Diaspora

Nigeria’s diaspora remittances have been projected to rise by five per cent to $22bn by the end of 2021. Agusto Consulting Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of a rating agency, Agusto & Co. Limited, disclosed this in its report titled ‘2021 Nigeria diaspora remittance report & survey’ for May 2021. The report was presented by the Managing Director, Yinka Adelekan, …

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has announced that Nigerians living abroad who have difficulties renewing their expired passport and want to travel home could do so with the document. Aregbesola said government was conscious of the difficulties Nigerians were experiencing with passport renewal due to the Covid-19 pandemic and it was committed to alleviating the situation. “It is …

Nigerians in the diaspora have an opportunity to own houses in the country and also participate actively in money and capital markets, thanks to several investment packages rolled out by Ecobank. Mrs. Olukorede Demola-Adeniyi, Head of Ecobank’s Consumer Banking, has said that the bank is offering mortgage loans to Nigerians living abroad to finance property ownership in the country. She …

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced an extension of its ‘Naira 4 Dollar’ incentive to encourage diaspora remittances until further notice. Under the scheme, the Bank pays out a reward of N5 for every $1 of fund remitted to Nigeria through money transfer companies. The apex bank announced the extension on Wednesday (5 May) through a memo by …

About 17 million Nigerians are believed to live in the diaspora and they are constitutionally excluded from participation in their homeland’s electoral process from outside the country. Voters who are resident outside Nigeria can only vote during elections if they travel back to Nigeria to register as voters in Nigeria and to vote during elections in Nigeria. As the country …

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has been quoted as having assured that the backlog of passport application and issuance would be cleared latest by 31 May 2021. In a statement issued by Gabriel Odu of the Media, Public Relations and Protocol Department of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), the minister made the pledge when he received Hon …

In pursuit of its goal of more inclusiveness and widening its horizon, the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE), under the leadership of Dr Bashir Obasekola, has appointed several Ad-Hoc Committees to help it achieve its objectives. The Committees are: 1. Ad-Hoc Committee on Youths inclusion Mandate and objectives: Inclusion of the youth is paramount for NIDOE to continue as …

The Austrian chapter of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE) has elected Mrs Subrinah Ego Dolischka as its first female chairperson. The NIDOE-Austria general election, conducted virtually on 27 March 2021, was well organised by the electoral committee under the chairmanship Engr Oluyemi Ogundele, a former chairman of the organisation. The committee adopted the E-voting method due to the …

Nigerians from across the globe will gather via an online conference on Saturday, 17 April to discuss how to actualise their dream of being able to vote at elections in their home country. The conference, christened “Diaspora Voting – Panel Discussion On Nigeria’s Participation and Readiness”, will feature speakers such as Dr Bashir Obasekola, Chairman NIDO Europe; Engr Obed Monago, …

It’s two years ago that the Canada-based Nigerian scholar and public intellectual Pius Adebola Adesanmi was killed in an air crash aged 47. He was one of the victims of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 from Addis Ababa to Nairobi that crashed shortly after take-off on 10 March 2019. He was en route Nairobi as a participant at the ECOSOCC …

A new travel document designed for a one-way travel to Nigeria only and which replaces the Emergency Travel Certificate issued to Nigerians to return home in emergency situations has been launched. “The Nigerian Temporary Passport (NTP) is a travel document designed for a one-way trip to Nigeria only,” Federal Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbeshola, said on Tuesday at the headquarters …

As part of its incentives to boost the inflow of foreign currency in the country, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Saturday introduced a reward of N5 for every $1 of fund remitted to Nigeria through International Money Transfer Organisations in its new forex policy. The CBN announced the new policy in a circular to all deposit money banks, …

“We the Yoruba diaspora living in Germany, had long been watching and monitoring with great concern, the onslaught on lives, properties and existence of our families in the whole of Yorubaland. The onslaught continued unabated with more killings, raping, maiming and destruction of livelihood of our people, perpetuated by Fulani herdsmen and bandits."

The security situation in Nigeria is worsening by the day as marauding bandits, camouflaging as herdsmen, roam across the country kidnapping for ransom, waylaying travellers, killing farmers and generally making the country unsafe. Added to the security troubles of the country is the possibility of inter-ethnic clashes flaring in different parts of the country caused by worsening inter-communal relationship. Members …

The Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation, NIDO, on Monday called on President Muhammadu Buhari to include its representatives on the board of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, NIDCOM, in accordance with the act establishing the commission. The Chairman of NIDO Europe, Dr Bashir Olalekan Obasekola, made the call during a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria from his base …

Nigeria could learn from the United States electoral process to build on democratic gains in the country, the African Diaspora Congress (ADC) said on Wednesday Prof. Apollos Nwauwa, the Secretary-General and Public Relations Officer of the US-based organisation, made the comment in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). According to Nwauwa, the outcome of the current …

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 …

On 22 October 2020, in the aftermath of the Nigerian Army shooting and killing of peaceful youths protesting at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos and other parts of Nigeria, the leadership and members of Nigerians In Diaspora Organization World Wide (NIDOWW) invited other Nigerian Diaspora organizations to an emergency town hall meeting to discuss and take a stance on …

Chief (Dr) Uche Iro, a Germany-based entrepreneur, established The Strivad Foundation (TSF), a global non-governmental, non-political and non-profit charitable organisation, to channel his efforts towards the development of his home country, Nigeria. A successful businessman, Dr Iro’s companies include PhysioCenter-Stuttgart GbR (Germany), FitGym Healthcare Services GmbH (Germany), Strivad Ventures Limited (Germany/Nigeria), Iro Investment Group International Inc. (Nigeria/ Europe/ USA/United Arab …

After Senator Johnston Arthur Sakaja’s recent brush with the law over flouting Covid-19 restrictions, the legislator has got back to doing what legislators do best. Drafting bills. His latest brainchild is the Kenyan Diaspora Startup Bill 2020. The bill has good intent but is weak in practice, argues David Monda.  The Kenyan Startup Bill 2020 is an innovative bill that …