The Migration Enlightenment Project Nigeria (MEPN), a Germany-based initiative promoting safe migration, has noted that criminal human trafficking networks continued to be the main driver of irregular emigration in Nigeria. In view of the thousands of Nigerians stranded in various transit and destination countries around the world where they’re exposed to human rights abuses, the MEPN has issued a brief …

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 …

Germany is well behind its European neighbours when it comes to coverage with high-performance mobile network technology, a study shows. And data rates could do with improvement too, reports Timothy Jones. Germany has worse LTE (4G) mobile phone network coverage than many of its European neighbours, according to a study by the Aachen-based consulting firm P3, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports. …

Murder, torture, arbitrary detention, gang rape, forced labour, extortion: A recent United Nations report details the horrors suffered by migrants and refugees in Libya. The authors call on the European Union to increase rescues efforts in the Mediterranean and to facilitate the work of humanitarian ships. Julia Dumont and Monique El-Faizy report. A recent report, jointly published on 18 December …

Participants from different African countries and the diaspora gathered in Accra between 8-13 December to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first All-African People’s Conference (AAPC). The event marks the 1958 congress, which also took place in Accra and that brought together freedom fighters from all over Africa, including independent and colonised states, to strategise on how to free the …

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has commissioned the newly-built international terminal at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. The terminal is said to be the biggest in West Africa and it has the capacity to process at least 15 million passengers annually. While commissioning the facility on Thursday, the President said the federal government was committed to making Nigeria an aviation …

As Nigeria continues the battle against irregular migration, a German Foundation, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), has advised Nigerian government to focus on economic development to end the menace. Mr Vladimir Kreck, Country Representative of KAS, advised the government on Wednesday in Abuja during a workshop on “Migration- current trends part two’’. Kreck said that poverty and unemployment were identified as …

Anthony Joshua, world heavyweight boxing champion, has been presented with an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to sport. The British-Nigerian received the honour from the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday. The investiture marks the latest accolade Joshua has collected after he was also given an MBE in 2013. …

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has reported that 111,558 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea from January to 16 December 2018. At least 2,217 people were reported dead. In a statement, the UN agency said that this year is the fifth straight during which the arrival of irregular migrants and refugees has topped the 100,000 threshold. Nevertheless, this …