December 17, 2001. Copyright, 2001, Graphic News. All rights reserved

WORLD AGENDA: World in 2002
Compiled by Elisabeth Ribbans

LONDON, December 17, Graphic News:  JANUARY: Twelve European currencies disappear to be replaced by the Euro. The new notes and coins will circulate in all EU countries except Britain, Sweden and Denmark.

January: Pope John Paul II has invited leaders of all the worldÕs religions to a meeting of solidarity in the Italian city of Assisi. He wants them to pray for peace and to work together to overcome war.

February: World chess champion Vladimir Kramnik takes on supercomputer Deep Fritz in a Òman v machineÓ contest in Bahrain. The 26-year-old Russian will net $1m if he wins. Deep Fritz, which can visualize four million moves a second, is an upgraded version of the Deep Blue computer that beat KramnikÕs former teacher Garry Kasparov in 1997.

March/April: Presidential elections in Zimbabwe will see the embattled Robert Mugabe fighting to retain power in the face of strong opposition from the Movement for Democratic Change. Mugabe, at the helm since independence in 1980, is accused by many of ruling increasingly by misrule.

May/June: SoccerÕs greatest showcase, the four-yearly FIFA World Cup, takes place in South Korea and Japan, with 32 national sides aiming to wrest the laurels from formidable reigning champions, France. It will be the first World Cup played in Asia and the first hosted by two countries.

May: East Timor, which may have lost as many as a quarter of its people during the 25 years of brutal occupation by Indonesia, is to become independent at last. The former Portuguese colony has been under UN administration since voting out its Indonesian subjugators in 1999.

June: Events will be staged across Britain to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth IIÕs accession to the throne. The 76-year-old monarch also plans to mark her Golden Jubilee with visits to Commonwealth countries, including Jamaica and Canada.

Mid-2002: AfghanistanÕs former king Mohammad Zahir Shah, who has lived in exile for 30 years, is expected to return home to open a loya jirga Ð a traditional grand council Ð to plan the war-ravaged countryÕs return to peace and democracy.

September: Ten years after the ground-breaking Earth Summit in Rio, government leaders, environmentalists and concerned citizens will meet to reflect on the decadeÕs successes and failures at the follow-up World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. New efforts towards a fairer, greener world will also be discussed.

November: As America elects a new House of Representatives and a slew of senators and state governors, Florida looks set (once again) to provide the best entertainment, with President BushÕs younger brother, Jeb, battling to keep the governorÕs mansion from the grasp of challenger Janet Reno Ð the former Attorney General who ordered shipwreck orphan Elian Gonzalez back to his father in Cuba.

Countries holding presidential elections in 2002 include France (May), South Korea (December) and Brazil (December). Parliamentary polls are scheduled in the Netherlands (May), Germany (September), Sweden (September) and Pakistan (October).
/ENDS