Andrew Stegmann

CÔTE D’IVOIRE | Deadline for Converting to New Biometric Residence Cards Fast Approaching

Nationals of non-ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) countries holding temporary residence permit cards in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) have until February 1 to exchange their old residence cards for new biometric residence cards (Cartes de Résident). All unconverted temporary residence permits will become invalid on February 1. This deadline, originally set for December 31, 2017, has been extended. However, after February 1, any non-ECOWAS national resident in Côte d’Ivoire without a biometric resident card will be subject to a penalty.

Côte d’Ivoire has been in the process of transitioning over to a national biometric identification card system for its citizens over the past two years. See our previous Immigration Dispatch of August 14. Since August, applicants for new residence permits have been receiving the new biometric cards, which have a five-year validity period, an increase from the old card validity of one year.

Companies with non-ECOWAS foreign employees in Côte d’Ivoire should ensure those employees with the old form residence card have obtained the new biometric residence card from the Office Nationale d’Identification prior to February 1 in order to avoid penalties and complications with future immigration processes.

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Andrew Stegmann

From The Hippo’s Ears: Nigeria

Contributions by Adewole Popoola.

Facts you may not have known about Nigeria:

1. You first meet someone, how do you greet them?

Nigeria is religious country and as such, people sometimes greet according to their religious background. Christians may shake hands, while Muslims may greet from afar. We also hold on to our various ethnic cultures which teach us to greet our elders with respect by bending while stretching forth our hands.

2. What languages are spoken in your country?

Nigeria’s official language is English. There are over 500 spoken languages in Nigeria, but the three major ones are Hausa, spoken by the northerners; Yoruba, spoken by the westerners; and Igbo, spoken by the easterners.

Nigerian Pidgin English, is a very common form of communication across the entire country.

Here are some examples:

Abeg: Please

Commot: meaning leave. So, you can say abeg commot, i.e. “Please leave”

How far: A general form of greeting, meaning “How is everything”?

Sabi: To know

Una: “you” or “your”

Vamoose: A forceful command, which means “Leave”

Wetin: What?

Wahala: “Trouble”. So, you can say “No wahala”, meaning “No trouble”

3.Do you use a twelve-hour clock, or a twenty-four hour clock?

We make use of the twelve-hour clock.

4. What side of the road do people drive on? What do we need to know about driving in Nigeria?

We drive on the left-hand side of the road. Our road infrastructure is bad and drivers don’t stick to road signs and rules. All states have their own taxi colours. E.g Lagos is known for its yellow taxi colour.

5. How important is punctuality?

In Nigeria, we don’t keep to time. In fact, we have a parlance called ‘The Nigerian time’. It is generally believed that when you set time for people to come for an occasion/party, you factor the Nigerian time into it, which means adding approximately 1 hour to the set time.

6. Which types of music are popular? Who are some of your most popular musicians?

Femi Kuti, Tuface, Dbanj, Pasunma, and Terry Apala are among Nigeria’s better-known musicians.

We have a wide variety of popular genres of music in Nigeria, including Afro, hiphop, fuji, and apala.

Listen to Femi Kuti singing Sorry Sorry:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePzJwds2-3k

Listen to Tuface with African Queen:

www.youtube.ng/watch?v=_A0fWBHu9pM

Listen to Pasunma’s Number One:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phRSSaS7RkQ

7. Are there any Traditional Dances?

Yes. We have lots of traditional dances and among the common ones are:

The Bata Dance; Major traditional dance of the Yoruba ethnic group. It is associated with the Sango God of thunder, and is acrobatic and athletic.

Watch the Bata dance here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akJJkOr6EKM

The Atilogwu Dance is associated with the Igbo tribe of the eastern part of the country. The dance steps are acrobatic in nature, and require lots of quick movement and calisthenics.

The Kosoro Dance is the dance that is associated with the Hausa tribe of the northern part of the country.

The Etighi Dance is a dance that is associated with the people from the Niger-delta (riverine). This dance is known as the sexy dance because it requires the movement of the leg and waist

8. What traditional Festivals are celebrated in your community?

The most common festivals are Eyo and Olokun.

Eyo: The word “Eyo” means costumed dancers. These masqueraders come out during the festival. The festival is unique to the Yorubas in Lagos state. In recent times, it has been presented as a tourist event, and is practiced in Lagos Island.

Olokun: This is an annual cultural festival in Nigeria celebrated throughout the Yorubaland. ”Okun” means sea, and Olokun means the god/goddess of the sea.

9. What are your seasons like?

Nigeria has tropical climate with two seasons. A wet season from April to October and a dry season from November to March, with the wettest month being June. Average temperature ranges from 23 degrees to 32 degrees Celsius throughout the year.

10. Tell us an interesting fact about your President.

General Muhammadu Buhari is the Nigeria president. He was elected president in 2015 after defeating an incumbent. Before he was elected president in 2015, he had contested and failed 3 other times. He is a retired general in the Nigeria army, and has previously served as military head of state after taking power through a military coup d’état.

He is corruption-free, trustworthy, and known for his high-handedness. He is married to Aisha Buhari, and together they have 5 children.

11. What are Nigeria’s major industries?

The oil and gas industry is our major source of revenue that contributes to our GDP and keeps the economy running. Others are mining, agriculture and financial services.

12. How do people spend their free time?

Most Nigerians spend their free time in local bars drinking beer, watching football (English premiership), going to the beach, going to cinemas, and eating out.

13. What do people drink?

Nigerians are known as lovers of alcoholic drinks. We enjoy different brands of beer and traditionally produced drink. Some examples are:

Guinness stout; sold as Odeku, Star, 33, Trophy, Goldberg, Heineken, Gulder, etc.

Some traditional drinks are:

Emu (palm wine): tapped from the palm tree.

Burukutu: highly alcoholic and made from overly fermented palm wine.

14. What is a popular local dish?

We have several local dishes from the hundreds of ethnic groups that comprise Nigeria. These include:

Akara: a beignet from dough based on black-eyed beans. It is mostly served with pap (maize meal), as breakfast.

Amala: a thick paste made from yam which has been peeled, cleaned, dried and blended into powdery form. It is usually served with a delicious soup.

Asaro: also known as yam porridge. It is made by boiling and lightly mashing the yam in chill, red pepper sauce, and palm oil. It can be garnished with fish, meat, or crayfish.

Dun Dun: roasted slices of yam. It is usually eaten with sauce made from palm or groundnut oil.

Eba: also called garri, is a very thick paste that is either rolled into balls or made from cassava and it usually served with soup.

Fufu: a staple food made from cassava and served with soup.

Ikokore: similar to asaro in preparation, but with water yam.

Iyan: also called pounded yam in English, is a popular delicacy among the Yoruba tribe. It is prepared by boiling yam and completely mashing it smoothly, with no yam chunks. It can be eaten with several soups, such as Egusi.

Moin-moin: a steamed bean pudding made from a mixture of peeled black-eyed beans and wrapped in a leaf (eg. a banana leaf)

We also have numerous popular soups and stews:

Afang: a nutritional vegetable soup.

Atama: a palm kernel soup.

Banga soup: made from palm nuts.

Draw soup: made from okro or ogbono seeds, cooked until thickened.

Egusi soup: thickened with ground melon seeds, and contains leafy and other vegetables, seasonings, and meat.

Gbegiri: bean-based stew.

Miyan kuku: common among the northerners, and made from powdered baobab leaves and dried okro.

Ogbono soup: made with ground ogbono seeds.

15. What do you pay for? (1 USD = approx. Naira 360)

In a restaurant:

A cup of coffee – N500.00, a Coca Cola – N100.00, a 2-Course meal for 2 people (nothing extravagant) – N4000.00, an average glass of wine – N500.00.

At a shop:

A loaf of normal bread – N100.00, but a very good and health one comes in at N350.00, and a tin of milk (normal) goes for between N180-200.

16. General Safety?

Nigeria is generally a safe country, especially in the capital city, Abuja, and the commercial city, Lagos. The northern and southern parts of the country are a bit unsafe because of terrorism and militancy.

17. And in conclusion:

Famous (and sometimes infamous) people from Nigeria include:

  • Obafemi Awolowo
  • Nnamdi Azikwe
  • Alhaji Tafawa Balewa
  • Ahmadu Bello
  • Alhaji Aliko Dangote (the richest man in Africa)
  • Mrs Folorusho Alakija (the richest woman in Africa)
  • General Olusegun Obasanjo (the first military head of state to transfer power peacefully to a civilian regime in Nigeria).

 

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, and Remuneration needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

 

Image source: [1].

Andrew Stegmann

Gupta Preservation Order Expected from the NPA

South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the constitutionally-empowered body able to enact criminal proceedings on behalf of the country, is expected to issue members of the infamous Gupta family with preservation orders imminently.

The orders relate to the Estina Dairy Farm, a business through which the family is said to have funneled taxpayer money, paid by the Free State department of agriculture. This is the first time evidence is coming to light of members of the family directly benefiting financially due to questionable dealings with SA government entities.

The country’s Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) obtained the latest preservation order from the Bloemfontein High Court last week. In the same week, orders were served on consulting firm McKinsey and Gupta-linked Trillian, preserving an estimated R1.6 billion.

Court papers show that little to no oversight was exercised by the department of agriculture over how the funds for the farm were being spent. The AFU has found that of the R220 million given to Estina for the project‚ only R2 million was actually spent on the farm. Atul Gupta is one the individuals whose personal bank accounts are affected by the order. The court papers reveal R10 million of the funds paid to Estina for the dairy farm was paid into his personal bank account.

The order affects several individuals and Gupta-owned companies‚ including Kamal Vasram‚ Oakbay CEO Ronica Ragavan, Oakbay Investments‚ Islandsite Investments‚ VR Laser Services‚ Linkway Trading and Westdawn Investments.

Eugene Nel has been appointed curator of the assets and must file a report within 40 days, containing a detailed inventory of the assets. Those affected now have 90 days to contest the order, or allow their assets to be seized and sold off to recover the funds. According to the papers‚ the R220 million was paid into three bank accounts controlled by Estina over a 29-month period, between April 2013 and May 2016.

The intensified investigation into corruption involving the Guptas is seen by many as a direct result of the election of the newly-appointed ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has stated in numerous public speeches that he intends to root out corruption in South Africa, and focus on reviving the economy going forward.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, and Remuneration needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

 

Sources: [1], [2], [3]. Image source: [1].

Andrew Stegmann

New Level 6B Water Restrictions in Cape Town

Cape Town will be under Level 6B water restrictions from 1 February, as the city closes in on Day Zero, when taps are set to shut down.

The new restrictions limit usage to 50 liters per person per day – in contrast to the current allowance of 86 liters. Level 6B will be in place for a number of months, before the City of Cape Town considers lifting them.

Cape Town is in the middle of its summer months, and rainfall is very infrequent. Dam levels are critical, and the city is not meeting its current usage targets.

Under Level 6B restrictions borehole and wellpoint water usage is discouraged, filling up of pools is not permitted, and washing of cars can only be done using recycled water. Households using more than 6000 liters per month will face fines.

The City is currently having desalination plants build at 3 sites around Cape Town, to help augment the water supply, beginning in February. A collaborative report from researchers at numerous South African universities released recently stated that there will be dangerous levels of E.coli and Staph in the desalinated water, as the process only removes salt. The City will need to implement special filtration systems in order to remove these pathogens, and make the water safe to drink. The City has not yet commented on doing so, apart from stating that the water will meet national standards. Currently, these national standards do not, by law, require the removal of the pathogens.

The new plan is for households that use up to 6‚000 litres of water a month‚ currently paying R28.44‚ to pay R145.98 instead — though Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille said she would push to exempt them from the punitive tariffs.

For those who use up to 10‚500 litres‚ the bill will rise from R109.50 to R390.82. Households that use up to 20‚000 litres will see their bill rise from R361.06 to R1‚536.25; up to 35‚000 litres‚ up from R1‚050.04 to R6‚939.57; and up to 50‚000 litres‚ up from R2‚888.81 to R20‚619.57. de Lille stated that provision will be made for households larger than four people to ensure that they are not unfairly penalised.

Dam levels are currently at 26.5%, and Cape Town is using over 600 million liters of water a day. The new target is 27% below that.

Western Cape Premier, Helen Zille, stated yesterday that she had written to President Jacob Zuma, requesting that a national disaster be declared, after the likelihood of Day Zero was confirmed by the City of Cape Town. On the same day, she attended a meeting at the provincial disaster management headquarters to discuss preparation for, and management of, Day Zero and its aftermath, and stated that there is no precedent anywhere in the world for this kind of disaster.

Day Zero is currently said to be 21 April, with 200 water collection sites planned to be set up around the city should the taps be shut off.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, and Remuneration needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

 

Sources: [1], [2], [3], [4]. Image source: [2].