A 16-year-old Senegalese boy was shot last year in the course of a police operation in Dortmund. Five police officers have now been charged to court over the tragic incident, which sparked protests in the African community. One officer is accused of manslaughter, three of dangerous bodily harm and another of incitement to dangerous bodily harm, as Dortmund senior public …

The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) is not allowed to analyse the mobile phones of asylum-seekers without a concrete reason. This practice is inadmissible if other available findings and documents are not sufficiently taken into account, the Federal Administrative Court ruled in Leipzig on Thursday. For years, the BAMF, which is the central migration authority in Germany responsible …

Despite an illegal deportation to his home country, a former asylum-seeker from the Democratic Republic of Congo is not entitled to be brought back to Germany. This is the decision of the Administrative Court of Düsseldorf, which rejected an urgent application by the man. A repatriation of the asylum-seeker to Germany would not make sense because the man had no …

Dr Sylvie Nantcha, chairman of The African Network of Germany (TANG), has called for an improved recording of the numbers of politically motivated attacks against Black people in Germany. She made the plea during the official presentation of the first situation report on Racism in Germany in Berlin recently. The event, which took place at the office of the chancellor …

The International Tourism Bourse (ITB) Berlin is back as a physical event after a three-year absence caused by the coronavirus pandemic. It will hold from 8 to 12 March on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds ICC. In 2020 the ITB Berlin did not take place. And it took place entirely as virtual events in 2021 and 2022. ITB Berlin, the world’s …

The number of international students at German universities has risen to a new high in the current winter semester. According to a quick survey, between 360,000 and 370,000 foreign students are currently enrolled, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has announced. Last winter semester, the number was just under 350,000. According to DAAD projections, the number of international first-year students …

A university teacher has taken the government of Berlin, one of Germany’s 16 federal states, to court over what he describes as “racist mistreatment at the Immigration office Berlin”. The case, filed by Mbolo Yufanyi Movuh, a lecturer at the Alice Salomon University of Applied Sciences (ASH), Berlin, will be heard on Thursday (9 February) at the Berlin District Court, …

Switzerland is Europe’s best country to drive in, new research has revealed. The study, conducted by the International Drivers Association, analysed several factors surrounding driving in Europe and scored 33 countries based on how congested the roads are, the quality of the roads, petrol prices and how safe driving is. The study found that Switzerland is the best European country …

The Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Shri Gangandharan Balasubramanian, has commended Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), on her strides at engaging with the Nigerians in the Diaspora globally. The Indian envoy stated this in Abuja when he received in audience, the NiDCOM chief and some management staff to the Indian Embassy in Abuja, who were specially …

German-African trade reached a new record level in 2022, according to Germany’s Federal Statistical Office. Exports from Germany to African countries last year were 14.5 per cent above those of the previous year at 26.4 billion euros. The increase in imports from the continent was even more pronounced at 27.4 per cent to 33.4 billion euros. The trade volume therefore …

The Austrian chapter of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE) holds a conference on Friday (10 February) in Vienna on how the diaspora can contribute to efforts to end energy poverty in Africa. With the theme Renewable Energy for Economic Development in Africa: The Role of Remittances, the hybrid event will examine how remittances can be deployed into investment …

People of African Descent who were victims of fascist violence during the Third Reich should not be forgotten, writes Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana*. The European MP narrates her efforts in the past twenty years to promote an increased awareness of the ‘other’ victims of Nazi barbarism who are often neglected in the mainstream history books and argues why it’s important to …

Over 13,000 residents from the Ogale and Bille communities in Nigeria file claims against Shell for devastating oil spills The group register in the Ogale claim has now been filed and 11,317 Ogale individual claims have been issued at the High Court. Together with the existing Bille individual claims, overall 13,652 people are bringing individual claims against Shell. Shell has …

Like almost every new month, February 2023 brings some important changes, including new laws, for people living in Germany. For example, no more compulsory masks on long-distance trains, more drinking fountains in public spaces and 16-year olds will also be allowed to vote in the European Parliament elections in Germany in future. These and other regulations come into force in …

The European Union (EU) wants to create a common European return system for so-called “illegal” migrants. To this end, the EU Commission presented a strategy paper in Brussels recently. “So far, we are not making good progress with the returns,” said EU Return Coordinator Mari Juritsch, who has been in office since May 2022. The number of repatriations had halved …

Germany’s Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, has called for quick sentences of perpetrators of the New Year’s Eve riots in several German cities, including Berlin, Hamburg, Bonn, Dortmund and Essen. During a visit to a fire station in the Berlin district of Neukölln on Friday, Ms Faeser said juvenile offenders should immediately feel a quick legal consequence of their …

This week, Nigeria enters the home stretch in the run-up to the next general election, the first instalment of which is scheduled for February 25 at which a new President and members of the National Assembly will be elected.  The Governorship and State Assembly elections are slated for March 11.  Barrister Ekene Onwuka* writes on his interactions with members of …

Dr Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has rejoiced with a Nigerian woman, Tracy Eboigbodin, who won the ‘MasterChef Italia’, an international Cooking Contest, in Italy recently. In a statement issued in Abuja by the Commission’s Head of Media and Public Relations, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, Ms Dabiri-Erewa described Eboigbodin’s victory as well-deserved and a product of hard work and …

2023 brings new laws and regulations for people living in Germany. For example, price brakes are to reduce energy costs, health insurance will become more expensive and the 49-euro ticket will be launched. These and other changes at a glance. ——– Price brakes for electricity, gas and district heatingFrom 1 March – retroactive to 1 January – the Federal Government’s …

Lionel Messi, probably the greatest player to have graced a football pitch, finally laid his hands on the greatest prize in the game, as his Argentina side downed France in the Qatar 2022 World Cup Final. Meanwhile it was mixed fortune for Africa’s representatives at the Mundial, with Morocco’s Atlas Lions roaring all the way to the semi-finals. Our Contributing …