Many migrants to Germany, especially from Africa face difficulties with the German migration laws.
Reverend Dr. Kingsley Arthur, a pastor of the International Christian Revival Church in Wedding, Berlin is making a difference in the lives of immigrants in Germany.
He is a social worker who helps migrants, most of whom are illegal settlers, to reintegrate into the German way of life.
“We help Africans living in Germany,” Rev. Dr. Arthur told Starrfmonline.com in a Skype discussion. “They grow through a lot of challenges; finding a place to study, family conflict, we have a lot of them living illegally here and they fall sick and can’t see the doctors, and are hungry and find no food to eat.”
On a daily basis, an average of 15 people (African migrants) visit his office – Wedding’s Rat und Hilfe, where immigrants come for counselling and help them go through the process of how to acquire the right documentation to regularize their stay in Germany.
For him, the issues are diverse but he needs to give them a listening ear to assuage their worries. According to him, the dominant issue is about “conflict of traditions and culture.” His church funds the project and helps immigrants to regularize their stay in Germany.
He believes most Africans risk their lives to travel to Europe because their counterparts already living there make it seem the grass is greener.
“We encourage them to tell the truth when they ship an old car from Germany to Africa, and tell their people back home the real situation in Germany so people are not fooled back home. Most people in Africa think there are no problems here in Europe and people are refusing to tell them the truth and keeping face so on a daily basis people risk their lives through the deserts and deep sea to get here. Some die and those who make it here end up being deported or hiding from the police,” Rev. Dr. Arthur, who has stayed in Germany since age 19, explained.
RECOGNITION
He is known by almost every African living in Berlin due to his humanitarian works. As a result of his selflessness and readiness to assist his fellow Africans, the 55-year-old was recognized by the German president. 
On 13 March 2015, Barbara Loth Secretary of State on behalf of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany presented to Dr. Kingsley Arthur, the Federal Cross of Merit on Ribbon.
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany was instituted in 1951 by Federal President Theodor Heuss. It is the only honor that may be awarded in all fields of endeavor and is the highest tribute the Federal Republic of Germany can pay to individuals for service to the nation.
The Order of Merit is awarded to Germans as well as foreigners for achievements in the political, economic, social or intellectual realm and for all kinds of outstanding services to the nation in the field of social, charitable or philanthropic work.
“I have been through a lot, but I managed to survived ever since I stepped foot on this land. I always advise people to make sure they have the right documentation before coming here because if you don’t come here with the right papers life will be tough,” Rev. Dr. Arthur stated to Starrfmonline.com.
For him, Germany is like home where he stays with his family. He has seven children with a granddaughter. He is a trained Theologian, Mediator and Professional Social Manager.
Rev. Dr. Arthur told Starrfmonline.com he finds happiness in assisting the deprived especially helping prisoners of African descent to re-socialize into the society after being freed.
“How can you love God that you have not seen if you can’t love your neighbour that you see daily? That is our challenge and that is our motivation in doing this work,” he stressed.
The religious leader also has a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) which provides free feeding to over 500 children from Kindergarten to Junior High School in a deprived area in Ghana.
Touching on how to tackle the issue of migration from Africa to Europe, he appealed to African government to create jobs for the youth and called on the youth to have the belief that they can make it back home instead of the wrong perception that Europe is the sole solution to their problems.
“Africans must believe in themselves and be ready to make it back home. Education is key and governments must put in place the right measures to ensure that the necessary structures are in place for people to reach their aspirations,” the award-winning social worker opined.
As part of moves to find solution to the issue of migration, the German government has introduced a programme – StartHilfe Plus – aimed at paying asylum applicants to return to their home countries. It is being run by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) in co-operation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The initiative aims to financially reward asylum applicants if they are willing to return to their homelands. About 40 million euros ($43 million) has been set aside for payments. In 2016, about 55,000 persons voluntarily returned to their homelands compared to 35,000 who left in the year before.
