Consulate General of Nigeria, Frankfurt

The Consulate General of Nigeria, Frankfurt is a Nigerian diplomatic mission in Germany established in 2013. It is the first and only Nigerian Consulate Office in Europe. It is located at Weissfrauenstrasse 12, D-60311, Frankfurt am Main, with jurisdiction comprising five states in the South of Germany.[1] The consulate is currently headed by Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande who is the Consul General.[2]

Consulate General of Nigeria in Frankfurt
Coat of arms of Nigeria
The Main entrance into the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Frankfurt Am Main
LocationFrankfurt am Main
AddressWeissfrauenstrasse 12, D-60311, Frankfurt am Main
Coordinates50.109580°N 8.676160°E / 50.109580; 8.676160
Consul GeneralWahab Adekola Akande

Nigerians in Frankfurt and environs

Nigerians are the largest sub-Saharan African group in Germany. According to a March 2017 data report from the Federal Bureau of Statistics, more than 56,000 Nigerians lived in Germany.[3] However, it is generally assumed that there are more than 60,000 Nigerians in Germany.[4] A large community of them are within the consular jurisdiction, which necessitated the opening of the Consulate General in Frankfurt.

Historically, the first Nigerians in Germany arrived on study visas - with scholarships from the German government in support of Nigeria's post-independence development efforts. The outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War subsequently witnessed some Nigerians seeking asylum in Germany. At the end of the war, migration for scholarship continued. German companies with projects in Nigeria also brought in some Nigerian for training in Germany in fulfilment of contract terms for technical knowledge transfer for such projects.[5]

A large number of Nigerians in Germany are professionals: doctors, engineers, IT specialists, academics, entrepreneurs, students, etc. There are also normal workers in different sectors of the German economy. A lot of them live in the country on temporary residence status.[6]

Most Nigerians reside in major cities and are easily reachable through places of worship, cultural/tribal associations and social groupings. Many are also organized in professional groups like Nigerian Scholars in Germany, Nigerian Medical Association, etc. There are umbrella associations like the Nigerians in Diaspora Organization in Germany[6] and the Nigerian Community in Germany, which was formed in 1990 and incorporated in Bonn (1992).[5] Both organizations have branches in Frankfurt.

Consular Jurisdiction

The Consular Jurisdiction of the Nigeria Consulate in Frankfurt comprises five states in the South of Germany, namely; Hesse, the State Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg, the Free State of Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia.[7] Major cities within the consular jurisdiction include Dusseldorf, Heidelberg, and Wiesbaden, Dortmund, Sindelfingen, Meinheim, among others.

Consulate services

The Consulate

The consulate is open for consular services from Monday to Thursday between 10:00 am to 3:00 pm for the processing of documents and 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm for the collection of documents.[8] It provides four major services: passport services, visa services, emergency travel certificates and citizenship services.

In addition, the consulate provides help and assistance to Nigerians living within its area of jurisdiction. Such service may take the form of:

  1. provision of replacement travel documents
  2. advice and support in the case of an accident, serious illness, or death
  3. advice and support to victims of serious crime overseas, and arranging for next-of-kin to be informed
  4. visitation contact with incarcerated nationals
  5. liaison with local police officials in the case of nationals abducted or missing overseas
  6. loans to distressed travellers
  7. help during crises, such as civil unrest and natural disasters
  8. registering citizen births abroad
  9. provide a list of local doctors and lawyers for medical and/or legal issues
  10. supervising their flag vessels in foreign harbours

Passport services

Passport application is done online. There is no walk-in service. Applicants for biometric enrollment submit their applications online through the Nigerian Immigration Service website, after payment of the requisite fee. Application for a passport takes 10 weeks.[9]

Emergency Travel Certificate

Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) is issued to stranded Nigerians overseas who lack the proper immigration status to return home. Only Nigerian citizens who lose their passports or who, due to unforeseeable circumstances, have exceeded their passport or visa expiration date are eligible for this consular service. This certificate enables them a one-way trip back to Nigeria, after which the document must be returned to immigration officials at the point of entry. Nigerians needing an ETC are required to send an application letter to the Consul General alongside a passport photograph, a copy of an expired or lost/stolen passport, a police report for a lost/stolen passport, self-addressed envelope with a stamp for return delivery. A designated fee is required.[10]

In 2021, the Nigerian government launched a temporary passport to replace the Emergency Travel Certificate, with 30-day validity.[11]

Citizenship services

The consulate also offers citizenship services which include age declaration, burial transit permits, change of profession, citizen identification and registration, and corporate registration.

Consulate Officials

The current officials at the mission are:

  1. Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande (Consul General)
  2. Ajayi Olumide (Consul Consular)
  3. Valery Lapang (Consul ET & I)
  4. Ismail Ahmad Gusau (Head of Chancery)
  5. Enejoh Solomon (Consul PEC & I)
  6. Fatai Alao (Finance Attache)
  7. Libity Maina (Immigration Attache)[12]

Consul Generals

The table shows a list of Consul Generals that have served in the Consulate General from its inauguration in 2013 to date.

Consul General Time in Office
Mr John Chukwuma Eziaghighala Dec. 2013 - March 2015
John Chika Ejinaka March 2015 - April 2017
D. Olu Falowo April 2017 - July 2018
Ambassador Suleiman Dauda Umar[13] Aug. 2018 - April 2021
Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande[14] June 2021 - present

Consular Holidays

The consulate observes all public holidays within the consular jurisdiction areas as well as all national public holidays in Germany and Nigeria, which includes Christian and Muslim holidays. The mission is not open to the public these days[15]

Holiday Date
New Year's Day January 1
Good Friday Moveable
Easter Monday Moveable
Labour Day May 1
Id el Fitri Moveable
Ascension Day 39 days after Easter
Whit Monday 50 days after Easter
Democracy Day June 12
Corpus Christi 60 days after Easter
Id el Kabir Moveable
Independence Day (Nigeria) October 1
Id el Maulud Moveable
German Unity Day October 3
Christmas Day December 25
2nd Day of Christmas/Boxing Day December 26

See also

References
  1. "Consulate General of Nigeria in Frankfurt, Germany". nigeriaconsulate-frankfurt.com. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  2. "Friends Celebrate Nigeria's Consul General In Frankfurt". theafricancourier.de. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  3. "Nigerian refugees in Germany among top job finders". dw.com. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  4. "Let's make Nigerian Community Germany stronger – president". theafricancourier.de. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  5. "Short history of the Nigerian Community Germany e.V". nigeriancommunitygermanyev.org. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  6. "Nigerians in Germany". nido-germany.de. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  7. "About the region". nigeria-consulate-frankfurt.de. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  8. "Important Notice". nigeriaconsulate-frankfurt.com/. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  9. "Important notice for passport applicants". portal.immigration.gov.ng. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  10. "Emergency Travel Certificate". frankfurt.foreignaffairs.gov.ng. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  11. "Nigerian govt replaces emergency travel certificate with temporary passport". premiumtimesng.com. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  12. "Our Team". frankfurt.foreignaffairs.gov.ng. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  13. "Nigeria is the new HCoC Chair for 2022-2023". nonproliferation.eu. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  14. "Friends celebrate Nigeria's Consul General in Frankfurt". theafricancourier.de. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  15. "Public Holidays". nigeria-consulate-frankfurt.de. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
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