Electricity takes 10%, Burkina and Mali show solidarity with Niger and start of WYD

2023-08-01 07:51:51

Did you miss the news this early morning? We’ve put together a recap to help you see things more clearly.

Even more than before, you will have to pay close attention to the position of the switches when leaving a room. The regulated electricity tariff increases by 10% from August 1, a first step towards the gradual exit from the tariff shield desired by the government to lighten the burden on public finances. The measure concerns households and small businesses connected to a meter with a power of less than 36 kilovolt-amperes. The annual bill of an average consumer heated with electricity will increase from 1,640 to 1,800 euros per year, according to government calculations. He recalls, however, that the State will continue to support more than a third of the household bill (37% against 43% currently), guaranteeing the French a tariff among the lowest in Europe.

It’s a bit like the union of juntas in West Africa. In a joint statement, military-led Burkina Faso and Mali warned on Monday against any military intervention in Niger to restore Mohamed Bazoum, president overthrown by a putsch on July 26, saying it would be assimilated “as a declaration of war” on their two countries. This warning comes the day after the threat of the use of “force” made by West African leaders, supported by their Western partners, including France. Ouagadougou and Bamako also warned “that any military intervention against Niger would lead to the withdrawal of Burkina Faso and Mali from ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), as well as the adoption of measures of legitimate defense in support of the armed forces and the people of Niger”.

The Catholic world has an appointment in Portugal. World Youth Day (WYD) officially opens in Lisbon on Tuesday, the eve of the arrival of Pope Francis, despite his 86 years and fragile health, and is expected to bring together more than a million believers during mass final on Sunday. The Cardinal-Patriarch of Lisbon will preside at the opening mass in the early evening, at the top of a hill overlooking the city center and the Tagus estuary. The Vatican has not officially confirmed it, but according to the Portuguese Episcopal Conference, the pope is due during his five-day visit to meet privately with victims of sexual assaults on minors committed by members of the clergy, six months after the publication of a shocking report by a commission of independent experts.