LIVING IN GERMANY

New month, new regulations! There are again changes in regulations and laws taking effect in August. Here’s an overview of what will change in the new month: —— More transparent working conditionsThe EU directive on transparent and reliable working conditions comes into force on 1 August. This stipulates which information and documentation obligations employers must fulfil. According to the directive, …

Women At The Well Of Living Waters, an empowering community of women headquartered in London, holds its global convention in the southwestern German city of Esslingen on 5-7 August. The 3-day event, tagged W@LWGERMANY2022, provides a forum for women from all walks of life to share their experiences and network. Among the activities that will take place at the conference …

"For those who are now receiving their heating bills, the charges are already doubling - and that's not even taking into account the consequences of the Ukraine war"

The African Union (AU) Information and Communication Directorate (ICD) in close partnership with GIZ (German Corporation for International Corporation) is implementing its first AU Media Fellowship programme within the framework of the AU-German Government initiative, the “Citizen Engagement and Innovative Data Use for Africa’s Development (DataCipation)”. The Fellowship Programme is one of the activities being undertaken by the AU in …

The African Youth Education Awards (AYEA) is an initiative to promote higher educational achievements among youth in African-origin communities in Germany. Every year, young people who have excelled in their educational and training careers are honoured with AYEA at a colourful ceremony in Hamburg. AYEA was initiated in 2010 to act against the observed low educational attainment levels of African-origin …

For the first time, there is now an Independent Federal Anti-Discrimination Commissioner in Germany. The federal parliament, the Bundestag, elected Ferda Ataman into the office on Friday. Ms Ataman will also be the head of the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency (Antidiskriminierungsstelle des Bundes) as she succeeds Bernhard Franke, who had been the acting as head of the agency in recent years. …

The federal cabinet has approved the draft law of the so-called ‘opportunity for right to remain’ (Chancen-Bleiberecht) for people who have been living in Germany for many years with a ‘tolerated stay permit’ called Duldung in German. The bill, which was okayed on Wednesday, will be submitted to the federal parliament, which still has to discuss it and can make …

Germany should be getting ready for a dramatic shortage of manpower, experts have warned. The Institute of the German Economy (Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft, IW) expects a glaring shortage of workers in the German economy in the coming years. By 2031, there would be a total shortage of five million workers, several newspapers reported recently, citing IW forecasts. One of …

The Black Joy Bike Parade took place on 26 June in Berlin. The bicycle demonstration through the German capital city was meant to collectively remind society that the Black community would not let everyday racism take away their joy in life, the organisers said.Miriam, founder of Zewdi, the event’s organisers, writes to participants and indeed the Black community about this …

In an exclusive interview with The African Courier, Godfrey Evurulobi, a graduate of international business from the University of Applied Sciences Cologne, narrates how he started and he talks about the nursing care sector in Germany and why his companies are currently recruiting Africans. The Nigerian-born entrepreneur also talks about his successes and challenges so far, and he gives tips to Africans planning to start a business in the country.

Politicians of African descent from the length and breadth of Germany and of all political colourations will gather in Berlin on Saturday (9 July) for a meet-up with members of the Black community. The event, tagged “The way into the parliaments – networking elected officials of African origin” (Der Weg in die Parlamente – Mandatsträger:innen afrikanischer Herkünfte vernetzen), is a …

At the beginning of the second half of the year, new laws, regulations and other changes that should make life easier for people living in Germany enter into force. Here are the changes in July to know about —- Minimum wage rises again in JulyOn 1 January 2022, the minimum wage in Germany increased from €9.60 to €9.82 and it …

The Green politician Aminata Touré was sworn into office on Wednesday as a Minister in Schleswig-Holstein. The event, which took place in Kiel, is an historic one as Ms Touré thus became the first minister of African origin in Germany. By loading the tweet, you agree to Twitter’s privacy policy.Learn more Load tweet Always unblock Twitter Tweets “What an honour! …

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has announced that he wanted to end all restrictions to multiple nationality in the country’s citizenship law. Speaking at an event to mark the tenth anniversary of the scholarship and mentoring programme GEH DEINEN WEG (Go your way) of the Deutschlandstiftung Integration (German Foundation for Integration) in Berlin on Monday, he said 50 per cent of naturalisations …

A bicycle demonstration to fight for better representation and recognition of the existence of Black people as a relevant part of German society will take place on 26 June in Berlin. Along Berlin’s main landmarks, the organisers Zewdi wants to mobilize the Black community together for a bicycle demonstration to create visibility of people of African descent in public spaces …

Since 1 June, you can travel on public transport and regional trains throughout Germany for nine euros a month. However, the ticket is not valid on all regional trains. And if you use the 9-euro ticket on a means of transport for which the ticket is not valid, you are considered a fare dodger. You will then be fined 60 …

About 131,600 foreigners became naturalised German citizens in 2021, according to a new report by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). The figure represents an increase of roughly 21,700 naturalisations, or 20%, compared with the previous year. More than half of the increase is attributable to the large number of naturalisations of Syrians; 19,100 Syrian citizens were naturalised in 2021, which …

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, more than 600,000 Ukrainians and people of other nationalities resident in the country have entered Germany to seek refuge. Among the refugees are Africans, most of whom are students. Africans fleeing the war have been reportedly discriminated against while crossing the country’s borders into safety. Beyond their unsavoury …

Building strong associations is a major challenge to self-organisation in the African community in Europe. There’re many groups but they’re not working together and therefore unable to fulfil their primary mission of empowering their communities. A new association in Germany wants to change all that. African-German Association (AGA) e.V. is bringing a new approach to building a strong community. It …

The federal government plans to reform the country’s migration laws. Among the features of the reform is the grant under certain conditions of regular residence permit to well-integrated asylum-seekers who have been living in Germany for more than five years with a so-called ‘tolerated stay permit’ (Duldung). A total of up to 105,000 people, whose deportation has been repeatedly suspended …