China’s eastern province of Shandong is facing its worst drought in a century, with nearly 250,000 residents facing drinking water shortages, while more snow is expected in the south, state media said yesterday.
In the Shandong cities of Linyi, Rizhao and Weifang, the dry spell has lowered reservoirs so dramatically that authorities are using fire trucks to deliver drinking water supplies, the China Daily reported.
Shandong’s provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters has warned that the number of people affected could rise to 300,000 from more than 240,000 at present unless the region receives some rainfall soon.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶) toured the drought-hit region of Henan at the weekend and pledged that the government would build more facilities to conserve water, the Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece the People’s Daily said.
Parts of northern, central and eastern China have been gripped by drought for more than three months, with deteriorated conditions in major winter wheat regions.
Drought has affected winter wheat crops in 17 percent of growing areas in the northern bread basket and dry weather is forecast to extend until spring, the government said last month.
Parts of southern China have been hit by freezing rain and heavy snow, affecting crops and disrupting traffic. A fresh cold snap with freezing rain and snow is likely to hit southwestern China in the middle of this week, the People’s Daily said.
The extreme weather coincides with a government campaign to fight rising food costs — the main driver of inflation — which have picked up again in recent weeks.
Beijing looks likely to break a 60-year record for the latest date for its first snowfall of the season, with little prospect of a snowfall next week, the People’s Daily said.
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
CANCER: Jose Mujica earned the moniker ‘world’s poorest president’ for giving away much of his salary and living a simple life on his farm, with his wife and dog Tributes poured in on Tuesday from across Latin America following the death of former Uruguayan president Jose “Pepe” Mujica, an ex-guerrilla fighter revered by the left for his humility and progressive politics. He was 89. Mujica, who spent a dozen years behind bars for revolutionary activity, lost his battle against cancer after announcing in January that the disease had spread and he would stop treatment. “With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our comrade Pepe Mujica. President, activist, guide and leader. We will miss you greatly, old friend,” Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi wrote on X. “Pepe, eternal,” a cyclist shouted out minutes later,
Myanmar’s junta chief met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the first time since seizing power, state media reported yesterday, the highest-level meeting with a key ally for the internationally sanctioned military leader. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup in 2021, overthrowing Myanmar’s brief experiment with democracy and plunging the nation into civil war. In the four years since, his armed forces have battled dozens of ethnic armed groups and rebel militias — some with close links to China — opposed to its rule. The conflict has seen Min Aung Hlaing draw condemnation from rights groups and pursued by the
RSS