Record Rice Yield

A team led by Yuan Longping， known in China as the “father of hybrid rice，” set a record for hybrid rice production with an average yield of 988.1 kg per mu （0.0667 hectares）. Hybrid rice is any genealogy of rice that has been created through crossbreeding between different types of rice. Experts from the China National Rice Research Institute， Wuhan University and the Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences confirmed the new record. The three organizations combined efforts to harvest three lots from a farm of 101.2 mu （6.75 hectares） in Niuxing Village， Longhui County in central Chinas Hunan Province. Yuan， 83， an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering， developed the first variety of hybrid rice to be grown in China in 1974.

Farmers Favor Tobacco

Zimbabwe， one of the worlds major tobacco producers， is expected to see a surge in its output next year as more farmers shift to grow this profitable cash crop， said Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board （TIMB）， a regulatory and advisory statutory body in Zimbabwe. Its figures show that at least 64，780 farmers have so far registered to grow tobacco during the 2013-14 cropping season， with one-third of them first-time growers. People have left some food crops for tobacco due to attractively high prices and orderly marketing， according to TIMB top official Andrew Matibiri. Planting will begin at the beginning of the rainy season， usually in November. Tobacco is one of Zimbabwes top agricultural exports， and contributes 10.7 percent of the countrys GDP.

Economy Declines

Kenyas economy registered 4.3 percent growth in the second quarter， slightly slower than the 4.4 percent growth it experienced over the same period last year， according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. The bureau said the growth was mainly buoyed by strong expansions in agriculture， forestry and manufacturing， as well as electricity， water and financial intermediation. It said hotels and restaurants recorded a significant reduction while wholesale and retail trade growth slowed marginally. The report comes after the government expressed confidence that economic growth will remain strong and unshaken by the recent terrorist attack

Advocating Gender Equality

The 2013 Ibrahim Index of African Governance， released in London in October， reported Rwanda as Africas top-performing advocate of gender equality， followed by Seychelles， Mozambique， South Africa and Botswana. Rwandas score on the index， on a range of one to 100， is 90.2， well above the average score for 52 African countries of 53.8. Propping up the bottom of ladder is Somalia （with a score of 20.5）， followed by Cote dIvoire （31.0）， Chad（31.7）， the Comoros （31.9） and Niger （36.9）. Criteria to measure a nations performance on gender issues are judged by seven indicators： gender equality； gender balance in primary and secondary education； womens participation in the labor force； equal representation in rural areas； the number of women in parliament； womens economic and political rights； and laws on violence against women

Beijing Marathon

The 2013 Beijing International Marathon concluded on October 20 with Tadese Tola of Ethiopia breaking the event record set 27 years ago to win the mens race and Chinas Zhang Yingying claiming the womens title. In its 33rd year， the Beijing Marathon drew 30，000 participants this year with all registering within 13 hours after bookings opened on September 8， setting a speed record for registration. Tola finished the race in 2：07：16， eclipsing the former event record set by Japanese runner Taisuke Kodama in 1986 by 19 seconds.

Joint Wildlife Census

Kenya and Tanzanian wildlife authorities are due to conduct a cross-border aerial count of elephants and other large mammals in the shared ecosystem of the Amboseli-West Kilimanjaro and Natron-Magadi. The Kenya Wildlife Service （KWS） said in October that the week-long exercise seeks to verify the status of wildlife within the cross-border landscape， which includes the elephant， wildebeest， zebra and other large mammal populations. It will enhance knowledge on the relationship between wildlife， habitat and human impacts while fostering cross-border collaboration on wildlife monitoring and management between the two countries， according to KWS.

Internet Contribution

The contribution of the Internet to the growth of Africas GDP is on the up- swing with about $18 billion added to the continents economy， according to a new study jointly conducted by global consultancy firm McKinsey & Co. and the International Telecommunications Union. It reveals that around 50 percent of urban Africans are online despite limited infrastructure and disposable incomes. Though the figure is significantly lower than that in other emerging economies and developed markets， the study asserts that， similar to the mobile revolution， the Internet could have massive impact in Africa， far beyond what people have seen today. It could have a transformative impact in key economic sectors and strengthen public services.

Chinese Billionaire

The 2013 edition of the Forbes China Rich List published in October identified a record 168 billionaires in the country. Wang Jianlin， Chairman of Dalian Wanda Group， rose to the top spot with a fortune of 86 billion yuan （$14.1 billion） amid a recovery in Chinas real estate market. Chinese beverage tycoon Zong Qinghou， the CEO of Wahaha Co. Ltd.， dropped from the top of the list to the number two spot with a total fortune of 68.3 billion yuan （$11.1 billion）. According to the list， the number of billionaires surpassed the previous high of 113 from last year， and the total fortune of the 400 richest people in the country has topped 3.4746 trillion yuan （$570 billion）， a 35 percent increase from last year.

Ethiopias New President

Ethiopias parliament elected Mulatu Teshome in October as the countrys new president for a six-year term. The 57-year-old president received his tertiary education in China， where he was awarded degrees up to Ph.D. Before being elected president， Teshome also held government positions， including Speaker of the House of Federation， State Minister of Finance and Economic Development and Minister of Agriculture.

Expat Permits

Last year， China granted 1，202 permanent residency permits to foreign nationals， up more than 83 percent from 2011， according to the Ministry of Public Securitys Bureau of Exit and Entry Administration. More than half of the recipients came for reunions with family residing in China， while the rest were mostly professionals， executives and professors. People with higher education backgrounds and business experience are more likely to get the permits.

WeChat Platform

The State Council， Chinas cabinet， has begun to release government information on WeChat via a public account. The account on WeChat， a hugely popular Chinese messaging app with over 400 million users， is named after and managed by the Gazette Office of the State Council. The WeChat account is aimed at publicizing administrative laws and orders of the State Council， personnel appointments and removals， and important government rules and documents. WeChat， developed by leading Chinese IT company Tencent， has become a hot platform for officials and governments at different levels to release information and show transparency.

Investment Plans

The State Council encouraged private investment in care services focusing on the elderly as part of a program announced recently. According to the program， China aims to complete a social care network for its elderly population by 2020， when the total number of senior citizens is expected to reach 243 million. Of the 44，000 retirement care institutions in China， an estimated 75 percent are sponsored by the government. Non-governmental institutions have difficulty finding land and investment opportunities. According to the new program， non-profit retirement care institutions sponsored by private investors will enjoy land use policies equal to their state-owned counterparts and be exempt from all administrative fees.

Eco-Fragility Record

The Ministry of Environmental Protection announced that it will be marking Chinas ecologically sensitive and vulnerable zones before the end of 2014. The area of ecologically vulnerable zones in key regions， such as the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region that is dominated by grasslands and deserts， should be no less than 20 percent of its total area， according to the statement. It said that the Central Government will form policies and regulations regarding the management of ecologically vulnerable zones in 2014 to define the obligations of communities， individuals and levels of government in protecting them.