LIVING IN GERMANY

The rent-cap decision was taken by Berlin’s governing parties (SPD, the Left party and Greens) in reaction to the outcry of residents who have gone to the streets several times in recent years to protest the ever-increasing rent in the city.

Here is a list of useful emergency telephone numbers (Notrufnummern) in Germany from the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (Bundesamtes für Bevölkerungsschutz und Katastrophenhilfe, BBK): First aid emergency and fire brigade: 112 Calls to 112 are free of charge and can be made from a landline, pay phone or mobile phone. Dialling the number will direct you …

Jacklyne Achieng Kuhn started the group to offer Kenyan women a platform where they can support, interact and uplift each other.

Migrants with a good command of German language have the same opportunities on the German labour market as natives. This is the result of a study conducted by the Cologne-based Institute of German Business. With the same level of education and good German language proficiency, migrants, according to a new study, equally earn high wages as natives. Accordingly, higher levels …

Members of the Nigerian community, associates and friends gathered on 2 October, at the main cemetery in the German city of Mönchengladbach, to bid the final farewell to Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin. The Nigerian scholar, IT expert and development activist died on 7 August at the age of 57.   A brief Christian funeral service preceded the interment of the …

At the beginning of each month, a number of new laws and regulations enter into force in Germany. In October 2019, the clocks will be switched to winter time, low-income households in Berlin get a higher rent subsidy, vehicles can now be registered online without visiting the registration office etc. The African Courier reveals the most important changes for consumers. …

The Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Germany (NIDOG) has announced the funeral arrangement for the late Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin, who was found dead in his apartment in the German city of Mönchengladbach on 7 August. The body of the Nigerian nuclear physicist and IT expert will be laid to rest in Mönchengladbach on 2 October, NIDOG announced on Monday. In …

A newly-founded group representing African youths has held its first formal meeting in Berlin. Our correspondent Nelly Sarpong, who is also a founding member of the association, writes on its objectives and plans going forward. African Youth Abroad Empowerment, AYAE, was founded as a non-governmental, non-profit and non-political organization to participate actively in educating and empowering youths living in the …

Food banks (Tafel) are non-profit organizations that collect food mostly from supermarkets, distributors and farmers, which would otherwise be destroyed, and distribute to the needy for free.

A number of new laws and regulations – affecting online banking and payment for online transactions, appointments at the doctor’s and insurance coverage for HIV prophylaxis drugs, allowances for asylum-seekers and the cost of sending packets etc – enter into effect in the new month. The most important changes are in this overview. HEALTH New incentives for quicker appointments for …

Resident foreigners convicted by German courts are increasingly being expelled from the country irrespective of their residency status. This was revealed in the response of the federal government to a parliamentary enquiry of the Linke party in the Bundestag, the news agency epd has reported. According to the report, 7,408 deportation orders were issued last year. In 2017, there were …

While the assault on Senator Ike Ekweremadu has been strongly condemned by all Nigerian diaspora organisations, some commentators have called for a broader look at the import of the unfortunate incident for the culture of governance in their home country. Dr Ike Ekweremadu, a member of the Nigerian Senate – the upper chamber of the country’s bicameral national legislature, was …

The physical assault on the person of Senator Ike Ekweremadu at the Second Annual Igbo Cultural Day on 17 August in the German city of Nuremberg has been attracting different reactions from Nigerians in the diaspora. The attack is suspected to have been carried out by members of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), an organisation agitating for a separate independent …

Nigeria’s ambassador to Germany, HE Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, hosted a delegation* of the Edo Community of Nigeria, Germany e.V. (Edo`s in Germany) on Friday, 16 August in Berlin. Alhaji Tuggar held a meeting with the delegation, including members of the national executive council of Edo Community Germany, in the company of Ambassador (Mrs) Shakirat Ogundero, the Deputy Head of Mission, …

During the first half of 2019, German authorities registered 8,605 far-right hate crimes. That was 900 more than in the first half of 2018. In the first half of 2019, the authorities registered 8,605 extreme right-wing crimes in Germany. These included 363 acts of violence. A total of 179 people were injured, according the Federal Government in response to a …

The sudden death of Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin has thrown the Nigerian community in Germany into mourning. Tributes to the IT expert continue to be paid by members of the community for his active engagement for the development of Nigeria. Prof Anyanwu Eberibe,  a retired professor of medicine, writes this elegy in memory of Dr Kutchin: ……  In fond Remembrance …

Friends and well-wishers are lauding the life and work of Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin following his death. The Nigerian was found dead on 7 August 2019 in his apartment in Monchengladbach, Germany. He was 57. Doctors, in their interim report, say he must have died of natural causes. While a detailed autopsy report is being awaited, friends and colleagues of …

A prominent member of the Nigerian community in Germany has died. The death of Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin was announced by the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Germany (NIDOG) on Friday. The nuclear physicist and IT expert was found dead on 7 August 2019 in his apartment in Monchengladbach, Germany. He was 57. “With the death of Dr Kutchin, Nigerians in …

The African Network of Germany (TANG) has opened a new office in Dortmund. The organisation implements projects to support its objectives, among which is the promotion of the integration of Africans in German society. TANG, founded in 2013, also facilitates the engagement of diaspora Africans in the development of their countries of origin. The Dortmund office, which formally opened for …

A two-meter-high tablet reminding of German colonial history has been unveiled in Berlin on Monday. The memorial plaque, situated in the Wilhelmstraße in the Central District of the city, commemorates the “Dibobe-Petition”. A petition, submitted by Cameroon-born Martin Quane a Dibobe to the Imperial Ministry of the Colonies in June 1919, which is considered one of the most important documents …