Independence Day of the Republic of South Sudan

South Sudan, also called Southern Sudan, country located in northeastern Africa. Its rich biodiversity includes lush savannas, swamplands, and rainforests that are home to many species of wildlife. Prior to 2011, South Sudan was part of Sudan, its neighbour to the north. South Sudan’s population, predominantly African cultures who tend to adhere to Christian or animist beliefs, was long at odds with Sudan’s largely Muslim and Arab northern government. South Sudan’s capital is Juba. South Sudan was settled by many of its current ethnic groups during the 15th–19th centuries. After the Sudan region was invaded in 1820 by Muḥammad ʿAlī, viceroy of Egypt under the Ottoman Empire, the southern Sudan was plundered for slaves. By the end of the 19th century the Sudan was under British-Egyptian rule. Although the north accepted British rule relatively quickly, there was greater resistance in the south. Because of this, British energies in the north were free to be directed toward modernization efforts, whereas in the south they were more focused on simply maintaining order, leading to a dichotomy of development between north and south that continued for several decades. After Sudan became independent in 1956, numerous governments over the years found it difficult to win general acceptance from the country’s diverse political constituencies, especially in the south. An early conflict arose between those northern leaders who hoped to impose the vigorous extension of Islamic law and culture to all parts of the country and those who opposed this policy. The latter group included the majority of southern Sudan’s population, many of whom were already up in arms over fears that the south would be further marginalized by the northern-based government; those fears led to a lengthy civil war (1955–72). The Addis Ababa Agreement of 1972 ended the conflict only temporarily, and in the next decade widespread fighting resumed with the second civil war (1983–2005). Numerous discussions, cease-fires, and agreements between southern leaders and their northern counterparts occurred but yielded very little success until the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended warfare and generated an outline of new measures to share power, distribute wealth, and provide security in Sudan. Significantly, it also granted southern Sudan semiautonomous status and stipulated that a referendum on independence for the region would be held in six years. Despite some obstacles, the eagerly awaited referendum did take place: a weeklong vote on independence for southern Sudan was held January 9–15, 2011, with the results indicating the south’s overwhelming preference to secede. The country of South Sudan declared independence on July 9, 2011. Land South Sudan is bounded on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by Kenya, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and on the west by the Central African Republic. Relief South Sudan’s vast plains and plateaus are drained by the Nile River and its tributaries. This river system runs from south to north across the entire length of the east-central part of the country. At the heart of the country is a clay plain, the centre of which is occupied by an enormous swampy region known as Al-Sudd (the Sudd). There are two contrasting upland areas. The Ironstone Plateau lies between the Nile-Congo watershed and the clay plain; its level country is marked with inselbergs (isolated hills rising abruptly from the plains). On the Uganda border there are massive ranges with peaks rising to more than 10,000 feet (3,000 metres). The Imatong Mountains contain Mount Kinyeti (elevation 10,456 feet [3,187 metres]), the highest point in South Sudan. Drainage and soils The Nile River system is the dominant physical feature, and all streams and rivers of South Sudan drain either into or toward the Nile. The White Nile (Baḥr Al-Abyaḍ) enters the country as the Mountain Nile (Baḥr Al-Jabal) from the south through rapids at Nimule on the Uganda border. After its confluence with the left- (west-) bank tributary known as the Baḥr Al-Ghazāl, the Mountain Nile becomes the White Nile. A little farther north along its course, the White Nile receives much of its water from the right-bank Sobat River, which flows from the Ethiopian Plateau to join the Nile near Malakal. Drainage in the country does not always reach the Nile rivers; the rivers of the southwest, for example, infrequently reach the Baḥr Al-Ghazāl system. In 1978 construction began on the Jonglei (Junqalī) Canal, which was planned to bypass Al-Sudd swamp and provide a straight well-defined channel for the Mountain Nile River to flow northward until its junction with the White Nile. It also would have drained the swamplands of the Sudd for agricultural use. The project was suspended in 1983 because of disruptions arising from the civil war between the north and the south. After the CPA was signed in 2005, there was discussion about resuming work on the canal, spearheaded by the Egyptian government and Sudan’s Khartoum government, although the government of southern Sudan (GoSS) was hesitant to embrace the project and deferred making a decision about it until they could give the matter further study; a decision had not been made at the time of independence. The southern plains consist of an alkaline soil that is a heavy cracking clay. The clays of Al-Sudd were deposited in the area of impeded drainage. Climate of South Sudan South Sudan has a tropical climate with wet and dry seasons. The seasons are characterized by the oscillation, north and south, of the boundary between moist southerly air and dry northerly air. This phenomenon, more specifically, involves the seasonal migration and pulsation of the northern tropical continental air mass and the southern maritime continental air mass, which are divided by the intertropical convergence zone. In winter the north winds of the tropical air mass blow across the country toward the front, which may be as far south as the Tropic of Capricorn. These winds are relatively cool and dry and usually bring no rain. By April the front begins to move northward, and the moist southerly air of the maritime air mass is drawn in from the South Atlantic Ocean. Because of this, South Sudan has a rainy season, the total length of which varies according to latitude and is generally no more than eight to nine months a year, beginning as early as April and continuing as late as December. South Sudan’s lowest annual temperatures are in the high 60s to high 70s F (low to mid-20s C) in the centre and north of the country, while the lowest annual temperatures in the outlying areas are slightly cooler, about high 50s to high 60s F (mid-10s to low 20s C). The highest annual temperatures for most of South Sudan generally range from the mid-80s to the mid-90s F (low to mid-30s C), although some areas toward the north of the country range from the mid-90s to mid-100s F (mid- to upper 30s C). The highest temperatures normally occur just before the rainy season. In South Sudan, most precipitation usually occurs during the summer months and varies across the country. The majority of the country receives about 30–40 inches (750–1,000 mm) annually. Areas in the western part of the country receive slightly more, about 40–60 inches (1,000–1,500 mm) annually, while some areas in the northeastern and southeastern parts of the country receive less, about 20–30 inches (500–750 mm). Some areas in the extreme southeast receive fewer than 20 inches (500 mm). More … Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/South-Sudan

2021/07/09

100. rocznica nawiązania polsko-łotewskich stosunków dyplomatycznych

Dnia 30 czerwca 2021 r. została wprowadzona do obiegu kartka pocztowa z nadrukowanym znakiem opłaty pocztowej, emisji: "100. rocznica nawiązania polsko-łotewskich stosunków dyplomatycznych". Dziękujemy Poczcie Polskiej za współpracę!

2021/07/08

Spotkanie Ambasador Wielkiej Brytanii z pracownikami UAM

W piątek 18 czerwca 2021 pracownicy i studenci Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu wzięli udział w śniadaniu z JE Anną Louise Clunes – Ambasador Zjednoczonego Królestwa Wielkiej Brytanii i Irlandii Północnej w Polsce. Spotkanie odbyło się w Hotelu Mercure na zaproszenie Ambasady Brytyjskiej w Polsce, w towarzystwie Konsula Honorowego Włodzimierza Walkowiaka.

2021/07/08

Koncert humanitarny zespołu „Lado” w Krakowie i Katowicach

Narodowy Chorwacki Zespół Pieśni i Tańca „Lado” wystąpił na dwóch koncertach humanitarnych w Polsce. Pierwszy koncert odbył się we wtorek 29 czerwca w Krakowie w Centrum Kongresowym ICE, drugi w środę 30 czerwca w Katowicach w Sali koncertowej „Miasto Ogrodów” we współpracy z Zespołem Pieśni i Tańca „Śląsk“. Zebrane środki przeznaczone są na odbudowę chorwackich terenów dotkniętych trzęsieniem ziemi.

2021/07/07

La Embajada de Colombia en Polonia presentó de manera presencial las películas “Mamá” y “Jericó, el infinito vuelo de los días” en el Festival de Cultura de Viajes ŚwiatoPogląd de Torun

Como parte del Plan de Promoción de Colombia en el Exterior, la Embajada de Colombia en Polonia participó con la proyección de las películas “Mamá” y “Jericó, el infinito vuelo de los días” en el Festival de Cultura de Viajes ŚwiatoPogląd de la ciudad de Torun, cuya tercera edición se realizó del 18 al 20 de junio de 2021.

2021/07/07

Среща на Посланик Маргарита Ганева с г-н Анджей Гут-Мостови държавен секретар и пълномощник на министър-председателя за сектор туризъм и популяризирането на полската марка

На 24 юни 2021 г. в Министерство на развитието, труда и технологиите във Варшава се проведе среща на извънредния и пълномощен посланик на Република България в Република Полша, г-жа Маргарита Ганева с държавния секретар и пълномощник на министър-председателя за сектор туризъм и популяризирането на полската марка, Министерство на развитието, труда и технологиите на Република Полша, г-н Анджей Гут-Мостови, която се състоя по инициатива на българската страна.

2021/07/06

Muzeum Fałszerstw w Wiedniu

Jaka jest różnica między oryginałem, kopią a falsyfikatem? Jak fałszerze mogli rozpowszechniać swoje dzieła? Czy kopie i falsyfikaty są cenne same w sobie? Odpowiedź na te pytania można znaleźć w Muzeum Fałszerstw w Wiedniu, gdzie opowiadane są również ciekawe historie o fałszywych dziełach.

2021/07/06

Republic of Malawi Day

Malawi, landlocked country in southeastern Africa. Endowed with spectacular highlands and extensive lakes, it occupies a narrow, curving strip of land along the East African Rift Valley. Lake Nyasa, known in Malawi as Lake Malawi, accounts for more than one-fifth of the country’s total area. Most of Malawi’s population engages in cash-crop and subsistence agriculture. The country’s exports consist of the produce of both small landholdings and large tea and tobacco estates. Malawi has received a significant amount of foreign capital in the form of development aid, which has contributed greatly toward the exploitation of its natural resources and has allowed Malawi to at times produce a food surplus. Nevertheless, its population has suffered from chronic malnutrition, high rates of infant mortality, and grinding poverty—a paradox often attributed to an agricultural system that has favoured large estate owners. Most Malawians reside in rural locations. The country’s few large urban centres include Lilongwe, the capital, and Blantyre, the seat of the country’s judiciary. Land Malawi stretches about 520 miles (840 km) from north to south and varies in width from 5 to 100 miles (10 to 160 km). It is bordered by Tanzania to the north, Lake Malawi to the east, Mozambique to the east and south, and Zambia to the west. Relief While Malawi’s landscape is highly varied, four basic regions can be identified: the East African (or Great) Rift Valley, the central plateaus, the highlands, and the isolated mountains. The East African Rift Valley—by far the dominant feature of the country—is a massive troughlike depression running through the country from north to south and containing Lake Malawi (north and central) and the Shire River valley (south). The lake’s littoral, situated along the western and southern shores and ranging from 5 to 15 miles (8 to 24 km) in width, covers almost one-tenth of the total land area and is dotted with swamps and lagoons. The Shire valley stretches some 250 miles (400 km) from the southern end of Lake Malawi at Mangochi to Nsanje at the Mozambique border and contains Lake Malombe at its northern end. The plateaus of central Malawi rise to elevations of 2,500 to 4,500 feet (760 to 1,370 metres) and lie just west of the Lake Malawi littoral; the plateaus cover about three-fourths of the total land area. The highland areas are mainly isolated tracts that rise as much as 8,000 feet (2,400 metres) above sea level. They comprise the Nyika, Viphya, and Dowa highlands and Dedza-Kirk mountain range in the north and west and the Shire Highlands in the south. The isolated massifs of Mulanje (which reach 9,849 feet [3,002 metres], the highest point in the country) and Zomba (which reach 6,846 feet [2,087 metres]) represent the fourth physical region. Surmounting the Shire Highlands, they descend rapidly in the east to the Lake Chilwa–Phalombe plain. Drainage and soils The major drainage system is that of Lake Malawi, which covers some 11,430 square miles (29,600 square km) and extends beyond the Malawi border. It is fed by the North and South Rukuru, Dwangwa, Lilongwe, and Bua rivers. The Shire River, the lake’s only outlet, flows through adjacent Lake Malombe and receives several tributaries before joining the Zambezi River in Mozambique. A second drainage system is that of Lake Chilwa, the rivers of which flow from the Lake Chilwa–Phalombe plain and the adjacent highlands. Soils, distributed in a complex pattern, are composed primarily of red earths, with brown soils and yellow gritty clays on the plateaus. Alluvial soils occur on the lakeshores and in the Shire valley, while other soil types include hydromorphic (excessively moist) soils, black clays, and sandy dunes on the lakeshore. Climate There are two main seasons—the dry season, which lasts from May to October, and the wet season, which lasts from November to April. Temperatures vary seasonally, and they tend to decrease on average with increasing elevation. Nsanje, in the Shire River valley, has a mean July temperature in the high 60s F (low 20s C) and an October mean in the mid-80s F (high 20s C), while Dedza, which lies at an elevation of more than 5,000 feet (1,500 metres), has a July mean in the high 50s F (mid-10s C) and an October mean in the high 60s F (low 20s C). On the Nyika Plateau and on the upper levels of the Mulanje massif, frosts are not uncommon in July. Annual precipitation levels are highest over parts of the northern highlands and on the Sapitwa peak of the Mulanje massif, where they are about 90 inches (2,300 mm); they are lowest in the lower Shire valley, where they range from 25 to 35 inches (650 to 900 mm). Plant and animal life The natural vegetation pattern reflects the country’s diversity in relief, soils, and climate. Savanna (grassy parkland) occurs in the dry lowland areas. Miombo woodlands—sparse, open deciduous woodland characteristic of dry parts of eastern Africa—are an important habitat, particularly for the country’s large mammal populations. Woodlands with species of acacia trees cover isolated, more fertile plateau sites and river margins. Grass-covered broad depressions, called madambo (singular: dambo), dot the plateaus. Grasslands and evergreen forests are found in conjunction on the highlands and on the Mulanje and Zomba massifs. However, Malawi’s natural vegetation has been altered significantly by human activities. Swamp vegetation has given way to agricultural species as swamps have been drained and cultivated. Much of the original woodland has been cleared, and, at the same time, forests of softwoods have been planted in the highland areas. High population density and intensive cultivation of the Shire Highlands have also hindered natural succession there, while wells have been sunk and rivers dammed to irrigate the dry grasslands for agriculture. Game animals abound only in the game reserves, where antelope, buffalo, elephants, leopards, lions, rhinoceroses, and zebras occur; hippopotamuses live in Lake Malawi. The lakes and rivers of Malawi contain hundreds of species and numerous families of fish. Lake Malawi is particularly renowned for its remarkable biodiversity—an enormous range of fish species inhabit the lake, most of them endemic—and its southern region, as part of Lake Malawi National Park, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984. The most common and commercially significant fish found in Malawi include the endemic tilapia, or chambo (nest-building freshwater fish); catfish, or mlamba; and minnows, or matemba. The Ministry of Mines, Natural Resources, and Environmental Affairs is charged with the responsibility of ensuring the protection of Malawi’s environment, mainly through the implementation of the Environmental Management Act of 1996. Among the major concerns are efficient resource utilization, land degradation, deforestation, conservation of marine life, biodiversity, climate change, ozone layer protection, sewage, the pollution of water from agriculture runoff such as fertilizers, endangered species, and industrial pollution. The majority of pollution comes from greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from the usage of coal and charcoal, natural gas, and petroleum. People of Malawi - Ethnic groups and languages Ten major ethnic groups are historically associated with modern Malawi—the Chewa, Nyanja, Lomwe, Yao, Tumbuka, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, and the Lambya/Nyiha. All the African languages spoken are Bantu languages. From 1968 to 1994, Chewa was the only national language; it is now one of the numerous languages used in print and broadcast media and is spoken by a majority of the population. In 1996 government policy indicated that education in grades 1–4 would be provided in the students’ mother tongue or vernacular language; from grade 5, the medium of instruction would be English, which, though understood by less than one-fifth of the population at independence in 1964, continues to be used widely in business, administrative and judicial matters, higher education, and elsewhere. Other major languages include Lomwe, Yao, and Tumbuka. More … Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Malawi

2021/07/06

Ambasador Tajlandii na Mistrzostwach Polski Muaythai IFMA w Krakowie

Chettaphan Meksamphan, Ambasador Tajlandii w Warszawie, przyjechał do Krakowa, by wziąć udział w rozgrywanych u nas Mistrzostwach Polski Muaythai IFMA dla dzieci, kadetów, juniorów i seniorów oraz Mistrzostwach Polski Wai Khru i Kick Pads dla dzieci 6-11 lat. Uroczystość otwarcia mistrzostw, w której uczestniczył zarówno Prezydent Miasta Krakowa Jacek Majchrowski, jak i Ambasador Chettaphan Meksamphan odbyła się w hali sportowej III Liceum Ogólnokształcącego na os. Wysokim w Krakowie.

2021/07/05