On Wednesday, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, will be visiting three West African countries, which includes; Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria.
Angela Merkel who will be accompanied by an economic delegation, will be discussing migration politics and her campaign to tackle the causes resulting in a stream of refugees to Europe during her visit to the West African countries.
Deputy Government Spokeswoman, Ulrike Demmer who confirmed the visit on Friday in Berlin, disclosed that on Wednesday afternoon the German Chancellor will be meeting Senegalese President, Macky Sall to discuss economic developments in the country and regional cooperation.
In the evening she will meet with civil society representatives.Then it’s onto the Ghanaian capital of Accra to meet President, Nana Akufo-Addo, on Thursday to discuss economic affairs and foreign policy.
The chancellor is also to take part in a German business-organised round table that will focus on private investment linked to the G20 “Compact with Africa” initiative. Finally, Merkel is to head to Nigeria on Friday to meet with the president of the ECOWAS economic alliance of West African states, Jean-Claude Brou. NAN reported that she will hold talks with Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari.
Recall that on October 7, 2016 Merkel visited three African countries before hosting leaders from Chad and Nigeria for talks in Berlin, as she seeks ways to stem a migrant influx to Europe. Merkel first travelled to Mali and Nigeria before heading to Ethiopia where she is to visit the headquarters of the African Union in the capital, Addis Ababa.
Angela Merkel’s visit to the West African countries, is coming after she announced that Georgia would be labeled a safe country of origin, making it easier for Germany to send back rejected asylum-seekers. The comments came at the start of her visit to three ex-Soviet Union republics.
Merkel noted that since the European Union liberalized visas for Georgians, Germany has seen a rise in the number of asylum applicants from the country. The decision to label Georgia as a safe country of origin would make it harder for Georgian asylum-seekers to be recognized as refugees in Germany. It also makes it easier for Berlin to return rejected asylum-applicants.
