Germany turns to India to fill 1.4 million job vacancies
German Foreign Minister Johan Fadibol announced that Berlin is seeking to expand opportunities for skilled workers and Indian students, highlighting India's increasing role in the German labor market. During a joint press conference with Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, Fadibol explained that 60,000 Indian students are currently studying in Germany, making them the largest group of international students in the country. He added that many of them stay after graduation to help fill the acute shortage of skilled labor.
Fadibol praised the contribution of Indians, describing it as a "true success story," noting that many of them earn above-average incomes. He called for speeding up visa procedures through digitization and increasing investment in language education. Germany also plans to expand the number of partner schools in India from 58 to 1000 to enhance the learning of the German language among students wishing to migrate.
Job gaps in Germany remain acute, with 1.4 million vacancies recorded in the health, information technology, education, construction, and public transport sectors by the end of 2024. Today, migrants make up one in five nurses, and the proportion of foreign workers has exceeded 16% of the total workforce — double what it was in 2010. Ambassador Philipp Ackermann emphasized Germany's urgent need for skilled labor, estimating that the country needs about 500,000 new workers annually across various professions.
However, Germany is facing difficulty in retaining migrants. A survey conducted by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) involving 50,000 residents of foreign origin revealed that 57% wish to stay long-term, while 12% consider their stay temporary, and 30% have not yet decided. It also showed that about 2.6 million migrants considered leaving Germany over the past year, with 300,000 of them making concrete plans to migrate.
The survey attributed these trends to family ties in their home countries, higher salary opportunities and professional growth in other countries, in addition to dissatisfaction with bureaucracy, taxes, and the political climate in Germany. Alarmingly, nearly two-thirds of migrants reported experiencing discrimination, while a third said they do not feel welcomed or feel so only to a small degree. These factors, according to researchers, lead many to question whether Germany is truly the right place to build their future.