Export controls could exacerbate the global food crisis, WTO warns: The Russia-Ukraine war has caused commodity and energy prices to skyrocket in recent weeks, leading many countries to respond with export restrictions as they look to secure their domestic needs. So far, 12 WTO member countries have imposed export restrictions including Egypt which has imposed a three-month export ban on staple food commodities, including wheat, flour, oils and corn. World Trade Organization (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is urging countries to drop these controls and offer their surplus stock of basic commodities such as vegetable oil and grains to the world market to ease supply shortages, she tells the Financial Times.

On the upside: Ukraine has sent off the first shipment of corn to Europe today via train, as its ports remain closed, signaling that efforts are being made to continue trade amid the war, writes Reuters.

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Is Elon Musk going to create our next Facebook? The Tesla CEO is “giving serious thought” to creating a new social media platform, he said in response to a Twitter user's question on whether he would consider building a platform consisting of an open-source algorithm that would prioritize freedom of speech and minimize propaganda. The statement came days after Musk launched a poll asking users if they believed Twitter adheres to these principles, adding that the consequences of this poll would be important. Over 70% of respondents voted “no.” Bloomberg has the story.

NFT of Mandela’s arrest warrant helps keep museum on South Africa democracy afloat: An NFT of Nelson Mandela’s 1961 arrest warrant has been sold for USD 130k, with all of the proceeds going towards Liliesleaf Museum Heritage Site, one of South Africa's most significant national heritage sites, documenting the country’s fight for democracy, Al Arabiya reported. The museum had received the original arrest warrant in 2004 as a donation and had sold its NFT to help it stay afloat after being affected by the lack of tourism due to covid, according to the head of Momint, the marketplace which sold the NFT. The museum had closed its doors back in September due to lack of funding. This isn’t the museum’s first rodeo in the world of NFTs: Last year, it sold an NFT of a pen gun owned by South African politician and revolutionary Oliver Tambo, which raised about USD 50k.