News

Ex-Nigerian player named Technical Director of top Swiss club Zurich

Ex-Wolves and Nigeria midfielder, Seyi Olofinjana, has been named technical director at Switzerland’s most successful club Grasshopper Zurich. The 40-year-old will oversee the football department at the newly-promoted Super League outfit and immediately find the right candidate to fill the ‘position of the head coach’ . The former Stoke City, Hull City and Cardiff City player was snapped from English …

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Germany: Commission recommends measures to mitigate irregular migration

The commission set up by the federal government to look into the causes of flight and irregular migration has presented its report, recommending 15 key measures for the effective mitigation of these causes. —– An Expert Commission on the Causes of Flight appointed by the Federal Government in July 2019 has called for a more comprehensive political approach to combating …

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German police have become more diverse — new report

For the fourth time the MEDIENDIENST INTEGRATION conducted a research on diversity in the German police forces. Over the past years an increasing number of young people with an immigration background joined the police – partly due to successful recruitment-campaigns. By Fabio Ghelli Among the 46.500 employees of the German Federal Police (Bundespolizei) only 1,600 declare to have an immigration …

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Herzberger-Fofana praises EU’s appointment of Moua as Anti-Racism Coordinator

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Green Member of the European Parliament representing Germany, praises the appointment of Michaela Moua as the first Anti-Racism Coordinator at the European Commission, and what she expects from the history-making appointee ——- Cultural Diversity in the European Institutions The European Commission has appointed Michaela Moua as its first anti-racism coordinator. I am delighted that she has been …

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EU appoints Black woman first ever anti-racism coordinator

The European Commission has appointed a former professional basketball player, Michaela Moua, as its first-ever Anti-Racism Co-ordinator, adding that the newly created post was in line with its anti-racism action plan. Ms Moua, a Finnish national of African origin, said she was “extremely excited about this opportunity to achieve real justice” in her reaction to the appointment, which was announced …

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Nigeria Immigration Service – Public Notice on Passport

All Passport Issuing Centres have been directed to clear existing backlog of applications on or before 31st May, 2021. To this effect requests for Fresh and/or Reissue shall not be entertained with effect from 18th May 2021-31st May 2021 in all Centres except for locations in the Missions abroad. Notifications for collection of produced Passports are already going out to …

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EU defends Spain after thousands of Moroccans enter Ceuta enclave

The European Union has spoken out in defence of Spain, after thousands of migrants from Morocco entered the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in north Africa. “Europe expresses its solidarity with Ceuta and Spain,” said European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday (18 May), in a tweet. At least 6,000 migrants, including mothers cradling children and whole families, reached …

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Nigeria: NIS chief gives deadline for issuance of passports

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammed Babandede, on Tuesday said the turnaround time for issuance of passports is now six weeks. The service’s Public Relations Officer, Sunday James, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists. James quoted Babandede as saying this at the NIS headquarters in Abuja during a media chat on Innovations and Administration for …

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Cameroon to receive 1 million licenses of Russian MyOffice software

Ministry of Primary Education of the Republic of Cameroon will receive 1 mln licenses of Russian MyOffice software. The memorandum was signed during a business mission held in the country, which entailed a series of meetings at the highest state level —- MOSCOW, Russia, May 17, 2021/ — MyOffice, the Russian developer of office software for joint work on documents …

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Germany relaxes quarantine rules for international travellers

New entry regulations that make life easier for travellers entered into force on Thursday. The new regulation is the most far-reaching relaxation of rules for arriving passengers since the beginning of the pandemic in Germany last year. The federal cabinet passed the new rules, which are also intended to standardise the regulations of individual federal states and make travelling within …

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New incentives for ICT start-ups in Cameroon

Achare Takor*, a lawyer, takes a look at Section 124b of the General Tax Code of the Republic of Cameroon and how it sets to promote innovative ICT start-ups in the country by offering them incentives ————- DOUALA, Cameroon, May 13, 2021/ — By Achare Takor Over the last decade, information technologies (IT) have revolutionized the way people and businesses …

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Lack of suitable accommodation causes asylum-seekers mental ill-health, says Red Cross

The issue of accommodation provision for individuals seeking asylum within a country has recently been a topic heavily discussed in the field of immigration studies. In contribution to this, a new report by British Red Cross has highlighted how the UK asylum system is deeply flawed, and has caused increasingly negative impacts on the mental health of individuals seeking asylum. …

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Nigerians with expired passports can come home and renew at the airport – Minister

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has announced that Nigerians living abroad who have difficulties renewing their expired passport and want to travel home could do so with the document. Aregbesola said government was conscious of the difficulties Nigerians were experiencing with passport renewal due to the Covid-19 pandemic and it was committed to alleviating the situation. “It is …

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Bank offers loans to Nigerians living abroad to build homes in Nigeria

Nigerians in the diaspora have an opportunity to own houses in the country and also participate actively in money and capital markets, thanks to several investment packages rolled out by Ecobank. Mrs. Olukorede Demola-Adeniyi, Head of Ecobank’s Consumer Banking, has said that the bank is offering mortgage loans to Nigerians living abroad to finance property ownership in the country. She …

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Germany: Petition against obligation to report people without papers launched

An alliance of humanitarian and rights organisations are calling for the abrogation of the legal obligation to report people without residency status who seek medical care —– Almost 50 organisations and associations are demanding the abolition of the legal obligation to report people without regular residence status who seek medical care. Going to the doctor without fear is not possible …

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Why COVID-19 is likely to slow down a decade of youth development in Africa – Expert

By Prof Wim Naudé* Until COVID-19 hit, the quality of life of youth (age 15-24) in sub-Saharan Africa had been steadily improving. According to the World Bank, by 2019 the youth literacy rate stood at 73%. Gross secondary school enrolment rates increased from 13 % in 1971 to 43 % by 2018. Youth unemployment rates have remained fairly stable, at around …

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Diaspora voting: What chances for Nigerians abroad?

About 17 million Nigerians are believed to live in the diaspora and they are constitutionally excluded from participation in their homeland’s electoral process from outside the country. Voters who are resident outside Nigeria can only vote during elections if they travel back to Nigeria to register as voters in Nigeria and to vote during elections in Nigeria. As the country …

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What Tanzanian President Suluhu’s visit to Kenya means for the two countries

President Samia Hussein Suluhu has moved quickly to consolidate her power with the demise of the former president John Pombe Magufuli. Key in her agenda, is her effort to repair the frosty relations between Nairobi and Dodoma on the economic, diplomatic and political realms, writes Prof David Monda* as he analyses the Tanzanian leader’s maiden visit to Kenya. —– Kenya …

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Nigeria: FG extends deadline for NIN-SIM linkage

The Federal Government has extended the ongoing National Identification Number (NIN) and Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) integration exercise till June 30. Isa Pantami, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, gave the directive according to a statement jointly signed by Ikechukwu Adinde, director of public affairs at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and Kayode Adegoke, head of corporate communications at …

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