LIVING IN GERMANY

German unemployment lowest since 1990

The number of jobless people in Europe’s biggest economy has reached a new low, fresh data has shown. Germany’s labour market experienced its traditional autumn increase in employment in both adjusted and unadjusted terms. The number of unemployed people in Germany dropped below the 2.4-million mark in October, the lowest figure logged since German unification in 1990. The Nuremberg-based Federal …

Read More »

Singapore edges out Germany as world’s most powerful passport

By removing visa requirements for Singaporeans, Paraguay helped Singapore edge out Germany for the top spot in the Passport Index published by global financial advisory firm Arton Capital. Singapore was previously tied with Germany for the number-one spot. Paraguay recently removed its visa requirements for Singaporeans, giving citizens easy access to 159 countries, compared to 158 for German passport-holders. Historically, …

Read More »

bankomo: download the app and open an account

 Are you looking for access to an account without the need for a credit check? You can have that with bankomo, ReiseBank’s mobile account. ReiseBank’s cash experts specialise in business with people from overseas. They exchange foreign currencies and provide Western Union services, and now also offer a smartphone account that you can simply download as an app from Apple’s …

Read More »

African Youth Education Awards ceremony holds in Hamburg

The youth empowerment initiative to promote educational achievement in the African community in Germany holds its annual award ceremony at the premises of the IHK in Hamburg on Saturday, 21 October 2017. The annual African Youth Education (AYE) Awards aim to motivate young people of African origin in Germany to seek excellence in school. The scheme was initiated in 2011 …

Read More »

German unemployment hits surprise record low

Unemployment in Germany hit a surprise new low in September, newly-released official data show, the latest in a string of sunny indicators as the upswing continues in Europe’s top economy. The proportion of people out of work fell to 5.6 per cent this month, the Federal Labour Agency said, while analysts had expected the figure to hold steady at 5.7 …

Read More »

Nigeria gets new ambassador to Germany

After several years of waiting, a new substantive ambassador from Nigeria to Berlin arrived during the week. Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, a former member of the Federal House of Representatives, takes charge of the embassy which has been headed until now by the Deputy Head of Mission, Ambassador Mobolaji Sakirat Ogundero. Hon. Yusuf Tuggar, who was born on 12 March …

Read More »

Medical treatments available to asylum seekers in Germany

 All refugees arriving in Germany have a right to medical aid. However, the facilities and services they can access are limited – at least for the first 15 months. Manasi Gopalakrishnan reports. When refugees first enter Germany, doctors examine them for communicable diseases. For this purpose, experts carry out an x-ray of the lungs. For people below 15 years of …

Read More »

Nigerian goes on trial for murder of German refugee worker

The Nigerian accused of killing Soopika P., a refugee aid worker, in the western German town of Ahaus on 11 February has gone on trial in the western city of Münster Prosecutors argue the asylum-seeker became possessive of the22-year-old victim after a brief affair. The 28-year-old defendant remained silent during his appearance in the Münster Regional Court on Monday. Prosecutors …

Read More »

Germany under “illusion” about rejected asylum seekers – Bavarian premier

A “great illusion” prevails in Germany over the deportation of failed asylum applicants, Bavarian premier Horst Seehofer argued, adding it is unrealistic to expel all migrants once they are in the country. It is much more humane for European countries to protect common borders and decide on the spot whom to allow in than to accept migrants en masse and …

Read More »

New laws and regulations in Germany from August 2017

A more favourable health insurance is now possible for many retirees who did not work for a period of time because they were raising their children and were insured through their spouses. Moreover, no more child marriages, stricter hygiene regulations, clearer energy labels etc. Changed health insurance for retirees A condition for an often more cost-effective compulsory insurance in the …

Read More »

Hamburg supermarket attacker a ‘known Islamist’

Police in the German city of Hamburg say the suspect in a deadly knife attack in a supermarket on Friday was what they call a “known Islamist but not a jihadist”. One person was killed and seven others injured in the attack, which occurred in the Barmbek area to the north of the city. The assailant shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God …

Read More »

Missing Kenyan woman found in Heidelberg

The Kenyan woman reported as missing last Thursday in Heidelberg has been found. Virginia Njeri Muchoki, who was reported as missing after she failed to pick up her daughter from the nanny, was found yesterday. The 32-year-old woman showed up at the police station after she read the reports her family and the police were looking for her, according to …

Read More »

Germany-based Kenyan woman goes missing in Heidelberg

A Kenyan woman living in the western German city of Heidelberg has gone missing since Thursday  (27 July) and her family is appealing to the public to help find her. Virginia Njeri Muchoki was last seen on Thursday in Heidelberg Pfaffengrund. She was scheduled to pick up her daughter at a nearby day care (Tagesmutter), but she never arrived. The …

Read More »

Knife attack in Hamburg supermarket leaves one person dead

One person was killed and four injured in a stabbing attack on Friday at a supermarket in Hamburg, Germany, police said. The incident happened in the Barmbek area to the north of the city. The assailant shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God is Greatest”) as he fled the scene of the crime in a neighbourhood supermarket before being overpowered by passers-by, witnesses …

Read More »

German police acquires capability to hack WhatsApp – report

German police will be able to use surveillance software by the end 2017 that can hack into people’s smartphones and read encrypted messages in such services as WhatsApp, says a report that cites a leaked document. A new version of the German police’s Remote Communication Interception Software (RCIS), which is used for surveillance over electronic devices, will be ready by …

Read More »

‘Everything will collapse’: German courts overwhelmed by asylum cases

The number of cases filed by asylum seekers challenging the decisions of immigration authorities in German courts has brought the legal system to the brink of collapse, a top German judge has warned in an interview. The sheer number of cases filed has overwhelmed the civil courts of the country, said Robert Seegmuller, chairman of the Association of German Administrative …

Read More »