OPINION FEATURE

Europe doesn’t need stronger borders
By Philippe Legrain

The stunning bridge that connects Denmark and Sweden has been immortalized by the hit TV series The Bridge, in which Swedish and Danish police collaborate to solve gruesome murders. More prosaically, the Oresund region which spans the bridge — encompassing the Danish capital of Copenhagen, the Swedish city of Malmo, and their hinterlands — is marketed to global businesses as a single entity. But now, for the first time since the 1950s, people crossing between the two countries will have their identities checked in a bid to stem flows of refugees into Sweden. Denmark, in turn, has reimposed controls on its border with Germany. Austria, France, Germany, and Norway have also reintroduced controls on their borders in recent months. Decades of European integration are unraveling day by day. How to stop the rot?

IMMIGRATION

More Germans have doubt over migrants after New Year assaults

Berlin (AFP) - Most Germans now doubt their country's ability to cope with a record migrant influx, and fear refugees more, after the New Year's Eve mass assaults on women in Cologne, opinion polls released Friday show.

FINANCE/BANK

CBN lifts ban on dollar deposits, withdrawals

 From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja and Blaise Udunze

AS exclusively reported by Daily Sun on Monday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), yesterday lifted its ban on foreign currency deposits and withdrawals by customers from comercial banks.

NEWS RELEASE

Reinsurance: Africa loses billions of $ to foreigners

 By Odimegwu Onwumere

“Business will be smaller without reinsurance in Africa, because the perils preserved will only be roofed by the capital of the insurance companies, but reinsurance comes to supplement the capacity to undertake probability,” said the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Africa Reinsurance Corporation (Africa Re), Mr. Corneille Karekezi, at the 42nd African Insurance Organisation (AIO) Conference and General Assembly, which held in Tunis in 2015.

IMMIGRATION/DEPORTATION

Germany to ease deportation rules after Cologne attacks

German Chancellor, Angela Merkel

BERLIN (AP) — Germany will make it easier to deport criminal foreigners following public outrage over the New Year's Eve assaults in Cologne, officials said Tuesday. Police say 553 criminal complaints have been filed in connection with the assaults, with about 45 percent involving allegations of sexual offenses, and most of the suspects identified so far are foreign nationals. Many asylum-seekers who commit crimes currently avoid deportation because the danger they face in their home country is considered greater than the reason for deporting them.

IMMIGRATION

Refugee workers urge Germany to learn from past mistakes

By Frank Zeller

Iranian refugee worker Behshid Najafi (L), working in Cologne's Agisra Information and Counselling Centre for Female Migrants and Refugees office on January 10, 2016, says Germany must learn from the mistakes of the past. Cologne (Germany) (AFP) - Chancellor Angela Merkel's mantra on Germany's record migrant influx has been "we can do it", which Cologne refugee worker Behshid Najafi heartily agrees with -- but would add a qualifying "if".

IMMIGRATION/PROTEST

Thousands at far-right rally against Merkel migrant policy

Leipzig (Germany) (AFP) - Thousands of far-right protesters rallied in the eastern German city of Leipzig Monday against the record refugee influx they blamed for sexual violence against women at New Year's Eve festivities. The crowd loudly vented its anger at Chancellor Angela Merkel, whom they accuse of destroying their homeland by allowing in 1.1 million asylum seekers last year.

OPINION FEATURE

Ngige factionalised NLC leadership failure

 By Odimegwu Onwumere

Ngige, labour & Productivity minister

In the international best labour practices many policies to arrest the contemporary socio-economic challenges are being formulated. The best of all are rules that see to the treatment meted out to people at work places which include basic human rights, respect for health and safety, and remuneration, amongst other rights. Whether Nigeria is following the international labour level, which standards have been integrated into a-variety-of conferences and proposals, is not certain with the incessant squabbles at the labour organisations in Nigeria.

LIFE STYLE

Ghanaian airport immigration officers return lost Ipad 

A Nigerian man, Otunba Lsk, the CEO of Betcolony Africa, lost his Ipad at an airport in Ghana and it was returned to him by these honest Ghanaian immigration officers. The man could not hide his joy and appreciation to these honest Ghanaians & took to his Facebook wall to share their pics.

LIFE & POLICY

London re-insurance policy shocks African experts, dismiss gloomy prediction  

The reinsurance sector in London has warned its counterpart in Africa to prepare for the worse due to a new law in London – Insurance Act 2015 – which will be effective from August 12 2016. This warning is due to the supposed historic dependence of African reinsurance sector on foreign reinsurance to survive. But its counterpart in Nigeria says there is growth in African reinsurance sector, because the time that the individual local companies had to export money abroad has stopped. Odimegwu Onwumere reports: