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Visit the world's largest cave - Son Doong cave in Vietnam
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Son Doong Cave in Vietnam is the largest cave in the world. It is located in Son Trach, Bo Trach District, Quang Binh province, Vietnam. The name "Son Doong" cave means "mountain river cave". It was created 2-5 million years ago by river water eroding away the limestone underneath the mountain where the limestone was weak, the ceiling collapsed creating huge skylights. Son Doong cave is more than 200 meters wide, 150 meters high, and approx 9 kilometres long. It has a jungle and river, and could fit a 40-story skyscraper within its walls. It has caverns big enough to fit an entire city street inside them, twice as large as Deer Cave in Malaysia (currently considered the world's largest with 90 meters wide, 100 meters high and 2 kilometres long).
But nobody knew any of that until about six years ago.
Book now with Diplomatic Travel. Email: travel@thediplomaticsociety.co.za
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“Seize the Moment” Campaign launched
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13 April Accra, Ghana
The 12th CAADP Partnership Platform meeting opened yesterday in Accra. The meeting brought together over 400 participants. High level African leadership at the side-meetings that took place in the morning before the official opening included H.E Mrs Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union Commission who held several high level meetings and dialogues with, among others; AU States’ former Presidents; H.E John Kufour of Ghana and H.E Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria; Dr Ibrahim Mayaki, NPCA CEO, Dr Agnes Kalibata, President of Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and Minister of Agriculture and Forestry in the Republic of Sierra Leone, Prof. Monty Jones.
Commissioner Tumusiime and Dr Mayaki launched the “Seize the Moment” Campaign for Securing Africa’s Rise through Agricultural Transformation.
The documentary “Turkish Passport” was screened at the Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre on 6 April 2016 and attracted a crowd of more than 200 persons from the Jewish and Turkish communities in Cape Town.
Ambassador Kaan Esener of Turkey to South Africa (pictured 3rd from left) was present at the screening. The Embassy and the Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre were privileged to share this little known fact from the WWII where Turkish diplomats saved scores of Jews from the clutches of the Nazis.
It became an emotional evening where first-hand witnesses came forward with a Turkish passport issued to save their families. The most meaningful contribution came from an original survivor from the island of Rhodes saved by Consul General S. Ülkümen.
"Turkish Passport" tells the story of diplomats posted to Turkish embassies and consulates in several European countries, who saved numerous Jews during the Second World War.
By Srimal Fernando, Global Editor, The Diplomatic Society
Corruption has a terrible impact on an economy and causes enormous social instability to a country, yet many challenges remain in fighting corruption and promoting good governance. Transparency International’s International Corruption Perceptions Index 2015 highlights that many countries in the world have a serious corruption problem and noted that “Not one single country, anywhere in the world, is corruption-free”. Patterns of corruption vary from country to country and over time. As the eyes of the world focus on stabilizing Afghanistan, further reforms are needed for Afghanistan to curb corruption and to truly fast-track its development through good governance practices.
Photo: Mr. Sayed Ikram Afzali, Executive Director of Integrity Watch Afghanistan
Sadly, Afghanistan performs poorly in the area of corruption according to Transparency International’s latest ranking. The causes of corruption in Afghanistan are no mystery and combating corruption is not an easy task. It requires courage and long-term commitment by a variety of anti-corruption actors. Integrity Watch Afghanistan, an anti-corruption civil society organisation puts corruption under the spotlight by committing to anti-corruption through community monitoring, research, and advocacy.
