Diary

ANKARA

Here are the main topics Anadolu Agency’s English Desk plans to cover Friday, Jan. 8, 2016 (coverage may change depending on developing/breaking stories):

TURKEY

ISTANBUL - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets Senate committee from US headed by New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.

ANKARA - Turkish Parliament Speaker Ismail Kahraman holds press conference after broad consensus among political parties to work together to change country’s constitution.

SPECIAL REPORTS:

- In congested Istanbul, two cos get goods to you fast

By Tuncay Kayaoglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Two on-demand delivery firms speed up online shopping in Istanbul.

- Prayer move to affect millions of Turkish workers

By Humeyra Atilgan Buyukovali

ISTANBUL (AA) - Today, Turkish public servants will have to juggle break times with Friday prayers; a new regulation aims to find a balance.

- Does NKorea have the money and tech to make an H-bomb?

By Andrew Jay Rosenbaum

ANKARA (AA) - After North Korea claimed to have detonated an H-bomb earlier this week, experts are asking does the pariah state even have the wherewithal and technology to make such a device?

AMERICAS

WASHINGTON - US employment numbers to be released at 2:30 local time [1230GMT].

MIDDLE EAST-NORTH AFRICA

SAUDI ARABIA

RIYADH - Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Economist late on Thursday that the government could sell shares in Aramco, one of the world's most important oil companies.

AFRICA

CAMEROON

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AA) - The International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde on Thursday started a three day official visit to Cameroon.

SPECIAL REPORTS:

- High-speed rail to give Kenya economic boost

by Magdalene Mukami
NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - The high-speed rail project, to be completed this year, will give Kenya an economic boost, and join it more closely for trading with neighboring countries in East Africa.

- Liberia: Activa CEO sees insurance gain credibility in new market

by Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh
MONROVIA, Liberia (AA) - In an interview with Anadolu Agency, Activa insurance CEO Atty Gbalazeh talks about how the nearly untapped insurance market in Liberia can achieve its potential.

- South Africa's nuclear program raises controversy

by Hassan Isilow
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AA) - The program to build nine nuclear plants across South Africa has raised a storm of controversy, as environmentalists object to the dangers, and economists decry the costs.

SOUTHEAST ASIA-PACIFIC

SOUTH KOREA

SEOUL - South Korea switches on propaganda broadcasts on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's birthday after claimed hydrogen bomb test.

INDONESIA

JAKARTA - Friday prayer sermon at thousands of mosques in South Sulawesi to focus on prevention of Daesh ideology.

MALAYSIA

KUALA LUMPUR - PM Najib Razak set to revise annual budget for second time following drop in global crude oil prices.