Morning Briefing │ Friday, March 1st, 2024

* RUSSIA:

Czech embassy head in Moscow, Jiří Čistecký, will attend the funeral of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny on Friday. Navalny died in prison two weeks ago, and the funeral is scheduled in Moscow, followed by burial at Borisov Cemetery.

* EDUCATION:

In June, the State Institute of Health plans to conclude a proposal for school menu changes, emphasizing the reduction of processed foods and increased inclusion of whole grains.

* CZECHIA:

In 2022, the European Union witnessed a severe material and social deprivation rate of 6.1% among young individuals aged 15 to 29 years, according to the latest data published by the European Statistical Office (EUROSTAT). The equivalent figure in the Czech Republic was 1.8%, one of the lowest among EU states.

The highest proportions of young people encountering severe material and social deprivation in 2022 were found in Romania (25%), Bulgaria (19%), and Greece (15%).

* ECONOMY:

The Czech state collected CZK 6.49 billion from motorway vignettes last year, up by nearly 11 percent year-on-year. The total number of vignettes sold in 2023 rose by almost 13 percent to 8,331,877, the state-owned enterprise Cendis, which manages the sale of electronic vignettes, said on Thursday.

* ZOO:

The zoo in Dvůr Králové nad Labem in east Bohemia has acquired a pair of brown hyenas from South Africa, becoming the only zoo in the world to breed all four species of hyena.

The hyenas have already undergone quarantine and are getting gradually used to the outdoors.