Obama Launched Cyber-Security ‘National Action Plan’
- The US President Barack Obama unveiled a new cyber security National Action Plan’ on February 9, 2016 which calls for an overhaul of aging government networks and a high-level commission to boost security awareness.
- This announcement was in response to an epidemic of data breaches and cyher attacks on both government and private networks in recent years, and passage to the 2015 cybersecurity bill that aims to facilitate better threat sharing.
- This plan would “address both short-term and long-term threats, with the goal of providing every American a basic level of online security'”. This move comes after disclosures 2015 that personal data from some 20 million federal employees, contractors and others had been leaked in a massive breach at the Office of Personnel Management.
World’s Largest Concentrated Solar Plant Opened in Morocco
- Morocco launched the first phase of the largest Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plant in the world on February 4, 2016. The plant will produce enough energy for more than one million Moroccan households when became fully operational.
- It was inaugurated officially by his Majesty Mohammed VI of Morocco. The solar plant underlines the country’s determination to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, use more renewable energy, and move towards, low carbon development.
- The three-plant Noor-Ouarzazate CSP complex called NOORo expects to achieve over 500 megawatts (MW) installed capacity, ultimately supplying power to 1.1 million Moroccans by 2018. It is estimated that the plant will reduce the country’s energy dependence by about 2 and half million tonnes of oil, while also lowering carbon emissions by 760000 tonnes per year.
India & World
WTO Rules against India in Solar Power Case
- Dispute Settlement Panel, World Trade Organisation (WTO) said on February 24, 2016 that India government’s power purchase agreements with solar firms were ‘inconsistent’ with international norms; a matter in which the US had filed a complaint before the global trade body alleging discrimination against American firms.
- The Panel has ruled that The DCR measures are inconsistent’ with relevant provisions of Trade Related Investment Measures (TRIMs) Agreement and with the articles of the erstwhile General Agreement of Trade and Tariffs (GATT).
