Month: August 2019

Immigration

For African migrants, will Panama become the new Libya?

By Laureen Fagan 

Another 200 migrants were rescued on the Mediterranean Sea on Wednesday, this time as they attempted to make the crossing from Morocco into Spain. These migrants from sub-Saharan countries, traveling in three boats, are the latest in the all-too-familiar story of Africans who travel through Libya and other nations, desperately seeking to reach Europe, even as the European Union crafts policies to prevent them from crossing the sea.

The same principle is at work along the southern border of the United States, where immigration policies and enforcement under President Donald Trump have become increasingly draconian.

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Immigration

SA farmers now heading to Canada to develop ‘prairie provinces’ – report

Citizen reporter

There has apparently been a ‘massive spike’ in interest from South Africans looking to move abroad.

A report by Business Insider  reveals that skilled South African farmers with reasonable amounts of capital from the sale of their farms may be finding greener pastures in North America.

Continue reading “SA farmers now heading to Canada to develop ‘prairie provinces’ – report” →
Enterpreneurship

South African introduces Taste of Soweto as part of food festival in Colorado Springs

By Nick Puckett

A south African chef is hoping to introduce his Kalahari chicken wings, from his A Taste of Soweto restuarant to visitors of the Annual A Taste of Colorado Food Festival in Colorado Springs. Mpho MaPoulo wants to introduce the taste of his home country to Americans with his start-up food business A Taste of Soweto. MaPoulo and his wife, Ocean, hope to have their own food truck at the festival come October.

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Uncategorized

Tallahassee IRC launches Refugee Literacy Program for Congolese refugee youth

Their parents are from the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country marred by years of war, and are some of about 300 refugees from DR Congo and war-torn Syria to have resettled in the capital city since 2016.

Recently launched by the local International Rescue Committee chapter, the program’s aim is to help middle- and high-school refugee students, like 16-year-old Ruthie and Joyce, 14, learn English through homework help, socializing and community integration.

Continue reading “Tallahassee IRC launches Refugee Literacy Program for Congolese refugee youth” →
Uncategorized

Officials from Uganda coming to Aurora

By STEVE LORD

Aurora’s welcome mat will be out this week for high-ranking officials from the African nation of Uganda.

The officials, who will be in Chicago for the 31st annual Uganda North American Association Trade Expo, will visit Endiro Coffee, 29 W. New York St., a Uganda-based business. It is the first and only Ugandan-based restaurant brand in America.

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Remittance

Remittances from Egyptians working abroad rose to about $3 billion in May

Egypt received about $3 billion in remittances from Egyptians living abroad in May, up 43% from $2.1 billion in April, the Egyptian Central Bank said on Monday.

Egypt received $2.6 billion in remittances in May 2018, the statement said. Remittances are a key source of foreign currency for Egypt.

 (Reporting by Ehab Farouk, Writing by Nafisa Eltahir, Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Immigration

Congolese Asylum-Seeker Reunited With Family After Almost Two Years Apart

By Max Rivlin-Nadler

An asylum-seeker from the Democratic Republic of Congo was reunited with his family in San Diego on Sunday after almost two years in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention.

Continue reading “Congolese Asylum-Seeker Reunited With Family After Almost Two Years Apart” →
Uncategorized

From Bukom to Brooklyn; Duke Micah’s story

On a corner in the heart of Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood sits a tiny French bakery. A decade ago, it would have looked out of the place in an area that birthed Big Daddy Kane, The Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. Today, it’s simply another sign of the borough’s gradual metamorphosis.

Across the street from the bakery, inside a brick-walled gym hidden from curious passersby, Duke Micah is undergoing his own changes.

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Communities

Nigerians in The Americas elect new leaders

Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Americas (NIDOA) has elected new continental board and officers in some country chapters to pilot its affairs in the next two years.

U.S.-based Obed Monago retained his position as Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of NIDOA, to be assisted by Mr Darlington George, based in Brazil, as Vice Chairman.

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Sports

These Seven Nigerians are part of the Minnesota vikings roster

By Lindsey Young

Seven players of Nigerian heritage are on the roster of NFLs Minnesota Viking. They include Ade Aruna, Bisi Johnson and Olisaemeka Udoh, Bené Benwikere, Kaare Vedvik, and brothers Ifeadi and Tito Odenigbo.

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Uncategorized

Directory for Businesses of African Diaspora to be Launched

A directory for businesses and non-profit organisations (NGOs) has been developed for the African diaspora to promote economic and social relations for shared benefits.

Dubbed, International Black Book (IBB) and scheduled to be launched in 2020, it aims to converge with Africa’s efforts to meet the economic and cultural needs of the continent by connecting businesses, agencies and people throughout the African diaspora.

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Appointments

Originally from Burundi, Léonce Ndikumana appointed Distinguished Professor at University of Massachusetts

By ADRIAN LAVISTA

Originally from Burundi, Léonce Ndikumana was appointed Distinguished Professors following approval by the Board of Trustees of the University of Massachusetts (Umass Amherst) on Friday, Aug. 2 meeting.

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Africa, African Politics, Book review

Here are the three new books you need to understand Nigeria

By Alex Thurston

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, radiating political, cultural and economic influence across the continent and around the world. Yet Nigeria’s incredible complexity — composed of hundreds of ethnic groups and languages — can be daunting even to those interested in understanding the country. The nonspecialist can also be easily misled by the popular image of Nigeria as a land of Internet scammers and, more recently, fanatical jihadists. Three recent books, however, make Nigeria more accessible to the beginner and more comprehensible to the specialist. These books take up core issues facing the country, especially the Boko Haram crisis and the future of Nigeria’s democracy.

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Communities

Ethiopian Cultural Garden dedication in Cleveland

In the 103-year history of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, there had never been a garden representing an African nation.

That changes Saturday when the Ethiopian Cultural Garden is officially dedicated in a ceremony starting at 1 p.m. One of the garden’s defining features is a five-paneled ceramic mural with each panel representing a period of Ethiopian history.

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Naturalisation

Kenyan-born professor among new Americans as New York State Fair holds naturalization ceremony

Kenyan-born Dr. Godriver Odhiambo, a professor, at Le Moyne was among immigrants sworn in as American at the grounds of the New York Fair.

To honor New Americans day, nearly 100 immigrants were sworn in on Friday during a naturalization ceremony at Daniella’s, formerly the Empire Room. This is the fifth year the State Fair has held the ceremony and each one carries a lasting impact.

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Communities

East Africans Clock in With Hope, Hard Work on Minnesota’s Thankless Jobs

By SOLOMON GUSTAVO

Calling Aklilu Burayu a parking ramp attendant doesn’t come close to describing the roles he’s played in the Twin Cities economy.

In the 13 years since coming to Minnesota from Ethiopia, he’s been a painter and sander at a Blaine wood factory, an assembly line worker in Arden Hills and worked a succession of office jobs through a staffing agency. These days when he’s not at the ramp, he picks up shifts at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport as a chef.  

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Ancestry

NAACP Group Arrives In Ghana Exactly 400 Years Since First Slaves Were Brought To U.S.

Drummers, dancers and local residents welcomed the NAACP delegation at Kotoka International Airport, as the group made their long-awaited arrival in Ghana for the Year of Return.

The excitement was palpable as almost 300 African Americans touched down in Accra for an eventful week that is akin to a homecoming.

Continue reading “NAACP Group Arrives In Ghana Exactly 400 Years Since First Slaves Were Brought To U.S.” →
Uncategorized

Diplomats, Business Executives expected at USAfrica Business Expo During the 74th General Assembly in New York

On September 20, the eve of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Her Excellency Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao – African Union Ambassador to the U.S.A., will lead other diplomats, and business leaders to the USAfrica Business Expo — a B2B trade show, conference & networking event aimed at helping African businesses expand into international markets.

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Communities, Culture

Separate festivals honor African, African American heritage, culture

Separate festivals honor African, African American heritage, culture

By Eric Lagatta


Columbus has long been home to African Americans who have contributed to the city’s rich tapestry. For decades, the neighborhood now known as the King-Lincoln District has buzzed with African American business owners, musicians and artists. And throughout the city, African immigrants are bringing their own cultures to Ohio’s capital.

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Music

Inspired by Fela, Nigeria’s Burna Boy blazes trail in the US

By GARY GERARD HAMILTON, ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK 

Burna Boy was only six years old when Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti passed away, but that was enough time for the future musician to be inspired.

“Everyone’s got their hero,” the 28-year-old Nigerian performer said. “For me, that’s my hero.”

Kuti — the Nigerian musical icon and political agitator whose life and legacy was portrayed in the wildly popular Broadway musical “Fela!” — was once managed by Burna Boy’s grandfather, someone else he calls a hero.

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Communities

The Fabric of Nigerian Weddings

By Adenike Olanrewaju

The color and flair of traditional ceremonies give brides and grooms a way to express a vibrant cultural heritage.

Dola Fatunbi Olutoye, 25, was ecstatic after becoming engaged last November to Dr. Yinka Olutoye, 26. She knew she wanted a traditional Nigerian wedding, but needed help executing the cultural elements of the ceremony, which took place on May 25 in Houston.

Mrs. Olutoye, a pharmacy student from Houston, and Dr. Olutoye, a recent medical school graduate, are both Nigerian-Americans who are part of the Yoruba ethnic group, which is heavily concentrated in the Southwest region of Nigeria.

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Entertainment

With African Music On The Rise, Afro-Themed Dance Parties Get To Win, Too

by Amira Rasool

When walking up to the venue for New York City day party Everyday Afrique, the music greets you before you can even reach the door. Depending on the day or the DJ, you might be welcomed with a remix of Afrobeats star Mr. Eazi’s 2013 hit song “Bankulize” or embraced by Niniola’s 2017 Afrohouse single “Maradona.”

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Ancestry

Slavery’s 400-Year Anniversary Brings Tourist Boom To Ghana

By Alessandra Prentice and Siphiwe Sibeko, Reuters

In a clearing at the turnoff to Assin Manso, a billboard depicts two African slaves in loincloths, their arms and legs in chains. Beside them are the words, “Never Again!” This is “slave river,” where captured Ghanaians submitted to a final bath before being shipped across the Atlantic into slavery centuries ago, never to return to the land of their birth. Today, it is a place of somber homecoming for the descendants of those who spent their lives as someone else’s property.

The popularity of the site has swelled this year, 400 years after the trade in Africans to the English colonies of America began. This month’s anniversary of the first Africans to arrive in Virginia has caused a rush of interest in ancestral tourism, with people from the United States, the Caribbean and Europe seeking out their roots in West Africa.

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Entertainment

Ndlovu Youth Choir once again outshines others in America’s Got Talent Read

South Africa’s Ndlovu Youth Choir has once again wowed audiences – this time with their gorgeous rendition of U2’s Beautiful Day in the America’s Got Talent’s quarter-finals. The choir is a huge hit with both American and Mzansi fans and they’ve come a lot further than people thought a choir would go in the competition.

Continue reading “Ndlovu Youth Choir once again outshines others in America’s Got Talent Read” →
Communities

Remittances From Abroad To Nigeria Can Grow To $34.8 Billion In 2023 -PwC Report

Migrant remittances were 77.2% of the Nigerian federal government’s budget in 2018, represented 6.1% of GDP and were more than 10 times the foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into the country in the same period, according to PwC’s latest White Paper Series, Strength from Abroad: The Economic Power of Nigeria’s diaspora.

PwC estimates that migrant remittances to Nigeria could grow to $25.5 billion, $29.8 billion and $34.8 billion in 2019, 2021 and 2023 respectively.

Continue reading “Remittances From Abroad To Nigeria Can Grow To $34.8 Billion In 2023 -PwC Report” →
Opinion

Canada is ‘stealing’ the brightest and smartest young people from Nigeria

By Ms Imosemi

Yes, Canada is not just taking our young people, they are taking the fattest of our crops, the best, the brightest, and the brainiest!

One of them is my friend, Olufemi, (not real name). He graduated top of his class and best in the entire university! Nine years after graduation, he got married to his equally cerebral lawyer wife, and they both had fairly paying jobs that admitted them into the struggling middle class in Nigeria. A year after marriage, Olufemi,  disillusioned by the state of his family’s finances, the  situation in the country and the underutilisation of his skills, and intellect at his place of work, sold all his assets and relocated his young family to Canada!

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Communities

Only 79 Nigerians have enrolled for National Identity Number in the US

The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) of Nigeria says only 79 Nigerians had been enrolled for the National Identity Number (NIN) in the United States.

The update came through the Deputy General Manager of NIMC, Ms Uche Chigbo, almost three months after the exercise was launched in the U.S. in late May.

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Uncategorized

Nigerians Prefer New York for their Passports issues says Consul General

The Consul General of Nigeria in New York, Mr Benaoyagha Okoyen, says the consulate is operating above capacity especially in passport service delivery.

Okoyen said that although the situation was an indication of growing public confidence in the office, it had been a major challenge.

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Achievements

Nigerian schoolgirls enter tech competition in California with app to finance education of poor children

By Stephen Charles Kenechukwu

A group of five Nigerian schoolgirls working as team ‘Brain Squad’ have created an application that would help finance the education of poor children “across the world”.

The girls represented Nigeria at the 2019 Technovation World Pitch summit, which held on August 15, 2019, in California. The app called ‘Handsout’ sources funds and educational materials from people around the world and gives them to children who can’t afford them.

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Uncategorized

Northern New York native describes his work as U.S. ambassador to Rwanda

By SUSAN MENDE

A Canton native now serving as the U.S. ambassador to Rwanda described Monday how the small African country has rebounded since a 1994 genocide, during which nearly a million residents were murdered.

Peter H. Vrooman, 53, was joined by his mother Sally Vrooman, Canton, during the luncheon meeting of the Canton Rotary Club at the Best Western University Inn.

“I try to encourage people to visit Rwanda. It’s a very safe country,” Mr. Vrooman said. “It’s a place you can get to; it’s fairly well-served and connected with airports. It’s just a long way to go.”

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