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First Energy Africa Oil Corp. Strengthens Board with Appointment of Industry Veterans Simon Akit and Frederick Kozak
New directors bring 60 years of combined capital markets and resource industry expertise
CALGARY, ALBERTA – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 July 2026 – First Energy Africa Oil Corp. (“First Energy Africa” or the “Corporation”), a Calgary-based energy corporation , today announced the appointment of Simon Akit and Frederick Kozak to its Board of Directors, effective July 13th, 2026.
Mr. Akit is founder and managing partner of a resource advisory firm, bringing more than 25 years of experience in Canadian and U.S. capital markets and seven years of engineering and operations experience in the resource industry. He has held senior capital markets and leadership roles at Ventum Financial, Canaccord Genuity, among others and has raised over $5 billion in equity and debt financing for resource companies from institutional investors across Canada, the United States, Europe, and Asia. He holds an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, is a Professional Engineer (APEGA) and currently serves on the boards of several public and private companies.
A Canaccord Genuity former oil and gas research analyst, Kozak is an award winning financial analyst and corporate executive. He brings more than 40 years of experience in the resource and capital markets sector with a focus in Africa and South America. Mr. Kozak holds an MBA from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario. He is a Professional Engineer (APEGA) with Lifetime status in Alberta and currently serves on the boards of one public company and one private company.
“Simon and Fred are bringing complementary technical and capital markets seniority required for our complex business. We are confident their contributions will set the right approach on our strategic priorities,” said Jeff Ruskowsky, President, First Energy Africa
The Corporation remains committed to upholding the highest standards of governance and sustainability as it continues to responsibly unlock value across its resource portfolio.
Hashtag: #FirstEnergyAfricaOil
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About First Energy Africa Oil
First Energy Africa Oil Corp. is a privately held Canadian corporation pursuing exploration and block acquisitions in sub-Saharan Africa. The Company is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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AI Account Named Best AI-Driven Accounting Software Platform in South East Asia at the 2026 FinTech Awards
Wealth & Finance International recognised AI Account for helping SMEs and accounting firms automate everyday finance tasks, enabling them to focus on business growth.
SINGAPORE –
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HKUST and Indonesia’s Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Deepen Partnership with Garuda Scholarship Framework to Nurture Top-Tier Talent
The agreement was recently signed by Prof. Badri Munir SUKOCO, Acting Secretary General of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, and Dr. Alison LLOYD, Associate Provost (Academic Strategy and Data Analytics) of HKUST. With the implementation of this agreement, HKUST is set to welcome its fifth batch of government-sponsored undergraduate students from Indonesia in the upcoming academic year starting this September.
Beyond providing scholarship support for undergraduate students, HKUST and the Indonesian authorities actively discussed broadening the scope of their future collaboration during their recent meeting. Both parties are keen to explore potential avenues for joint research initiatives, academic knowledge exchange, student and faculty mobility programs, and the introduction of credit-bearing internships. These efforts aim to widen students’ global perspectives, equip them with practical work experience, and better prepare them for future career success.
Dr. Alison LLOYD, Associate Provost (Academic Strategy and Data Analytics) of HKUST, said, “HKUST is the first higher education institution in Hong Kong to partner with the Indonesian Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology in nurturing outstanding Indonesian undergraduates. We are deeply honored by the Indonesian government’s enduring trust and support for HKUST’s academic excellence. Indonesian students are an integral part of our international community, enriching our campus through their talent, perspectives, and consistent excellence across various academic disciplines. The signing of this new agreement marks a significant milestone in our partnership. Moving forward, HKUST will fully leverage its strengths in education, pioneering research, and knowledge transfer to advance shared objectives with Indonesia in areas such as digital transformation, green energy, and business innovation. Together, we aspire to cultivate future leaders—equipped with a global outlook, innovative mindset, and a strong sense of social responsibility—to inject new momentum into the sustainable development of Indonesia, the ASEAN region, and the world.”
Prof. Ardi FINDYARTINI, Director of Transformative Learning Strategies and System at the Directorate General of Science and Technology, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, said, “This partnership marks a significant milestone in our commitment to developing Indonesia’s future leaders through the Garuda Scholarship initiative. By embedding our talented undergraduate students within world-class academic and research ecosystem, we are not only expanding their global perspectives but also equipping them with essential future competencies. We highly value HKUST’s enduring trust and collaboration, and we are confident that this synergy will greatly contribute to Garuda ecosystem.
Currently, Indonesian students constitute HKUST’s second-largest international undergraduate student population. Building on this strong partnership, HKUST now hosts the largest number of Indonesian government-sponsored undergraduate students among all tertiary institutions in Hong Kong. These students are rigorously selected from leading secondary schools across Indonesia and represent the country’s most promising young talent.
This agreement will further leverage HKUST’s world-class teaching and research capabilities to cultivate outstanding talent aligned with Indonesia’s national development priorities. Currently, most sponsored Indonesian students are enrolled in programs spanning Engineering, Business and Management, Science, and Biotechnology. Moving forward, both sides plan to explore opportunities to expand their cooperation in frontier research collaboration and high-impact educational and talent-development initiatives, injecting fresh momentum into the socio-economic development of both Hong Kong and Indonesia.
Hashtag: #HKUST
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
- Read to Lead: Building an AI-Ready Mind promotes reading in the workplace and equips PMETs and business leaders with professional discernment skills for an era when not all information can be taken at face value
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 July 2026 – A recent dipstick poll of 1,150 professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) conducted by KPMG in Singapore and the National Library Board (NLB) found that only 4 in 10 respondents expressed confidence in their ability to tell accurate content apart from AI-generated misinformation.
Yet less than half of respondents said they would check the original source of a statistic before forming an opinion, even if they are reading an AI-generated summary in search engines. KPMG and NLB conducted the poll from June to July 2026 to ascertain whether Singapore professionals critically evaluate information in an environment where AI-generated outputs are increasingly ubiquitous. The poll revealed a gap between the demands of the AI era and the habits and skills professionals have built thus far.
Against this landscape, KPMG in Singapore and NLB launched Read to Lead: Building an AI-Ready Mind today. This is a year-long initiative to bring reading into the workplace. Officiated by Ms Rahayu Mahzam, Minister of State, Ministry of Digital Development and Information, the programme marks the start of a concerted push to embed focused reading as a core professional capability across Singapore’s workforce, build discernment and critical thinking, and empower companies to accelerate knowledge-building across their workforce.
As generative and agentic AI transform how individuals and organisations access information, the ability to critically evaluate the credibility of content will be increasingly important. It is imperative that professionals engage in sustained and focused reading to build this skill.
Melissa Tam, Chief Executive Officer, NLB, said,”Reading has always been at the heart of what NLB does. The launch of Read to Lead reflects our belief that focused reading strengthens our capability for critical thinking. By reading consistently and reading widely, we learn to ask better questions and are likely to be more discerning consumers of AI generated outputs. Our partnership with KPMG brings this conviction into the workplace and we hope this will be the first of many. NLB looks forward to collaborating with more organisations across Singapore to build a culture of reading, and through this, equip Singapore’s professionals with the skills they need to contribute meaningfully to their organisations.”
Lee Sze Yeng, Managing Partner, KPMG, said: “Singapore’s professionals are highly capable and deeply knowledgeable in their fields — but in today’s environment, reading fast and reading within one’s domain is no longer sufficient. Professionals who read widely across disciplines will be significantly better at evaluating information, including AI-generated content, even within their own field. The ability to read laterally, connect ideas across domains, and question what AI surfaces with genuine discernment is fast becoming the capability that sets leaders apart. Read to Lead is our commitment to building that at scale.”
Read to Lead Programme is expected to benefit more than 2,000 PMETs and business leaders through expert-led talks, interactive activities and resources aimed at building discernment as a professional discipline.
Phase 1 — Knowledge Week: 14–16 July 2026
The programme launches with Knowledge Week, running from 14 to 16 July at Asia Square, the KPMG Clubhouse and the National Library Building. Activities are designed to help PMETs and businesses exercise sound judgement while evaluating information sources, broaden their perspectives beyond their professional domains, and engage with content meaningfully rather than at surface level.
Knowledge Week features a digital library, an interactive quiz, and panel discussions on three themes: critical reading as a professional discipline; navigating misinformation and AI risks; and how knowledge-building reinforces business resilience.
Phase 2 — Building AI-Ready Capabilities
Following Knowledge Week, KPMG and NLB will co-develop a practical toolkit to advance PMETs’ and businesses’ knowledge of AI technologies and strategies to counter misinformation and cyber risks. Expert-led talks on AI literacy and trusted AI practices will be held across NLB libraries, enabling individuals and businesses to engage with information both critically and responsibly.
Phase 3 — Journey Paper (2027)
In 2027, KPMG and NLB will jointly publish a journey paper anchored in insights gathered across the year-long programme and supported by KPMG’s global research. The publication is intended to sustain a national conversation on critical reading beyond the programme.
Hashtag: #KPMG
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About NLB
NLB nurtures Readers for Life, Learning Communities and a Knowledgeable Nation by promoting reading, learning and history through its network of 28 libraries, the National Library and the National Archives of Singapore. NLB also forges strategic partnerships that encourage awareness, appreciation and greater discovery of Singapore’s history through its rich collections in Singapore and the region.
NLB achieves excellence through innovation, focusing on citizen engagement and co-creation, resource and digital innovation. This creates learning opportunities, greater access to library resources, services, and archival collections, as well as a continual development of innovative library spaces. Established on 1 September 1995 as a statutory board, NLB is under the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI).
For more information, please visit the NLB website, and its kpmg.com/governance.
For more information, visit kpmg.com/sg.
LinkedIn: 
linkedin.com/company/kpmg-singapore
