THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
For many refugee families in Germany, the struggle does not end with finding safety. A new report by the German Children’s Fund (Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk) has revealed that refugee children often wait months — sometimes up to three years — before being allowed into regular school classes.
The organisation calls this unacceptable, stressing that every child has a right to education. “These long delays are not only a violation of rights but also a serious obstacle to integration,” said Holger Hofmann, the group’s managing director.
The delays often begin in initial reception centres, where little or no proper schooling is provided. Even when children are moved to local communities, many must spend months in waiting periods before being placed in preparatory classes. These special classes can last as long as two years, meaning some children only enter mainstream education after a very long time.
The consequences are far-reaching. Children lose valuable years of learning, fall behind their peers, and face a harder road to integration and success in Germany. Families — many of whom already struggle with uncertainty about their asylum status — are left frustrated and worried about their children’s future.
EU rules state that children should be placed in school within three months of applying for asylum. Upcoming reforms to Europe’s asylum system will tighten this further, requiring school access within two months and limiting time in special classes to just one month.
For African families and other refugee communities in Germany, the Children’s Fund report highlights a challenge that is often felt but rarely acknowledged: the long wait for education can put children’s futures on hold. Parents and advocacy groups continue to call on authorities to act faster, ensuring that refugee children can learn, grow, and build their lives in safety.
Felix Dappah
