Latest news with #Acara
The Star
5 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Boom for the rich, bust for the rest
A man sleeping on the floor of a subway station in Buenos Aires. Inflation has cooled and luxury sales are soaring, but nine out of 10 Argentinian households are in debt. — AFP IN Javier Milei's Argentina, falling inflation has stimulated a boom in car and real estate sales and foreign-bound planes take off laden with tourists. But on the other side of a very complicated economic coin, consumption is dropping precipitously among low- and middle-income groups while more and more people work in precarious jobs and buy groceries on credit. Milei, who took office as president in December 2023, has partly succeeded in his quest to curb state spending and runaway inflation, which reached a five-year monthly low in May. But the price has been a devalued peso and deep cuts to state subsidies that made access to housing, healthcare and education prohibitively expensive for millions. Consumer spending dipped heavily last year and a tentative rebound has been unequal: spending on tangible assets such as apartments and cars has skyrocketed among the rich, while ever more poorer people can not afford shoes or food. Nine out of 10 Argentine households are in debt, official data shows. Even more have defaulted on a loan. 'Nothing is selling,' shoe store employee Laura Comiso said in downtown Buenos Aires after yet another afternoon without customers. But in San Andres de Giles west of the capital, car salesman Blas Morales waxed lyrical about 'an excellent June!' According to Sebastian Beato, president of Argentina's Acara car dealership association, the first half of 2025 was 'the best in seven years' with sales up nearly 80% from 2024. Under Milei's measures, loans have become cheaper, and Argentines have been encouraged by a tax amnesty to bring out billions of US dollars they had stashed under mattresses and floorboards, in safety deposit boxes and offshore accounts. Investment in real estate increased 22% year-on-year in Buenos Aires in May. In the first four months of 2025, more mortgages were taken out in Argentina than in all of 2024. 'The change in government has been very positive for this sector,' said third-generation real estate agent Diego Sardano. 'Under the previous government, we went months without making a single sale. Now we have about five sales per month,' he added. A stronger peso also benefits those travelling abroad but harms domestic tourism, with bookings plummeting. Between January and April, about six million Argentines travelled abroad – 70% more than in the same period in 2024. The country received only two million visitors at the same time, the lowest figure in a decade. Consumption is being driven largely by Argentina's upper class, which comprises no more than 6% of the population. Consulting firm Moiguer said in a recent report the economic recovery after months of recession was not benefiting everyone equally, and was exacerbating income inequality. Half of Argentines tell pollsters they cannot make ends meet, and a third delay planned purchases in order to pay for essentials. Sardano, the realtor, said he feared spending on homes and apartment may have peaked 'because people's purchasing power isn't increasing'. 'High-end car registrations are increasing while food consumption is falling. The middle class is being wiped out,' added Rodolfo Aguilar, head of the State Workers' Union (ATE) which has reported 40,000 job losses among its ranks under Milei. Fernando Savore, head of the Federation of Small Businesses in Buenos Aires province, said having a job no longer guarantees financial stability because wages have not kept pace with rising gas, electricity and transport prices, or school fees. 'Much of a worker's income goes toward these obligations. There are items that no longer sell, like candy and desserts,' he said. 'People only buy necessities like pasta and tomato puree, nothing more, and many are buying on credit.' — AFP
Miami Herald
02-07-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Orangutan doesn't show interest in baby, but zoo staff with furry vests has plan
A newborn orangutan is receiving around-the-clock care at a Utah zoo after her mother didn't show much interest in her, officials said. 'There's a new face in the Great Apes Building,' the Hogle Zoo said in a June 30 post on Instagram, announcing that the baby was born June 21 'weighing just over three pounds.' Because second-time mama orangutan Kawan had previously declined to care for her first infant at a zoo in Wisconsin, the staff prepared for that possibility again this time around, officials said in the post and in a news release earlier in June. 'After the birth, Kawan showed encouraging signs, gently interacting with her baby,' officials said in the post and in a news release. 'However, the team did not observe successful nursing, which is essential within 24 hours. We provided positive reinforcement to encourage Kawan to nurse and remained hopeful.' The team sought guidance from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums and the Orangutan Species Survival Plan and discussed the baby's best interest, ultimately deciding 'to hand-rear the infant,' and provide her with around-the-clock care, officials said. 'Kawan's motherhood journey has been complex, and we're proud of the effort she made and the maternal interest she showed,' officials said. Now the team is taking measures to care for the infant in the best and most natural way possible. 'To replicate how orangutans cling to their mothers, caregivers provide 24/7 support using specialized vests that mimic orangutan fur, encouraging her to hang on naturally,' officials said. 'She has faced some challenges in consistently eating and gaining weight, so our focus is on stabilizing the infant. We are monitoring her weight gain and using a variety of bottles, formulas, and medicines to provide her with the nutrition she needs.' Video shows the baby clinging to the vest as she looks around with wide eyes. The team hopes to place the baby orangutan with a foster mother at the zoo. 'We've been working with Acara, who fostered her brother Tuah in 2014, to reinforce her maternal behaviors,' officials said. 'Acara has been introduced to the infant and has responded with gentle interest.' Someone hoped the plan would work in the comments. 'I loved watching Acara become Tuah's momma, I hope she does just as well here,' they said. 'We are working around the clock to give this baby the very best chance,' officials said. 'The infant will stay behind the scenes for several months and will not be viewable to the public.' The Hogle Zoo is in Salt Lake City.
The Guardian
04-03-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Jason Clare says the deal to fully fund NSW public schools is a decade overdue. But it'll take a decade to fully arrive
The education minister didn't mince his words when fronting the media on Tuesday to announce the commonwealth had done a deal with New South Wales to fully fund public schools for the first time. 'This is the big one,' Jason Clare said. 'New South Wales is the biggest education system in the country and this is the biggest investment in public education by an Australian government, ever.' After more than seven months of squabbling, all the states and territories except Queensland have finally agreed to a pathway that would fully fund public schools and fulfil the promise of Gonski – with a caveat. But more on that later. In practical terms, it will mean each student will be funded to 100% of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS). The SRS is a mechanism, devised by the Gonski review, which estimates how much funding a school requires to meet the full educational needs of its students and reduce the impact of social disadvantage on educational outcomes. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email It is a fixed baseline amount (currently $13,977 for primary students and $17,565 for secondary students), with additional loadings for priority cohorts – like First Nations students or students with disabilities – as well as disadvantaged schools. The new funding, to be rolled out from next year, will be tied to education reforms and targets, including individualised support, evidence-based teaching practices, phonics and numeracy checks, as well as mental health and wellbeing support. Most politicians would agree that fully funding public schools is a no-brainer. 'The bottom line is it should've been done over a decade ago,' Clare said on Tuesday. What's been at issue for so long is who should stump up the money. Currently, under a model enacted by the Turnbull government , the commonwealth contributes 20% of the total funding to public schools, while states are required to fund public schools at 75% – leaving a 5% gap. Data from the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (Acara) data shows that 98% of private schools are overfunded according to the SRS. The commonwealth initially proposed a 2.5% increase to public schools, to bring its total funding contribution to 22.5%, with state governments to match the rest – excluding the Northern Territory, which will have its contribution doubled to 40%. The ACT, Western Australia, the NT and Tasmania were happy to sign up to the deal, but the biggest states held out, pushing the federal government to increase their funding to 25% because it had a comparatively larger pool to draw from. With the clock ticking, the prime minister eventually intervened, telling the National Press Club in January that Labor would concede to the demands of the major states and ink deals with Victoria and South Australia to deliver the 5% increase. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion A deal with Queensland is unlikely. The state's education minister said it had until December of this year, when the current funding agreement expired, to negotiate – despite an election looming sometime in the next two months. But here's the caveat. Under the terms of the deal, it will take until 2034 for every student at every school to reach that full funding. The pace of the rollout means another generation of public school students will go through their entire schooling without the baseline level of funding in most states and territories. Only the Australian Capital Territory has already reached the SRS. Still, Labor can say they got the deal done, and can go to the election with a positive story to tell on education, which, like health, is a core issue for the party. Education unions have been clear that they will be campaigning hard for Labor. As with Medicare, the opposition has pledged to match public school funding arrangements Labor has forged with states and territories. With a mass exodus from the public school sector continuing, and education gaps remaining persistent, the stakes are above politics.
The Guardian
17-02-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Could you pass a year 10 civics test? Only 28% of Australian students can
Australian students' understanding of civics education has fallen to a record low, a national test indicates. The test, held by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (Acara) to measure 'attitudes and engagement' with civics and citizenship found 43% of year 6 students met the proficient standard, compared with 53% in 2019. Just 28% of year 10 students met the proficient standard, a fall from 38% in 2019 and the lowest level since assessments began in 2004. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email A parliamentary committee this month recommended the roll-out of a universal and mandatory civics and citizenship curriculum, noting Australia's system of compulsory voting and a precarious environment in which 'democracies around the world … are facing rising disengagement, distrust … misinformation and disinformation'. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Acara's example online test for year 10 students veered into the philosophical, covering topics from multiculturalism to protest laws. Here is a sample of some of the questions – see how your knowledge stacks up.
