Death toll from the sinking of the boat near Kerkennah Islands has risen to 112, the UN migration agency says. The death toll from the sinking of a boat packed with migrants off the coast of Tunisia on Saturday has risen to 112, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Monday. On Sunday, officials said 46 people died when …
Read More »How crisis in Senegal’s fishing sector drives migration to Europe
The documentary ‘Mareyeurs’ by director Matteo Raffaelli explores how exploitation of fish stocks in Senegal can drive young people to migrate to Europe. The film, produced by Ocean Film in collaboration with HF4, tells the story of Ibrahima, a young trader specialized in wholesaling fresh fish products in Senegal, who is worried about the depletion of fish stocks and his …
Read More »Dozens of African migrants drown after their boat sinks off Tunisian coast
At least 35 people have drowned after a migrant boat sank off the coast of Tunisia. The country has become the preferred jumping off point for desperate migrants after Libyan forces tightened security. The bodies of 35 migrants were recovered off the coast of Tunisia Sunday, raising the death toll put out earlier by the Defense Ministry. As of 1 …
Read More »MoneyGram’s many ways of supporting Africans in Germany
MoneyGram, a leading provider of international money transfers, knows how difficult it can be for Africans in Germany to settle in their new home country while keeping close ties to family and friends in Africa and supporting them from a distance. Following the slogan “That’s the African Way – discover your way”, MoneyGram contributes to both important aspects. Discover your …
Read More »Euro area unemployment rate lowest since 2008
Unemployment in the Euro area is at its lowest level since 2008 according to Eurostat. The rate fell to 8.5% in April from an upwardly revised 8.6% in March. Greece, Spain and Italy recorded the highest rates of unemployment while the Czech Republic, Malta and Germany recorded the lowest. The eurozone consists of 19 members who are EU members and use the euro. …
Read More »New law allows 25-year-old Nigerians to seek political office
The minimum age for a Nigerian to run for political office has been reduced to twenty-five years from the previous thirty years cap. This follows the signing into law of the #NotTooYoungToRun bill. President Muhammadu Buhari signed the law at the presidential villa in Abuja Thursday flanked by a number of young advocates who vigorously campaigned for the bill. Of …
Read More »Uganda imposes tax on social media use, human rights groups kick against move
The Ugandan parliament has passed a law imposing a tax on people using mobile social media networks in an attempt to increase revenue, but rights groups say the levy is actually aimed at silencing dissent. Users will be charged 200 shillings ($0.0531) per day for services such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp. That amounts to around $19 per year in …
Read More »Denmark bans full-face veils in public
Denmark has joined several other European countries in banning the full-face veil worn by some Muslim women in public spaces. In a 75 to 30 vote on Thursday, Danish legislators passed the law presented by Denmark’s centre-right governing coalition. The law was also backed by the Social Democrats and the far-right Danish People’s Party. “Anyone who wears a garment that …
Read More »A quarter of migrants who arrived in Germany since 2015 have found jobs
One in four migrants who arrived in Germany to seek refuge from wars and conflicts since 2015 has since found a job. According to figures from the research institute of the Federal Employment Agency, those from Pakistan have been the most successful. “If employment growth continues at this rate, half of the migrants will be employed within five years,” the …
Read More »Angela Merkel leads memorial of Solingen racist attack victims
German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with political leaders, including Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, on the 25th anniversary of a neo-Nazi arson attack that killed five members of a Turkish-German family. German leaders gathered in Düsseldorf on Tuesday to honour the victims of the arson attack in the nearby community of Solingen on May 29, 1993, when right-wing extremists set …
Read More »The Romanian who is seeking asylum in Africa
Radu Mazare is one of more than 3 million Romanians who work outside the country. But he’s a little different to most of them. He first started to visit the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar as an alternative to his usual holiday destination of Brazil. “I felt amazing from the first visit back in 2011,” he told Euronews. When he …
Read More »Libya’s rival factions agree to hold UN-backed elections
Rival Libyan factions agreed on Tuesday in Paris to create a political framework paving the way for UN-backed parliamentary and presidential elections in a secure environment by 10 December 2018. The deal aims to end the country’s seven-year-old conflict. In a joint statement, Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, head of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli, eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar and …
Read More »Zimbabwe to hold general elections in July
Zimbabwe will hold its general elections on July 30, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has announced, the first since the army forced 94-year-old former president Robert Mugabe to resign last November. Mnangagwa, who became president following the military take-over, has promised to deliver on free and fair elections to win over Zimbabwe’s critics at home and abroad. The vote will pit him …
Read More »Malian child rescuer joins Paris fire brigade as he awaits French citizenship
Mamoudou Gassama, the 22-year-old Malian “Spiderman” celebrated for saving a child hanging from a balcony, took his first step towards French citizenship Tuesday and joined the fire brigade as accolades continued to pour in over his daring rescue. Video footage of Gassama scaling four storeys of the building with his bare hands has catapulted the young man to global fame, …
Read More »Far-right AfD protesters massively outnumbered in Berlin
An estimated 5,000 supporters of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party demonstrated in Berlin on Sunday “for the future of Germany” in the party’s largest gathering since it became Germany’s top opposition party. AfD supporters shouting “Merkel must go” were largely outnumbered by rival demonstrations, gathering about 20,000 people, according to police estimates, however. Excerpts of Jefferson Chase’s report …
Read More »FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura says she encountered racism, sexism
FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura said she encountered sexism and racism when she took over the job, with some in soccer opposed to a “black woman” taking a senior post at the global governing body. FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura said she encountered sexism and racism when she took over the job, with some in soccer opposed to a “black …
Read More »Macron rewards undocumented Malian who rescued child from Paris balcony
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday hailed the young Malian migrant who saved a 4-year-old child hanging from a fourth-floor Paris balcony, saying his act of bravery opened the door to French citizenship. At a meeting in the Elysée presidential palace Monday, Macron praised Mamoudou Gassama, an undocumented migrant from Mali, for his “exceptional act” and added: “We’re going to …
Read More »Another successful African Unity Day congress in Dortmund, Germany
“Global Networking & Modern Economy” was the motto of this year’s Africa Day Conference. AfricanTide Union e.V. hosted the event for the eighth year in Dortmund. From May 24 to 26 representatives of African Diaspora communities met politicians and ambassadors, entrepreneurs, creative minds and interested citizens from Germany and abroad at the Dortmund Town Hall. The economic situation in Africa …
Read More »Nigerian prostitutes testify against their traffickers in Paris court
Sixteen members of a mostly female network of Nigerian human traffickers operating forced prostitution rings in France went on trial last week in Paris, facing their accusers as the trafficked women testified to being lied to, beaten and raped. Plaintiffs at the High Court of Paris began giving testimony on May 14 against a group known as the “Authentic Sisters”, …
Read More »Ireland overturns abortion ban in historic vote
Ireland has voted overwhelmingly to repeal its ban on abortion in a referendum the Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar described as a “quiet revolution.” The result was a landslide 66.4% ‘yes’ vote against 33.6% who voted ‘no’. Voters were asked if they wished to scrap the eighth amendment, which gives an unborn child equal rights to life as a pregnant …
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