As Nigerian government prepares for the resumption of commercial international flights into and out of the country, Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, disclosed that citizens from some countries would be banned from gaining entry into Nigeria to ensure safety at its airports and the country in general. The minister made the disclosure on Monday in Abuja while speaking at the …

Mastercard Foundation and USIU-Africa partner to expand access to higher education in Africa NAIROBI, Kenya, July 14th, 2020,-/African Media Agency (AMA)/- Nairobi-based United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa) and the Mastercard Foundation today announced a partnership that will enable 1,000 high-performing students to receive quality education and leadership development over the next 10 years under the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program. The …

Estimates of the number of Ghanaians living outside their homeland range from one to three million out of a general population of about 30 million. Ghanaians in Germany are reputed to form the second largest of the country’s diaspora populations in Europe, after the United Kingdom. Journalist, translator and community activist Sam Atsu Nove*, who first arrived in Germany in …

Regular operations have resumed at Nigeria’s two leading airports after a break of three months due to the coronavirus pandemic. Domestic flights recommenced at the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos and the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport in Abuja on Wednesday, 8 July. However, the turnout of passengers was low as Channels Television monitored activities at the domestic wing of the Murtala …

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, member of the European Parliament, MEP, has criticised Germany’s Interior Minister, Horst Seehofer, for stopping the planned investigation into racial profiling in the country’s police services. In a press statement issued on Wednesday, Ms Herzberger-Fofana, who represents Germany on the platform of the Green party in the European parliament, said Seehofer by his decision “denies the existence …

The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) has warned against racial profiling, as well as “systemic racism and inequalities” in Europe. “Racial profiling constitutes a specific form of racial discrimination and must be expressly prohibited by law,” ECRI, a human rights monitoring body, said in a statement published on 6 July. “It generates a feeling of humiliation and injustice …

The decision of the Federal Minister of the Interior, Horst Seehofer, to call off an investigation into racial profiling in the police is drawing anger and criticisms not only of migrant associations but also political parties, including the junior governing coalition partner SPD. Following the Black Lives Matter protests in Germany, questions are being raised about racism in the country’s …

Award-winning author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is mourning her father who died after a brief illness recently. Taking to Facebook on Saturday (4 July), she lamented that she couldn’t travel to Nigeria from her US base due to the international travel ban as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic to stand by her extended family in the period of mourning. Professor …

The Zentralrat der afrikanischen Gemeinde in Deutschland (Central Council of the African Community in Germany or ZAGD) has relaunched its website and introduced a new logo on Tuesday. The move by the organisation, an umbrella body for African associations in Germany, is part of its efforts to increase its visibility in the country. The relaunch ceremony, held by video conference …

The Democratic Republic of Congo marked its 60th independence anniversary on 30 June. Belgium’s King Philipe chose the occasion to apologise for his country’s horrendous atrocities against the Congolese people during its colonial occupation of the vast African country. How genuine is the apology? Femi Awoniyi takes a look at the situation of the troubled African country against the background …

After years of agitation by Black activists and their German supporters, a Berlin underground train station will be renamed. According to the management of the Berlin public transport authorities (BVG), the “U-Bahnhof Mohrenstrasse”, the station on Line U2 of the city’s metro network, will be changed to “U-Bahnhof Glinkastraße”. The decision, announced on Friday, came as Black Lives Matter protests …

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on Thursday condemned France for the “inhuman and degrading living conditions” of three asylum-seekers who were “living in the street without any resources”. The Strasbourg-based court ruled that authorities “had failed in their duties” with regard to the three asylum-seekers, finding France responsible for the conditions in which the three men – an …

  Other TV reception modes in Nigeria and Ghana currently include terrestrial, cable and IPTV  A new study has shown that Satellite TV reception increased by 23% in Nigeria and 19% in Ghana in 2019, two years after the last study was conducted.  On 25 June, SES, the leader in global content connectivity solutions, unveiled the results of its annual …

Flights will resume at Nigerian airports on 8 July, the federal government has announced. The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, made this known via his official Twitter handle on Monday. The minister explained that the resumption of commercial operations would begin with the Lagos and Abuja airports on 8 July. Kano, Port Harcourt, Owerri and Maiduguri would resume from July …

After 30 years of hurt, Liverpool Football Club are – to use a phrase coined by former Manchester United Manager, Alex Ferguson – “back on their perch”. Last week they were crowned English Premier League champions basically with their legs on the sofa. They were confirmed winners after Chelsea Football pipped Manchester City 2-1 which ensured Liverpool had an unassailable …

Residents of Germany can expect numerous changes again in July 2020. Several of these are related to the ongoing corona crisis, such as the reduction in VAT or the end of tenancy protection or the easing of travel ban on non-essential travel into EU member countries. Pensioners, on the other hand, can look forward to a pension increase. The African …

BOOK REVIEW It is easy, as the western media often do, to dismiss Africa as a continent of misery where nothing new happens except this misery is recycled in new varieties: corruption, hunger, wars, etc. But nobody pauses to take a harder look into the past of this troubled continent and find how its terrible history has played a part …

Nigeria’s cashless policy, initiated six years ago, was designed to encourage electronic transactions with a view to reducing the amount of physical cash in the economy to foster transparency, curb corruption and drive financial inclusion. It’s however now threatened by the growing perpetration of fraud.  Oludayo Tade, researcher in criminology, victimology, electronic frauds and cybercrime, University of Ibadan, presents his …

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana’s speech in the European Parliament on 17 June on how Belgian policemen physically harassed her was greeted with a loud ovation and shocked Europe to the reality of police violence against Black people. It became a topic of media discussions across the continent. In a strange twist to the story, instead of the police to apologise to …

Since inception, MainOne has invested in over $400m in infrastructure in West Africa as part of its efforts to bridge the digital divide and enable the digital economy LAGOS, Nigeria, June 29, 2020/ — MainOne (www.MainOne.net), West Africa’s leading provider of Wholesale and Enterprise connectivity and data centre services celebrates 10 years of delivering innovative, world-class service in West Africa. …