Pastoral Economy Push: The First Africa Pastoral Markets Forum opened in Addis Ababa, urging investment and stronger market systems to turn pastoral livestock into a bigger engine for jobs, trade and resilience across AU member states. Heat and Health in West Africa: A new Climate Central analysis says climate change has at least doubled heat-related sleep loss in major cities, with parts of West Africa including Nigeria, Niger and Burkina Faso seeing major nighttime disruption. Oil, Pollution Risks, and Niger Delta Pressure: Nigeria reported a 74-month high crude output of 1.56m barrels/day, while the Niger Delta continues to face environmental threats—reports describe a three-week oil well blowout in Delta that has forced residents to abandon homes, and the Navy says it dismantled illegal refining sites in Rivers and recovered 43,000 litres of illegally refined products. Sahel Security and Development: Russia’s Lavrov met AU leaders and backed a new “economic architecture” for Africa, while Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali also discussed deeper military cooperation amid ongoing insurgent pressure. Niger Education Upgrade: Niger’s governor inaugurated a renovated girls’ science school classroom block and a new ICT centre in Paikoro, aiming to expand access to quality education.