WORLD AGENDA February 2016

February 1, United States: The race for the White House hots up as presidential primary elections and caucuses begin in Iowa, followed by New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. The Democratic and Republican parties’ nominating process continues until June

Feb 26, Iran: Moderate president Hassan Rouhani is expected to benefit
from the lifting of international sanctions in parliamentary elections. A simultaneous poll for the Assembly of Experts could determine the next Ayatollah, to replace Ali Khamenei, now 76

Feb 26, Zurich: Sheikh Salman, president of the Asian Football Confederation, and Prince Ali bin Hussein of Jordan are the favourites
of five candidates to win Fifa’s presidential election. Football’s world governing body is in crisis over alleged corruption

Feb 4, London: A UN donor conference on Syria takes place as the country’s civil war enters its fifth year. Refugees have begun to head south as neighbouring nations bar Syrians from entry

Feb 18, Uganda: Yoweri Museveni, who has been in power for three decades,
is expected to win presidential elections which opponents say are rigged. Reports of police brutality and intimidation have been on the rise as the
elections approach

Feb 26, Mexico: Pope Francis arrives in Mexico where he will address
issues such as violence and migration. Ciudad Juarez, on the country’s
border with the U.S., is the last stop on his 5-day tour, which includes
a visit to Michoacan state, a hotspot in Mexico’s drug conflict

Feb 8, Chinese New Year: The recent relaxation of China’s one-child policy could see a baby boom in the Year of the Monkey. Superstition dictates that children born under this sign are intelligent, optimistic and ambitious

Feb 28, Hollywood: Director Spike Lee is among a number of celebrities staying away from this year’s Academy Awards ceremony where, for the second-year running, all the Oscar-nominated actors and actresses are white. Leonardo DiCaprio is tipped to win for his performance in The Revenant

Source: Kate Edgley

Picture: Getty Images, Associated Press, Twentieth Century Fox