LIVING IN GERMANY

It’s always easier and more convenient to enjoy a new country when you have a tour guide. You hardly miss your way going around since you are led by an experienced person who knows the nooks and crannies of the place. This is exactly what an association of journalists called “Neue deutsche Medienmacher” (New German Media Professionals) would like to …

The police have arrested a Nigerian man on the suspicion of having murdered a young German woman in the town of Ahaus, state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The 27-year-old asylum seeker was arrested on Tuesday (14 February) in Basel, the prosecutor’s office in Münster has announced. The woman, aged 22, was stabbed in the streets of Ahaus in the early hours …

The German parliament has voted to allow the use of the drug for medical purposes. The issue had been a point of heated discussion in the country for a long time. Members of Germany’s parliament Bundestag voted unanimously on Thursday 19 January to legalize the use of medical marijuana. Seriously ill patients will qualify for medical marijuana if they have …

The number of asylum seekers arriving in Germany last year has dropped by two-thirds to about 280,000. Berlin said the decrease signals that measures to reduce migration are working. Some 280,000 migrants arrived in Germany last year, a stark reversal in numbers after the country received nearly 890,000 refugees during the 2015 migration crisis, according to year-end government figures released …

Did you know that ‘Africa’ is a tiny hamlet in Brandenburg? Or that there are 11 ‘Cameroons’  in Germany? Places bearing African names in Germany have a varied history, writes Gwendolin Hilse. Africa is a continent? Of course. In German, it’s spelt “Afrika” and that is also the name of a hamlet in the Uckermark district of the state of Brandenburg in eastern …

Here is a list of public holidays in Germany in 2017, plus regional holidays, daylight savings, school holidays, Mother’s and Father’s Days and other important dates in the German calendar. There are nine official German public holidays that are celebrated nationally each year, plus regional holidays that are only celebrated in certain Federal States. This means that some states have …

As we enter the New Year, many new laws and regulations take effect in Germany. Some of them are very important changes, such as no more cell phone roaming charges in the EU, while others don’t make a big difference (for example, a modest minimum wage increase). Sola Jolaoso and Vivian Asamoah take us through the changes that we should …

If you come from some countries, your chances of success are very high while for some other nationalities, you have to have a very special case to be considered at all. This is how the situation is: Countries with a high rate of protection At the moment, if you come from Syria, you have a good chance of being granted …

The study, covering 14 federal ministries, the federal armed forces and eight federal agencies, showed that 14.8 per cent of all public servants are of migrant origin. A similar study conducted in 2013 discovered that only 6.7 per cent of federal employees had a migration background.

The refugee crisis has made integration in Germany more difficult. And Syrian refugees are the least of the country’s problems, reveals the new Integration Report of the Federal Integration Commissioner. The number of people arriving in Germany from other countries has increased in recent years. More than two million people came to Germany in 2015, and nearly one million left …

Out of more than 160 nations assessed, Germany was ranked first, followed by Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Iceland (equal fifth).

The youth empowerment initiative to promote educational achievement in the African community in Germany holds its annual award ceremony in Hamburg on 15 October 2016 in the historic building of the city’s Chamber of Commerce. The annual African Youth Education (AYE) Awards aim to motivate young people of African origin in Germany to seek excellence in school. The scheme was …

44,800 bags and hand luggages were registered stolen in 2015, a rise of about a quarter on 2014

Ghanaian-born driving instructor Victor Boadum is a real rarity in the streets of Berlin. He teaches Africans to survive the German capital’s rough traffic. DW’s Daniel Pelz went along on a driving lesson. Getting the car out of the narrow parking space and onto the road into Berlin’s heavy midmorning traffic comes close to a little adventure. Driving student Sharon …

Stakeholders take stock of Equal Opportunity in Germany, ten years after the anti-discrimination law went into effect The General Act on Equal Treatment (Allgemeine Gleichbehandlungsgesetz or AGG), enacted for the purpose of preventing or stopping discrimination on the grounds of race or ethnic origin, gender, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation in Germany, went into force in August …

Because of unfavourable demographic developments, Germany is in dire need of foreign skilled workers. To persuade them to choose Germany over other countries, the Federal Republic is even reviewing its almost institutionalised reservations vis-à-vis migrants and foreigners. Migrants already living in Germany can get their professional certificates and degrees earned abroad recognised thanks to a special law, and the government …

One hundred groups meet in Berlin, call for change in the discussion of migration issues They take our jobs. They put pressure on our social services. They bring war, diseases and uncivilised social practices. They degrade our culture and threaten our societies. Everything was better before they arrived… These are just a few of the myths about migrants and refugees …

Deutschlandstiftung Integration is promoting an open Germany with its campaign #AuchichbinDeutschland (literally: I am Germany too). The initiative aims to show that many people are not seen as Germans because they look “different” or have “unusual names” – although they were born and grew up in Germany. The campaign uses testimonials, in which people talk about everyday racism and their …