EUROPE

On Thursday, 5 November 2020, the Bundestag voted in favour of the Federal Government’s draft law “to strengthen security in passports, identity cards and documents relating to foreigners”. New identity cards will mandatorily contain two fingerprints from August next year. With this Bundestag resolution, Germany is implementing European law. According to the draft law, new requirements will also apply to …

An invitation has gone out to young people of African descent in Germany to participate in the Lead Academy 2020 via Zoom on 24-26 November. The event is organised by Lead Africa International e.V., a global non-governmental organization dealing with development issues. The three-day virtual event precedes the Global Partnership for African Development (G-PAD) 2020 Forum, with the theme Strengthening …

The Italian government has activated three telephone numbers for foreigners that have submitted a request for Italian citizenship and want information on the status of their procedure the Italian news agency ANSA has reported. The Italian interior ministry is reported to have on 21 October activated three telephone numbers for people who had filed a request for Italian citizenship and …

Nigerians from all parts of Europe, joined by guests from across the globe, will gather on 11-14 November for the annual general meeting of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE). The event, which holds both physically and virtually, is being hosted in Dortmund, Germany, by the German chapter of the organisation, NIDO Germany. Eminent Nigerian leaders, including former Presidents …

Press Statement by Dr. Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Member of the European Parliament, on the first European Gender Equality Week, which was marked on 26-29 October 2020: —— On the initiative of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM), the European Parliament marked its first “European Gender Equality Week” from 26 to 29 October 2020 – 25 years after the …

According to Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD), the Federal Government wants to have the controversial term “race” quickly deleted from the Basic Law, the country’s constitution. “There is complete agreement that there are no different races of people,” the politician told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper. “That is why we in the Federal Government have agreed to revise the Basic Law at …

A Nigerian migrant was killed on Tuesday night in the so-called ‘ghetto’ of Borgo Mezzanone. The tent camp in the countryside near Foggia houses an estimated 1,500 migrants. The victim — 34-year-old Nigerian citizen Emeka N. — was stabbed to death outside the restaurant where he worked. A 25-year-old Nigerian man has confessed to the murder and is now in …

According to a new report of the Swiss news agency Keystone, residents from the former Yugoslavia are the most frequently convicted of crimes in Switzerland in absolute numbers. However, measured per 1,000 inhabitants, South West Africans, West Africans and North Africans, in that order, are the most frequently convicted. Quoting the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), Keystone reported on Tuesday …

The federal state of Berlin is offering financial support to religious communities suffering from the impact of the corona crisis. Many churches and mosques are in financial distress due to pandemic-related restrictions and the resulting drop in donations they receive from members. Small religious communities engaged in social and integration issues could apply for funding for their rent, incidental rental …

Bob Hooda, writing from Dresden, says a court ruling in a case of physical assault against an immigrant in the eastern German city reveals institutionalised racism within the judiciary of the state of Saxony On 29 July 2019, a 30-year-old Pakistani was first insulted by supporters of Pegida, a pan-European, anti-Islam, far-right political movement, and then given a bloody nose …

More than 100 Nigerians based in Germany lent their voices to the global campaign to scrap the rogue Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a unit of the Nigerian police, at a protest in front of the Nigerian Embassy in Berlin on Sunday. The call was part of a wave of protests, under the harsh tag #ENDSARS, that has swept across many …

Employees of African origin in Berlin’s tech companies have started a group to promote diversity in the sector. Called “Black in Tech Berlin”, the group networks and shares ideas to bring change in the industry, where Black people are underrepresented. It counts six hundred members and was founded by Kave Bulambo, who is originally from the DR Congo but grew …

A new magazine, published bimonthly and bilingual in English and German to serve self-employed Africans in Germany, was launched at a colourful ceremony on Saturday in the western German city of Dortmund. The African Merchant (TAM) would support African entrepreneurship by focusing on opportunities and challenges of self-employment in Germany, Dr Rosalyn Dressman, publisher of the new magazine, said at …

As Nigeria celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence from British colonial rule, a group representing the Yoruba people of Africa’s most populous country rallied in major cities across the world on Thursday to express their desire for national self-determination.

Some new laws and regulations enter into effect in October. As the number of coronavirus infections is significantly rising again, Chancellor Angela Merkel and the heads of the Länder (federal states) have agreed on new measures to contain the pandemic while subsidy for dental prostheses will be increased. Moreover, the second instalment of the child bonus will be paid in …

Swiss voters have overwhelmingly decided to retain the country’s free movement agreement with the European Union, which allows citizens of Switzerland and the EU the mutual freedom to enter, to live and to work in each other’s territories. A proposal to scrap the immigration accord with the EU, in effect since 2002, was one of five issues on the referendum …

The Swiss will vote on Sunday in a referendum on whether to end its agreement with the EU on the free movement of people. The aim of the referendum’s sponsors, the right-wing, anti-immigration Swiss People’s party (SVP), is to limit the number of European Union nationals allowed to live and work in their country, a measure to guarantee preferential access …

The Council of the European Union presented a “New Pact on Migration and Asylum” to the public on 23 September . The pact focuses largely on migration-control at the external borders of the European Union. The proposed measures include border screenings, accelerated asylum procedures and new regulations for the distribution of asylum seekers. Here is a breakdown of the suggested …

The publication of the magazine is a response to the increasing numbers of Africans entering self-employment as a defensive response to difficulties in accessing jobs commensurate with their qualifications and experience. Many are also establishing businesses to respond to market opportunities.

The Germany-based music artist, cultural ambassador, development activist and sports enthusiast Uche Sunday Alphonsus Ojiodu-Ambrose (popularly known by his artist name Toni Tuklan) is a man of many parts. His resumé is indeed formidable: Toni’s group of companies comprises Cleantone Records GmbH (music label), Tuklan GbR (music production company) and Tuklan Sports UG (sports management company). Moreover, the serial entrepreneur …