addition, a special program will feature The Washington Times, now celebrating its 40th anniversary.

The Aug 11-15 events will have in-person speakers and participants, as well as a large global audience who will join digitally via a high-tech hybrid format.

— BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 11 (Bernama) — The United Nations Ocean Conference 2022 took place from June 27 to July 1, in Lisbon, Portugal, and has brought together more than 5,000 participants, including world leaders, entrepreneurs, youth, influencers, and scientists.

The conference is aimed to facilitate these stakeholders in finding science-driven innovations and solutions to respond to a multidimensional ocean crisis driven by climate change, overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution.

The Nature Conservancy (TNC), with support from Mary Kay Inc., held an event in collaboration with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Government of Ecuador, the Jocotoco Foundation, the Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Islands, Re:wild, and the Marine Conservation Institute.

Deborah Gibbins, Chief Operating Officer at Mary Kay said, “We’re honoured to join forces with the first type of people to develop the tools and resources needed to protect our oceans for generations to come.”

TNC and UNEP moderated the event, highlighting the critical importance of ensuring quality Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) by enhancing governance, effective management, and climate resilience and the significant roles that communities, non-governmental organisations, governments, philanthropy, the private sector, and cross-sector collaborations play in effective MPAs.

The event stood out at the conference, as it emphasised the need to improve the management of existing areas, instead of promoting the establishment of new protection.

According to a statement, with less than 3 per cent of the ocean effectively protected, stakeholders call for strengthening global efforts to protect at least 30 per cent of our ocean with a focus on improving the management of existing areas, rather than promoting the establishment of new protection.

Dr. Lizzie Mcleod of TNC noted, “Effective management is foundational to achieving 30×30 commitments – a campaign to protect 30 per cent of the world’s ocean by 2030. With support from Mary Kay, TNC, UNEP, and other partners, we are developing tools for marine managers to improve marine management, support sustainable financing, and guide marine habitat restoration.

— BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 (Bernama) — The city of Suzhou in China recently hosted the ASEAN Plus Three (ASEAN+3) Forum on Industrial Chain and Supply Chain Cooperation on July 29, 2022 with its sub-forum on digital economy catching the spotlight.

In a statement, the ASEAN+3 Forum organising committee said as a global industrial city advantageous in the open economy, Suzhou shared new ways to promote digital infrastructure construction, innovative application of digital technologies and green development of industrial chain and supply chain in the region.

It said the city has been making active efforts in recent years to promote the development of the digital economy, digital transformation and green and quality development by strengthening digital thinking and the philosophy of green development.

At the same time, it said information technology, biomedicine and other pioneering industries have been actively laid out.

In 2021, the value added of core industries in the digital economy hit US$48.84 billion (US$1=RM4.453), accounting for 14.6 per cent of the city’s gross domestic product.

Suzhou Municipal Development and Reform Commission said the city would continue to implement the strategy of digital transformation to build Suzhou into a first-class, globally renowned hub for the development of the digital economy in China in its five-year development plan.

— BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 (Bernama) — European pioneer for integrated therapies for rare diseases and in critical care, the AOP Health Group has signed an agreement with Leukos Biotech, a spin-off company founded by the Barcelona-based Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute in early July.

The agreement signed covers the option for the development of newly discovered chemical substance within any treatable indication, not limited to oncological or rare diseases, according to a statement.

At first, AOP Health will focus on the development of treatment options for Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS). Both are special disease types of leukemia that often start in the bone marrow.

Chief business officer of AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals GmbH, a member of AOP Health, Agnes Kohl said: “Based on positive data, our plan is to expand the development for further orphan indications even outside of AML and MDS at a later stage.

“With this agreement, we may be able to broaden the portfolio within our therapeutic areas offering even more treatment options for patients.”

As AOP Health focuses on rare, hemato-oncological cancers and has many years of experience in the development and commercialisation of hemato-oncological treatments, the company will drive the further development of the substance in cooperation with Leukos based on a new mode of action.

The company focuses on research, development and global sales of innovative treatment solutions and specialises in therapies for rare diseases and intensive care.

— BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) — New findings from the HPTN 084 long-acting cabotegravir (CAB) for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) study has revealed that reductions in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) incidence were sustained in the 12 months following trial unblinding (Nov 5, 2020 through Nov 5, 2021).

Researchers from the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) presented the updated results of the study at the AIDS 2022 conference in Montreal, Canada, HPTN said in a statement.

“These results are encouraging as CAB efficacy was sustained during the 12 months following unblinding, confirming a high level of protection against HIV acquisition among study participants assigned female at birth,” said Dr. Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, HPTN 084 protocol chair, director of research at Wits RHI, and research professor at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa.

HPTN 084 is an ongoing Phase 3 randomised, controlled trial that previously demonstrated the superiority of ViiV Healthcare’s CAB compared to daily oral tenofovir/emtricitabine (TDF/FTC) for HIV prevention in individuals assigned female at birth.

HPTN 084 enrolled 3,223 cisgender women at research sites in Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, Dr Myron Cohen, HPTN co-principal investigator, and director of the Institute for Global Health at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, said: “HIV infection continues to threaten the health of women worldwide.

“Empowering women with safe and effective PrEP options is critical to reducing HIV as a global health threat.”

HPTN is a worldwide collaborative clinical trials network that brings together investigators, ethicists, community members, and other partners to develop and test the safety and efficacy of interventions designed to prevent the acquisition and transmission of HIV.

— BERNAMA