Toyosi Ilesanmi, an IT expert in Berlin, has been trying to bring his wife over from Nigeria. However, the long waiting time for a family reunification visa appointment at the German consulate in Lagos is keeping the couple apart.
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00:00It's been almost 17 months now that we applied and we still haven't gotten an interview date.
00:25So to be honest, I don't even know what the issue is, but what I know is there is a serious
00:33long waiting time and we are just still waiting.
00:45The biggest challenge for me is the uncertainty about the process.
00:49You don't even know what is going on. You don't know why. All you know is you've applied and you have to wait.
01:11We are always trying to provide as many appointment slots as possible and to process as many visas
01:18as possible, but as I said, demand exceeds capacities. We can only ask for applicants to bear with us
01:29and wait until the application comes up for processing because it will be better in the next year
01:38when these measures I mentioned will come into place.
01:48If skilled workers are needed, then I think they should be aided in such a way that reuniting with their families
02:00should not be hard. That will actually facilitate their integration into the system.
02:05I actually know somebody who actually had to leave the country because of this. He just couldn't take it that much.
02:12He couldn't wait any longer.