Five things to know to start your Thursday

South Africa has closed its main border with Mozambique due to protests

South Africa has shut down its primary border crossing with Mozambique temporarily due to safety concerns, as protests against Mozambique’s contested election last month grow more intense. The border authority announced on Wednesday that “Due to these security incidents and in the interest of public safety, the port has been temporarily closed until further notice.” They also reported that seven Mozambican officials had asked South Africa for safety and protection.

Human rights groups report that at least 18 people have lost their lives in the protests. The demonstrations are being led by opposition supporters who claim that Frelimo, the party that has governed Mozambique since 1975, won the election through fraud.

Australia’s Prime Minister wants to ban social media for under-16s

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has revealed plans to create a law banning social media use for children under 16, which his government claims is the first of its kind worldwide.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland announced on Thursday that this ban would affect major platforms including Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, Bytedance’s TikTok, and Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter). She indicated that YouTube, owned by Alphabet, would likely be included in these restrictions as well.

“Social media is doing harm to our kids, and I’m calling time on it,” Prime Minister Albanese declared at a news conference. The government will introduce this legislation to parliament this year, with enforcement beginning 12 months after lawmakers approve it.

World Bank approves $50m to support Nigeria’s food nutrition challenges

The World Bank has committed $50 million to help address Nigeria’s food nutrition challenges. The announcement came from World Bank Country Director Ndiame Diop during his Tuesday meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The funding is part of the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) project 2.0 programme, which serves as a crisis response window.

During the meeting, Trina Haque, the Practice Manager for Health, Nutrition and Population at the World Bank, emphasised that children and adolescents need education about nutrition, as it plays a crucial role in early childhood development.

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Early German elections likely as Scholz fires minister, coalition collapses

Germany’s three-party ruling coalition has fallen apart after Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed his finance minister, creating political turmoil in Europe’s biggest economy and potentially leading to an early election. Following Wednesday’s firing of Finance Minister Christian Lindner from the Free Democrats (FDP) party, Scholz is expected to lead a minority government with just his Social Democrats and the Greens parties.

The breakdown of Scholz’s political partnership comes after months of disagreements about budget policies and Germany’s economic direction. During this time, the government has become increasingly unpopular while extreme political groups on both the right and left have gained support.

“We need a government that is able to act, that has the strength to make the necessary decisions for our country,” Scholz explained to reporters.

CBN says banks are free to trade with depostited FX

The Central Bank of Nigeria has released new guidelines explaining how banks should handle the recently announced free foreign exchange deposit program. The CBN’s Tuesday announcement details how commercial, merchant, and non-interest banks can participate in this scheme.

According to the document titled ‘Guidelines On Implementation Of The Foreign Currency Disclosure, Deposit, Repatriation, And Investment Scheme, 2024,’ banks will be allowed to trade using forex provided by participants in the scheme.

The guidelines specify that “Commercial, merchant, and non-interest banks may trade with any deposited ITFC (Internationally Tradable Foreign Currencies) not immediately invested by a participant, provided that the funds would be made available to the participant when needed. Interest payment by CMNIBs on the balance in the designated domiciliary account shall be in line with relevant provisions of the Guide to Charges by Banks and Other Financial Institutions in Nigeria.”