May, 2018

• 3 May

  FIFA advances $2 million to African World Cup teams

  World Cup-bound African teams have received a major boost after FIFA agreed to advance each of the five countries US$2 million ahead of the global football fiesta which kicks off in Russia next month. The 2014 World Cup in Brazil saw the Ghana and Cameroon national teams arguing with their football associations over bonus payments: Cameroon arrived late, Ghana’s government …

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• 3 May

  German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas starts first visit to Africa

  After being at the centre of attention in 2017, Germany’s Africa policy has somewhat stagnated. But Foreign Minister Heiko Maas wants to keep communications open and is visiting Ethiopia and Tanzania this week. Ludger Schadomsky of DW reports. Germany’s Africa policy is back in the spotlight, this time at the highest level. Only six weeks after assuming office, German Foreign Minister …

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• 2 May

  Nigeria bans codeine-based cough syrups after BBC exposé on addiction

  Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health has directed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to immediately cease the importation of codeine. The ban is specifically in respect of codeine as an active pharmaceutical ingredient for cough preparations. The directive is meant to curb an addiction crisis exposed by the BBC in a recent undercover film. The …

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• 2 May

  Study reveals critical ages at which people can best learn a new language

  There is a “critical period” for learning a second language, with people remaining adept learners until the age of 17 or 18, when their ability drops, according to a new study. Conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the study suggests that the “critical period” for learning a new language is much longer than scientists had previously thought. “It was …

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• 2 May

  BBC Sport Africa Launches

  Starting, Tuesday 1 May, and continuing weekly throughout the year, BBC Sport Africa will bring the issues, the personalities, the buzz, the key moments and the trends in sport from across the continent. The 30 minute programme will cover many different sports including those that are little-known, and will be featuring everyone from the most famous sports stars to rising …

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• 1 May

  More than half of migrants fail official German language test

  Around every second migrant in Germany fails the language test at the end of integration courses, a newspaper reports. It suggests a lack of adequate attendance could be one factor in the low success rate. More than half of refugees and migrants to Germany are unable to pass a basic language test at the end of integration courses offered to …

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April, 2018

• 30 April

  BBC launches new TV investigative documentary series on Africa

  Africa Eye – a new documentary strand from the BBC launches today with an in-depth investigation into the plague of addiction to cough mixture across Nigeria. The new strand will deliver up to 20 original and high-impact investigations from across Africa every year.   Nisha Kapur, Commissioning Editor for TV said: “Africa Eye will promote the culture of investigative journalism across …

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• 30 April

  Africa loses billions due to high cost of remittances to the continent

  Billions of dollars in remittances flowed to Africa in 2017. The money could go further if it wasn’t more expensive to send money to Africa than anywhere else in the world, a new World Bank study finds. Immigrants sent a $38 billion (€31.1 billion) back home to Africa in 2017, according to a new World Bank briefing paper. Nigeria accounts …

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• 28 April

  Why we need to stand our ground on Nigerian Diaspora Day 2018, by Kenneth Gbandi

  A Press Statement released by Hon. Kenneth Gbandi, Continental Chairman Nigerians in Diaspora Organization Europe, on Saturday 28 April 2018. “There is nothing wrong with Nigeria/Diaspora that cannot be cured by what is right with Nigeria/Diaspora” I am neither a praise singer nor a ‘Yes, Sir’ man. I have always followed my conviction courtesy of the grace and magnanimity of …

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• 28 April

  Sirleaf receives Mo Ibrahim prize, to pursue women empowerment

  Liberia’s former leader, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has spoken publicly for the first time about what she intends to use her time for as she settles into life after the presidency. The former Nobel Prize laureate and Africa’s first democratically-elected woman president said she was going to continue with issues of women empowerment whiles advancing the cause of good governance across …

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