A total of 519,000 asylum applications were filed in European countries in the first half of this year, marking an increase of 28 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to the latest report of the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA). “As a result of the increase, many EU+ countries* are under pressure with processing applications …
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Munich university imposes tuition fees on foreign students
One of Germany’s leading universities has announced that it would start charging foreign students from the so-called third countries tuition fees. Generally, public universities don’t charge tuition fees in Germany. The Technical University of Munich (TUM) in a statement on 5 September that it would reintroduce tuition fees for all students from non-European Union countries as from October 2023. “At …
Read More »UN releases new report on anti-Black racism
People of African descent continue to face immense challenges to meaningful participation in public affairs in many countries due to systemic racism, marginalization and exclusion often rooted in the legacies of enslavement and colonialism, according to a UN Human Rights Office report issued Tuesday. The report finds that systemic racism continues to affect negatively people of African descent in all …
Read More »Germany: Migrants’ share of this city’s population rises to 40%
The urban landscape in Germany is changing as the number of people with foreign origin increases. A new report published by the Statistics Office North shows that the proportion of Hamburg residents with an immigrant background rose to 39.3 percent as of 31 December 2022. Compared to the previous year, the share of migrants increased by almost two percentage points. …
Read More »Lagos Airport: Foreign airlines relocate to new terminal
International airlines operating from the old Terminal 1 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport have been directed to relocate to the new Chinese-built Terminal 2. The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) issued the order following the directive of the new Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo. Keyamo, during a visit to the Lagos airport had directed FAAN …
Read More »Women in rural Africa no longer give birth in darkness, thanks to off-grid solar energy
600 health clinics across sub-Saharan Africa use solar-powered lights and energy systems to stay open for longer. Expectant mothers in rural Africa no longer give birth in darkness, thanks to off-grid solar energy provided by d.light ……… PALO ALTO, CA., USA, AND NAIROBI, KENYA – 21 August 2023 – 600 health clinics across sub-Saharan Africa are able to provide care …
Read More »German government approves reform of citizenship law
The governing federal coalition has passed a bill to reform Germany’s citizenship law. The bill, which was approved by the cabinet on Wednesday, provides for the simplification of naturalisation. On the other hand, the government wants to make it more difficult for persons who cannot support themselves or who have already committed criminal offences in Germany to naturalise. Among the …
Read More »Germany: Significantly more deportations in the first half of the year
According to the federal government, 7,861 persons were deported from Germany in the period of January to June 2023, almost 27 per cent more than in the same period last year, the news agency epd has reported. Most of the deportees were taken to Austria under the Dublin rule that provides that the EU country which an asylum seeker first …
Read More »Herzberger-Fofana on the breakthrough agreement between EU and ACP countries
The European Union has given its final approval to a new post-Cotonou partnership between the EU and the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) States. After two years of waiting, this important document has finally been signed. Dr. Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, member of the European Parliament and Vice-President of the Delegation for Relations between the European Union and the ACP countries, writes …
Read More »Nigerians’ long wait for passport to end — new minister
Nigeria’s new Minister of Interior, Bunmi Tunji-Ojo, has criticized the delays experienced by Nigerians to obtain their passports. According to him, Nigerians should not be made to wait endlessly before getting their passports. He has therefore directed the acting Comptroller General of the Immigration, Caroline Wuraola Adepoju, to ensure the reasons for the delays were addressed. Tunji-Ojo said this on …
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