EUROPE

A week before the European elections, tens of thousands turned out in Berlin on Sunday to demonstrate against nationalism and for a Europe of solidarity. With its motto “A Europe for all”, rallies also took place in other German and European cities. One week before the European elections, thousands of people protested peacefully against nationalism and exclusion in central Berlin on …

From Wednesday (15 May) the price for phone calls across EU member states cannot cost more than 19 cents-per-minute and text messages six cents each, excluding VAT, according to new limits introduced by Brussels. This price does not include VAT, which varies depending on the EU Member States of the calling operator (EU Member States’ rates of VAT range between …

A call has gone out to all Nigerians living outside their homeland to regard the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) as their umbrella body. Kenneth Gbandi, chairman of NIDO Europe, made the call at the 2nd Nigerian Global Diaspora Conference, which took place recently in Almere, Netherlands. Addressing the summit, a follow-up to the Nigerian Diaspora Global Development Conference held …

British historian, broadcaster and film-maker David Olusoga has been appointed by the University of Manchester as a Professor of Public History, the institution announced on Tuesday. Olusoga, who co-presented the BBC’s landmark series Civilisations in 2018, is one of the UK’s foremost historians whose main subject areas are empire, race and slavery. Olusoga was born in Nigeria to a Nigerian …

With the traditional words “I swear to uphold the obligations of my office” which he has become familiar with over the past 13 years, Collins Nweke, a Nigerian-born Belgian politician swore an Oath of Office for a third term on Tuesday 2 January 2019 at the Ostend City Council Belgium. Having made history as the first non-Belgian-born person to occupy …

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer is calling for harsher deportation laws after asylum-seekers attacked pedestrians in Bavaria. So far, who gets deported – and who makes that call –  is a complex matter. Carla Bleiker reports. Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has said he would send proposals to the government aimed at changing German deportation laws in an effort to …

More and more Germans are worried about not being able to make ends meet when they retire, a new study has shown. Rising energy costs and low interest rates are also feeding fears of financial insecurity. More than half of all Germans are afraid of being financially insecure in old age, German newspaper Die Welt has reported, citing a study …

Many new laws and legislative changes, affecting employees, the unemployed, families and retirees, came into force on 1 January 2019. The African Courier takes us through some of the most important changes that we should know. Minimum wage rises The statutory minimum wage (der gesetzliche Mindestlohn) rises from 8.84 euros to 9.19 euros on 1 January 2019. From 2020, employers …

The integration of refugees in Germany has been more successful than expected, according to the head of the country’s employers’ association. “Of more than a million people who have come to Germany especially since 2015, up to 400,000 will soon have a training position or a job,” said Ingo Kramer, the President of the Confederation of German Employers (Bundesvereinigung der …

The well-known Germany-based, Ghanaian chief was bestowed with a very special honour recently, as the south-western city of Ludwigshafen conferred on him one of its most prestigious honours, the Coat of Arms plaque. “I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to Mr Céphas Bansah for his charitable and voluntary work in Ludwigshafen and to honour him with the coat …

The first Federal Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration was appointed in 1978. Dignitaries, including Chancellor Angela Merkel and around 1000 guests from politics, science, industry, media and associations, gathered in Berlin on Wednesday to celebrate the milestone and put a focus on the integration of migrants in the country again. Chancellor Angela Merkel considers the integration of migrants a …

The Christian Democrats have chosen Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to lead the party into its next phase. After 18 years, Chancellor Angela Merkel announced her decision to step down as the leader of the governing CDU in October. She did therefore not seek re-election at the CDU congress in Hamburg on Friday (7 December) but she will remain chancellor until the end …

Surprised by details Germans take for granted, some newcomers are shocked by the country’s supermarket culture. Here’s useful advice from Elizabeth Grenier, a self-declared grocery shopping expert from Canada, who learned the hard way. Know your different types of supermarkets The different categories of grocery stores in Germany can be confusing for newcomers. A few chains are actual supermarkets, while …

Border checks between Schengen countries should be limited to a maximum of one year, instead of the current two-year period, the European Parliament said in a draft law on Thursday (29 November). Worried by member states that have introduced internal border checks within the Schengen area, the European Parliament (MEPs) decided on Thursday on new rules governing the use of …

Femi Awoniyi concludes his 3-part report on the annual general meeting of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe, which held in Vienna, Austria, on 8-10 November. The third and final day of the annual general meeting of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE), chaired by Ambassador Vivian Okeke, Nigeria’s envoy to Austria, featured discussions on the challenges before the …

Immigrants in Germany are better integrated than was the case a decade ago, researchers have found. While most German residents with foreign roots have become part of society, a small group feels like they don’t belong. Most immigrants in Germany view integration as important but also wish to maintain their own culture, according to a new study from the VHW, …

Leaders of the European Union gathered in Brussels have endorsed an agreement on Britain’s departure from the 28-nation bloc. But British PM Theresa May still needs to get the deal approved by the UK parliament. Leaders of 27 European Union nations on Sunday endorsed an agreement detailing the terms and conditions on which Britain will leave the bloc on March …

Last year, about 38,000 migrants from third countries received a residence permit in Germany because of their work experience and skills. Compared to 2009, it’s an increase of more than 50 percent. Most came from India, Bosnia-Herzegovina, USA, Serbia and China. The immigration of skilled workers from non-EU countries to Germany is increasing. Last year, more than twice as many …

Germany’s Interior Ministry has proposed new measures to monitor and deport persons whose asylum application has been rejected.  The German Interior Ministry on Sunday (18 November) confirmed plans to facilitate and accelerate deportations of failed asylum-seekers along with those who should have their asylum requests processed in another EU country under the so-called Dublin rules. According to the European Union’s Dublin …

Femi Awoniyi continues his report on the annual general meeting of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe, which held in Vienna, Austria, on 8-10 November, bringing together Nigerians from across Europe and Nigeria to discuss topical issues affecting their home country. The second of the 3-day annual general meeting of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE), with the theme …