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Bulgaria, Romania Enter Schengen, Air, Sea Borders Open, As Land Routes Await Resolution
Bulgaria and Romania joined Europe’s vast Schengen area of free movement on Sunday, opening up travel by air and sea without border checks after a 13-year wait.
A veto by Austria however means the new status will not apply to land routes after Vienna expressed concerns over a potential influx of asylum seekers.
Despite the partial membership, the lifting of controls at the two countries’ air and sea borders is of significant symbolic value.
“I travel often and this really eases things”, Kristina Markova, 35, said as she readied to fly out of the Sofia airport on Sunday morning.
“We got to the terminal in less than three minutes, including baggage check,” she said. “It’s a real improvement”.
Admission to Schengen is an “important milestone” for Bulgaria and Romania, symbolising a “question of dignity, of belonging to the European Union”, according to foreign policy analyst Stefan Popescu.
“Any Romanian who had to walk down a lane separate from other European citizens felt being treated differently,” he told AFP.
“This is a great success for both countries, and a historic moment for the Schengen area — the largest area of free movement in the world,” EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement Saturday.
“Together, we are building a stronger, more united Europe for all our citizens.”
– And they were 29 –
With Bulgaria and Romania, the Schengen zone now comprises 29 members — 25 of the 27 European Union member states as well as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Romania’s government said Schengen rules would apply to four seaports and 17 airports, with the Otopeni airport near the capital Bucharest serving as the biggest hub for Schengen flights.
More staff including border police and immigration officers will be deployed to airports to “support passengers and detect those who want to take advantage to leave Romania illegally”, it added.
Random checks will also be carried out to catch people with false documents and to combat human trafficking.
Bulgaria and Romania both hope to fully integrate into Schengen by the end of the year, but Austria has so far relented only on air and sea routes.
Croatia, which joined the EU after Romania and Bulgaria, beat them to becoming Schengen’s 27th member in January 2023.
Created in 1985, the Schengen area allows more than 400 million people to travel freely without internal border controls.
– ‘Irreversible process’ –
While some have reason to celebrate, truck drivers, faced with endless queues at the borders with their European neighbours, feel left out.
One of Romania’s main road transport unions the UNTRR has called for “urgent measures” to get full Schengen integration, deploring the huge financial losses caused by the long waits.
“Romanian hauliers have lost billions of euros every year, just because of long waiting times at borders,” Secretary-General Radu Dinescu said.
According to the union, truckers usually wait eight to 16 hours at the border with Hungary, and from 20 to 30 hours at the Bulgarian border, with peaks of three days.
Bulgarian businesses have also voiced their anger over the slow progress.
“Only three percent of Bulgarian goods are transported by air and sea, the remaining 97 percent by land,” said Vasil Velev, president of the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association (BICA).
“So we’re at three percent in Schengen and we don’t know when we’ll be there with the other 97 percent,” he told AFP.
Bucharest and Sofia have both said there will be no going back.
“There is no doubt that this process is irreversible,” Romanian Interior Minister Catalin Predoiu said this month, adding it “must be completed by 2024 with the extension to land borders
US car giant Ford on Wednesday announced 4,000 more job cuts in Europe, mostly in Germany and Britain, in the latest blow to the continent’s beleaguered car industry.
“The company has incurred significant losses in recent years,” Ford said in a statement, blaming “the industry shift to electrified vehicles and new competition”.
The move will affect 2,900 jobs in Germany, 800 in the UK and 300 in western Europe by the end of 2027, a Ford spokesman told AFP.
“It is critical to take difficult but decisive action to ensure Ford’s future competitiveness in Europe,” said Dave Johnston, Ford’s European vice-president in the statement.
The company also said it was adjusting the production of its Explorer and Capri models, resulting in reduced hours at its Cologne plant in the first quarter of 2025.
Europe’s car industry has been plunged into crisis by high manufacturing costs, a stuttering switch to electric vehicles and increased competition in key market China.
Germany’s Volkswagen has been among those hardest hit, announcing in September that it was considering the unprecedented move of closing some factories in Germany.
“The European automotive industry is in a very demanding and serious situation,” Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume said at the time.
Ford had already announced in February 2023 that it was planning to cut 3,800 jobs in Europe, including 2,300 in Germany and 1,300 in Britain.
The company said then it was planning to reduce the number of models developed for Europe, concentrate on the profitable van segment and speed up the transition to electric vehicles.
Ford currently has around 28,000 employees in Europe with 15,000 in Germany, according to the company’s works council.
President Bola Tinubu has approved the dissolution of the Governing Council of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, Anambra State, and the removal of the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Bernard Ifeanyi Odoh, and Registrar, Mrs. Rosemary Ifoema Nwokike.
The council, chaired by Ambassador Greg Ozumba Mbadiwe, comprised five other members: Hafiz Oladejo, Augustine Onyedebelu, Engr. Amioleran Osahon, and Rtd. Gen. Funsho Oyeneyin.
A statement released on Wednesday by presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, revealed that the council was dissolved following reports of procedural violations in appointing the vice-chancellor.
According to the statement, the council had allegedly appointed an unqualified candidate, disregarding due process, which triggered tensions between the university’s Senate and the council.
The Federal Government expressed dismay over the council’s actions, emphasizing the need for adherence to the university’s governing laws in decision-making.
“The council’s disregard for established rules necessitated the government’s intervention to restore order to the 33-year-old institution,” the statement noted.
In a related development, President Tinubu also approved the dismissal of Engr. Ohieku Muhammed Salami, the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo, Benue State.
Salami was accused of suspending the university’s Vice-Chancellor without following the prescribed procedures, a move the Federal Ministry of Education had previously directed him to reverse.
Despite the Ministry’s directives, Salami reportedly refused to comply and resorted to issuing threats and abusive remarks towards the Ministry’s officials, including the Permanent Secretary.
The Federal Government reiterated that the primary role of university councils is to ensure the smooth operation of academic activities, strictly adhering to the laws establishing each institution.
Tinubu warned university councils against engaging in actions that could destabilize their institutions, as his administration remains committed to enhancing the nation’s education system.
The Ekiti State Government has reached an agreement with labour leaders in the state, signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the payment of the N70,000 minimum wage approved by the Federal Government.
Addressing journalists at a brief ceremony in Ado-Ekiti on Tuesday, the Head of Service (HoS), Dr. Folakemi Olomojobi, announced that the payment would commence immediately.
She lauded Governor Biodun Oyebanji for prioritizing the welfare of workers despite the state’s limited resources.
“This development demonstrates the governor’s commitment to improving the livelihood of our workers,” Dr. Olomojobi stated, highlighting the proactive measures taken by the administration to ensure prompt implementation.
In their remarks, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Chairman, Comrade Sola Adigun, and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Chairman, Comrade Olatunde Kolapo, expressed their appreciation to Governor Oyebanji for fulfilling his promises to workers.
They confirmed that the new minimum wage would apply to all cadres, including employees in ministries, parastatals, agencies, and pensioners.
The Chairman of the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC), Comrade Femi Ajoloko, described the implementation as a fair and commendable adjustment.
“This decision reflects the governor’s magnanimity and his dedication to fostering a productive workforce in Ekiti State,” he said.
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