News

The book Confidence in Diplomacy – Defending Nigeria at Home and Abroad is an account of the author’s nearly 30 years of service in Nigerian diplomacy. It’s a journey that began in 1982 when Alhaji Abdul Rimdap joined the foreign affairs ministry and ended in 2010 when he retired while serving the country as ambassador to Germany. His distinguished international …

For allegedly not cooperating in readmitting its citizens repatriated from Europe, the Council of European Union has announced temporary restrictions to the grant of visa to citizens of Ethiopia by Schengen member states. Henceforth, member states will no longer waive requirements with regard to the evidence to be submitted by Ethiopian visa applicants, will not issue multiple entry visas and …

There is an ongoing legislative process to legalise female genital mutilation in The Gambia. Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana*, member of the European Parliament, writes on the position of the European MPs on the controversial move as well as on the concerns of African organisations in Germany should the harmful practice be legalised in The Gambia The practice of female genital mutilation …

30 April, Geneva – Better Cotton, the world’s largest cotton sustainability initiative, is to conduct sustainability mapping and assessments in West and Central Africa to enhance its understanding of the needs of smallholder farmers in the region and identify context-specific interventions. Funded by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), these assessments will inform ways in which targeted support can aid the production of more …

The 2024 UEFA European Football Championship are just around the corner, and with summer fast approaching, many people across Europe will be supporting their country’s squad in Germany. With ten different German cities hosting the games from 14 June to 14 July 2024, knowing where you’ll spend most of your money or how much to take with you is important. …

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of twelve consuls-general and five chargés d’affaires to represent Nigeria in fourteen countries. The announcement was made by Alkasim Abdulkadir, the Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy to Yusuf Tuggar, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, in a statement released on Tuesday. Among the new appointees is Ambassador Yakubu Dadu, who is …

In a recent study, the Netherlands emerged as Europe’s most active online nation. SEO agency Digital Climax analysed data from Eurostat to compare the percentages of individuals engaged in six selected categories of online activity across each country in Europe. The data was then used to create an overall ‘Online Activity Score’ out of ten, for each European country.  The …

Nigerian leader meets Dutch prime minister in The Hague, said his country offers immense opportunities across several sectors for foreign investors and that his government was deepening reforms to improve the investment climate. President Bola Tinubu says Nigeria is well-positioned to power the clean energy future of Europe and the world with its high-grade lithium deposits. Speaking during a meeting …

A controversial United Kingdom government bill to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda finally secured the approval of the upper house of parliament on Monday and has been assented to by King Charles. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who hopes the controversial law will boost the fortunes of his Conservative Party in an election expected to take place later this year, said his …

Around 30 per cent of the population have a migration background, according to the new microcensus for 2023 published by the Federal Statistical Office. A person has a migration background if they themselves or at least one of their parents were not born with German citizenship. Specifically, this definition includes immigrant and non-immigrant foreigners, immigrant and non-immigrant naturalised citizens, late …

Furaha Kensmil explains why she feels like a foreigner in both Suriname, where she was born, and the Netherlands, where she has lived most of her life. Furaha delves into the complexities of the identity of the people of African descent in the Netherlands, which prides itself as a colour-blind nation. I find it difficult to call myself Dutch. The …

A recent study conducted by experts at Vignetteswitzerland.com has unveiled the most and least affordable European countries for car ownership.  The research considered factors such as fuel prices, vehicle taxes, and insurance costs, compared to average salaries, to assign each place a unique score to reveal where owning a car is the least financially draining.  The higher the index score …

The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted ten legislative texts to reform European migration and asylum policy as agreed with EU member states. Analysts say the sweeping reform of Europe’s asylum policies, reached after nearly a decade of negotiations, would harden border procedures and force all the bloc’s 27 nations to share responsibility. Here are the ten decisions made by the …

Most often, media reports on immigrant communities in Europe focus on problems of residency status, accommodation, integration, poverty and crime. And the “newness” of it all. Little Lagos, however, is an established community with an impressive track record of achievement among its inhabitants. Nigerian school children in London perform well in academic exams and the British Nigerians boast a wide selection of business, sport, education and artistic successes, including Shirley Bassey, Sade and Ben Okri.

Here’s a news release from the University of Leeds relating to research published in March 2024 in the journal ‘Nature’ which concludes that Africa needs long-term investment in scientific infrastructure and science careers to allow the continent to adapt to climate change and its effect on weather systems.The new research which was led by the University in partnership with the …

An EU observer mission witnessed the recent presidential election in Senegal. Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Member of the European Parliament who was a member of the mission, writes on what they witnessed in Senegal and her views on the country’s democracy ____________________ Since last year, Senegal has been in the international spotlight. With the 2024 presidential vote, it reveals to Africa …

It is quite an achievement itself that OUR ROOTS has been a Black history cartoon column featured series for 35 years. It was first published in the UK’s Voice newspaper. The history of Black people must be illustrated and that is what Tayo Fatunla (whose artistic name is TAYO) has been doing through his journalistic drawings after discovering the need …

Travelling should be an opportunity to learn. This is why a new tour operator has developed a unique concept for people interested in travelling to Africa. Farafina Travels, an offshoot of the think tank Farafina Institute, would like travellers to really get to know the continent through its peoples, its cultures, its history, its landscape, its animals etc. The concept …

Polish voters will go to the polls on 7 April to elect leaders at the communal level. A Nigerian living in the country will participate at the elections. “I’m thrilled to announce my candidacy for the position of Wolomin county councillor in the upcoming Polish district and local government elections,” Dr Tade Daniel Omotosho said in a press release. Wołomin …

Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, (NIDCOM), has reiterated that Nigeria’s economic prosperity could be galvanised through a structured Diaspora Investment. The NIDCOM chief emphasized this at a strategic meeting with the investment group Optiva Capital Partners, a wealth management firm specializing in investment immigration, investment advisory and insurance services, in Abuja on Wednesday. She added that collaboration …