{"id":1841249,"date":"2026-03-22T10:40:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T07:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1841249"},"modified":"2026-03-22T10:40:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T07:40:15","slug":"germany-looks-to-india-to-address-skilled-labor-shortage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1841249","title":{"rendered":"Germany looks to India to address skilled labor shortage"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/70216539_6.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5ApFJ<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n
Millicent Awiti, originally from Kenya, now drives public buses in Flensburg, northern GermanyImage: Axel Heimken\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Guido Seifen is the managing director of the medium\u2011sized German company, Omexom Hochspannung<\/a>, which employs around 500 people and builds major power lines. He said it has become increasingly difficult to find skilled workers in Germany for the widely dispersed construction sites. After all, the job often means giving up family life and a stable home during the week.<\/p>\n

Seifen now hopes to recruit new skilled workers in Vietnam<\/a> through a German\u2011Vietnamese development cooperation project. Vietnam is currently transitioning to renewable energy and is receiving support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Internationale Zusammenarbeit<\/a> (GIZ). What Germany needs are overhead line technicians \u2014 and Vietnam’s electricity provider EVN has set up a dedicated training center to prepare workers for exactly that role.<\/p>\n

Omexom wants to contribute its experience and expertise to the project. The company plans to bring EVN’s Vietnamese instructors to Germany for training, enabling them to deliver instruction that meets local standards, including certification from the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce. At the training center in Vietnam, GIZ is also establishing German language courses.<\/p>\n

In the end, enough technicians are to be trained so that roughly half of them can be offered jobs in Germany \u2014 up to 200, Seifen said, calling it a “win\u2011win situation.”<\/p>\n

\n

Germany looks to India to address skilled labor shortage<\/h2>\n

WE\u2011Fair alliance for the fair recruitment of skilled workers<\/h2>\n

Attracting foreign skilled workers to Germany while at the same time strengthening training structures and transferring knowledge in their countries of origin \u2014 these are the kinds of projects the federal government aims to support.<\/p>\n

The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) already works with many partners to train skilled workers, and now German industry is expected to join. The newly established alliance is called the “WE\u2011Fair alliance<\/a> for the fair recruitment of skilled workers.”<\/p>\n

“Germany needs qualified skilled workers<\/a>,” said Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan at the launch in Berlin. The country is aging rapidly. “The projections are clear: more than 20% of employees in Germany are at least 55 years old, and will retire within the next 10 years.”<\/p>\n

Demographic researchers have calculated that Germany will need 400,000 foreign skilled workers each year over the next decade to fill the gaps. To reach that number, around 1.6 million people would have to immigrate to Germany annually.<\/p>\n

\n

Kenya’s talent heads to Germany’s hospitality sector<\/h2>\n

Engaging with countries of origin on equal terms<\/h2>\n

“Recruitment from countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America is becoming increasingly important for the German economy,” said Alabali Radovan. The populations there are young, often well-educated\u00a0and continue to grow.<\/p>\n

“Many young people in those countries are also looking for opportunities beyond their borders. The governments of these countries expect us, as the German federal government, to create and strengthen pathways for skilled migration<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

Placement is to take place according to transparent rules and be subject to oversight. This includes providing information on working conditions, wages\u00a0and required qualifications. Training programs should prepare participants both for their home countries and for Germany. Costs and risks are to be shared, and potential skilled workers should be able to cover the costs of further training, or relocation.<\/p>\n

German companies underestimate what it takes<\/h2>\n

“We often see companies assuming they will get a fully trained employee whom they can deploy immediately,” said Edith Otiende\u2011Lawani, a Kenya\u2011born managing director of a consulting firm who, through her association Giving Africa a New Face, supports the integration of migrants in the Munich area.<\/p>\n

“The fairy\u2011tale notion is that people will arrive already speaking German, integrate quickly, be resilient\u00a0and be enthusiastic about Germany and everything that comes with it,” said Otiende\u2011Lawani. But that’s not the reality.<\/p>\n

\n

Imported care giver: Skilled, needed, stalled by bureaucracy<\/h2>\n

“It’s not about forming a grammatically correct sentence \u2014 it’s about the fact that communication and leadership in German companies work differently,” added Gerhard Hain, who advises German businesses on intercultural matters. Even in everyday life, there are many hurdles that are difficult to overcome. “You have to be prepared for people who approach things differently from Germans in roughly 80% of cases.”<\/p>\n

People also need a great deal of patience while they wait to come to Germany. Because of the enormous bureaucracy, it often takes years before a foreign skilled worker can actually start working in this country. Markus L\u00f6tzsch, chief executive of the Nuremberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, has many stories to tell on the subject. Too many different authorities are responsible, and the immigration offices \u2014 especially in large cities \u2014 are chronically overburdened.<\/p>\n

There are disappointments even with so\u2011called “express procedures,” L\u00f6tzsch explained.\u00a0“Through our Welcome Desk, for example, we work with the immigration authorities as part of the accelerated skilled\u2011worker process. ‘Accelerated skilled\u2011worker process’ sounds great \u2014 it promises that everything will move quickly, and you even pay extra for it. So you assume it will actually be faster, but often that’s not the case at all.”<\/p>\n

To provide relief, the Chamber of Commerce is investing money and staff to take over tasks such as the preliminary review of all required documents. “The immigration authority knows the documents come from a trusted partner, and then the process goes through more smoothly,” L\u00f6tzsch told DW.<\/p>\n

\n

Germany searches for skilled workers amid rise in xenophobia<\/h2>\n

Skilled workers are leaving again<\/h2>\n

“We shouldn’t only talk about people coming \u2014 we should also talk about them staying,” L\u00f6tzsch added. In 2024, for the first time, more people left Germany than moved to the country. Again and again, foreign skilled workers return to their home countries<\/a> or move on to other places because their expectations in Germany were not met.<\/p>\n

For entrepreneur Jasmin Arbabian-Vogel, much of this has to do with Germans’ attitudes toward immigrants. Germany is still attractive for foreign skilled workers. “But if we want to remain attractive, then the question is directly tied to how we treat the immigrants who are already here in the country,” she said.<\/p>\n

Arbabian-Vogel runs a care and social services company in Hanover with 250 employees. Many of them are foreigners. “These are refugees and people who simply immigrated here at some point. Companies like mine, and many others as well, train them \u2014 only to later find out that they have just received a deportation notice, which basically means: it was nice working with you, but now goodbye,” she said.<\/p>\n

Germany needs to adopt a different political and societal “mindset” toward immigrants. If that does not happen, the skilled\u2011worker alliance cannot succeed.<\/p>\n

This article was originally written in German.<\/em><\/p>\n

While you’re here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter, Berlin Briefing.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

\n

Guido Seifen is the managing director of the medium\u2011sized German company, Omexom Hochspannung<\/a>, which employs around 500 people and builds major power lines. He said it has become increasingly difficult to find skilled workers in Germany for the widely dispersed construction sites. After all, the job often means giving up family life and a stable home during the week.<\/p>\n

Seifen now hopes to recruit new skilled workers in Vietnam<\/a> through a German\u2011Vietnamese development cooperation project. Vietnam is currently transitioning to renewable energy and is receiving support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Internationale Zusammenarbeit<\/a> (GIZ). What Germany needs are overhead line technicians \u2014 and Vietnam’s electricity provider EVN has set up a dedicated training center to prepare workers for exactly that role.<\/p>\n

Omexom wants to contribute its experience and expertise to the project. The company plans to bring EVN’s Vietnamese instructors to Germany for training, enabling them to deliver instruction that meets local standards, including certification from the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce. At the training center in Vietnam, GIZ is also establishing German language courses.<\/p>\n

In the end, enough technicians are to be trained so that roughly half of them can be offered jobs in Germany \u2014 up to 200, Seifen said, calling it a “win\u2011win situation.”<\/p>\n

\n

Germany looks to India to address skilled labor shortage<\/h2>\n

WE\u2011Fair alliance for the fair recruitment of skilled workers<\/h2>\n

Attracting foreign skilled workers to Germany while at the same time strengthening training structures and transferring knowledge in their countries of origin \u2014 these are the kinds of projects the federal government aims to support.<\/p>\n

The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) already works with many partners to train skilled workers, and now German industry is expected to join. The newly established alliance is called the “WE\u2011Fair alliance<\/a> for the fair recruitment of skilled workers.”<\/p>\n

“Germany needs qualified skilled workers<\/a>,” said Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan at the launch in Berlin. The country is aging rapidly. “The projections are clear: more than 20% of employees in Germany are at least 55 years old, and will retire within the next 10 years.”<\/p>\n

Demographic researchers have calculated that Germany will need 400,000 foreign skilled workers each year over the next decade to fill the gaps. To reach that number, around 1.6 million people would have to immigrate to Germany annually.<\/p>\n

\n

Kenya’s talent heads to Germany’s hospitality sector<\/h2>\n

Engaging with countries of origin on equal terms<\/h2>\n

“Recruitment from countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America is becoming increasingly important for the German economy,” said Alabali Radovan. The populations there are young, often well-educated\u00a0and continue to grow.<\/p>\n

“Many young people in those countries are also looking for opportunities beyond their borders. The governments of these countries expect us, as the German federal government, to create and strengthen pathways for skilled migration<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

Placement is to take place according to transparent rules and be subject to oversight. This includes providing information on working conditions, wages\u00a0and required qualifications. Training programs should prepare participants both for their home countries and for Germany. Costs and risks are to be shared, and potential skilled workers should be able to cover the costs of further training, or relocation.<\/p>\n

German companies underestimate what it takes<\/h2>\n

“We often see companies assuming they will get a fully trained employee whom they can deploy immediately,” said Edith Otiende\u2011Lawani, a Kenya\u2011born managing director of a consulting firm who, through her association Giving Africa a New Face, supports the integration of migrants in the Munich area.<\/p>\n

“The fairy\u2011tale notion is that people will arrive already speaking German, integrate quickly, be resilient\u00a0and be enthusiastic about Germany and everything that comes with it,” said Otiende\u2011Lawani. But that’s not the reality.<\/p>\n

\n

Imported care giver: Skilled, needed, stalled by bureaucracy<\/h2>\n

“It’s not about forming a grammatically correct sentence \u2014 it’s about the fact that communication and leadership in German companies work differently,” added Gerhard Hain, who advises German businesses on intercultural matters. Even in everyday life, there are many hurdles that are difficult to overcome. “You have to be prepared for people who approach things differently from Germans in roughly 80% of cases.”<\/p>\n

People also need a great deal of patience while they wait to come to Germany. Because of the enormous bureaucracy, it often takes years before a foreign skilled worker can actually start working in this country. Markus L\u00f6tzsch, chief executive of the Nuremberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, has many stories to tell on the subject. Too many different authorities are responsible, and the immigration offices \u2014 especially in large cities \u2014 are chronically overburdened.<\/p>\n

There are disappointments even with so\u2011called “express procedures,” L\u00f6tzsch explained.\u00a0“Through our Welcome Desk, for example, we work with the immigration authorities as part of the accelerated skilled\u2011worker process. ‘Accelerated skilled\u2011worker process’ sounds great \u2014 it promises that everything will move quickly, and you even pay extra for it. So you assume it will actually be faster, but often that’s not the case at all.”<\/p>\n

To provide relief, the Chamber of Commerce is investing money and staff to take over tasks such as the preliminary review of all required documents. “The immigration authority knows the documents come from a trusted partner, and then the process goes through more smoothly,” L\u00f6tzsch told DW.<\/p>\n

\n

Germany searches for skilled workers amid rise in xenophobia<\/h2>\n

Skilled workers are leaving again<\/h2>\n

“We shouldn’t only talk about people coming \u2014 we should also talk about them staying,” L\u00f6tzsch added. In 2024, for the first time, more people left Germany than moved to the country. Again and again, foreign skilled workers return to their home countries<\/a> or move on to other places because their expectations in Germany were not met.<\/p>\n

For entrepreneur Jasmin Arbabian-Vogel, much of this has to do with Germans’ attitudes toward immigrants. Germany is still attractive for foreign skilled workers. “But if we want to remain attractive, then the question is directly tied to how we treat the immigrants who are already here in the country,” she said.<\/p>\n

Arbabian-Vogel runs a care and social services company in Hanover with 250 employees. Many of them are foreigners. “These are refugees and people who simply immigrated here at some point. Companies like mine, and many others as well, train them \u2014 only to later find out that they have just received a deportation notice, which basically means: it was nice working with you, but now goodbye,” she said.<\/p>\n

Germany needs to adopt a different political and societal “mindset” toward immigrants. If that does not happen, the skilled\u2011worker alliance cannot succeed.<\/p>\n

This article was originally written in German.<\/em><\/p>\n

While you’re here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter, Berlin Briefing.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Guido Seifen is the managing director of the medium\u2011sized German company, Omexom Hochspannung<\/a>, which employs around 500 people and builds major power lines. He said it has become increasingly difficult to find skilled workers in Germany for the widely dispersed construction sites. After all, the job often means giving up family life and a stable home during the week.<\/p>\n

Seifen now hopes to recruit new skilled workers in Vietnam<\/a> through a German\u2011Vietnamese development cooperation project. Vietnam is currently transitioning to renewable energy and is receiving support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Internationale Zusammenarbeit<\/a> (GIZ). What Germany needs are overhead line technicians \u2014 and Vietnam’s electricity provider EVN has set up a dedicated training center to prepare workers for exactly that role.<\/p>\n

Omexom wants to contribute its experience and expertise to the project. The company plans to bring EVN’s Vietnamese instructors to Germany for training, enabling them to deliver instruction that meets local standards, including certification from the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce. At the training center in Vietnam, GIZ is also establishing German language courses.<\/p>\n

In the end, enough technicians are to be trained so that roughly half of them can be offered jobs in Germany \u2014 up to 200, Seifen said, calling it a “win\u2011win situation.”<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

Attracting foreign skilled workers to Germany while at the same time strengthening training structures and transferring knowledge in their countries of origin \u2014 these are the kinds of projects the federal government aims to support.<\/p>\n

The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) already works with many partners to train skilled workers, and now German industry is expected to join. The newly established alliance is called the “WE\u2011Fair alliance<\/a> for the fair recruitment of skilled workers.”<\/p>\n

“Germany needs qualified skilled workers<\/a>,” said Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan at the launch in Berlin. The country is aging rapidly. “The projections are clear: more than 20% of employees in Germany are at least 55 years old, and will retire within the next 10 years.”<\/p>\n

Demographic researchers have calculated that Germany will need 400,000 foreign skilled workers each year over the next decade to fill the gaps. To reach that number, around 1.6 million people would have to immigrate to Germany annually.<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

“Recruitment from countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America is becoming increasingly important for the German economy,” said Alabali Radovan. The populations there are young, often well-educated\u00a0and continue to grow.<\/p>\n

“Many young people in those countries are also looking for opportunities beyond their borders. The governments of these countries expect us, as the German federal government, to create and strengthen pathways for skilled migration<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

Placement is to take place according to transparent rules and be subject to oversight. This includes providing information on working conditions, wages\u00a0and required qualifications. Training programs should prepare participants both for their home countries and for Germany. Costs and risks are to be shared, and potential skilled workers should be able to cover the costs of further training, or relocation.<\/p>\n

“We often see companies assuming they will get a fully trained employee whom they can deploy immediately,” said Edith Otiende\u2011Lawani, a Kenya\u2011born managing director of a consulting firm who, through her association Giving Africa a New Face, supports the integration of migrants in the Munich area.<\/p>\n

“The fairy\u2011tale notion is that people will arrive already speaking German, integrate quickly, be resilient\u00a0and be enthusiastic about Germany and everything that comes with it,” said Otiende\u2011Lawani. But that’s not the reality.<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

“It’s not about forming a grammatically correct sentence \u2014 it’s about the fact that communication and leadership in German companies work differently,” added Gerhard Hain, who advises German businesses on intercultural matters. Even in everyday life, there are many hurdles that are difficult to overcome. “You have to be prepared for people who approach things differently from Germans in roughly 80% of cases.”<\/p>\n

People also need a great deal of patience while they wait to come to Germany. Because of the enormous bureaucracy, it often takes years before a foreign skilled worker can actually start working in this country. Markus L\u00f6tzsch, chief executive of the Nuremberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, has many stories to tell on the subject. Too many different authorities are responsible, and the immigration offices \u2014 especially in large cities \u2014 are chronically overburdened.<\/p>\n

There are disappointments even with so\u2011called “express procedures,” L\u00f6tzsch explained.\u00a0“Through our Welcome Desk, for example, we work with the immigration authorities as part of the accelerated skilled\u2011worker process. ‘Accelerated skilled\u2011worker process’ sounds great \u2014 it promises that everything will move quickly, and you even pay extra for it. So you assume it will actually be faster, but often that’s not the case at all.”<\/p>\n

To provide relief, the Chamber of Commerce is investing money and staff to take over tasks such as the preliminary review of all required documents. “The immigration authority knows the documents come from a trusted partner, and then the process goes through more smoothly,” L\u00f6tzsch told DW.<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

“We shouldn’t only talk about people coming \u2014 we should also talk about them staying,” L\u00f6tzsch added. In 2024, for the first time, more people left Germany than moved to the country. Again and again, foreign skilled workers return to their home countries<\/a> or move on to other places because their expectations in Germany were not met.<\/p>\n

For entrepreneur Jasmin Arbabian-Vogel, much of this has to do with Germans’ attitudes toward immigrants. Germany is still attractive for foreign skilled workers. “But if we want to remain attractive, then the question is directly tied to how we treat the immigrants who are already here in the country,” she said.<\/p>\n

Arbabian-Vogel runs a care and social services company in Hanover with 250 employees. Many of them are foreigners. “These are refugees and people who simply immigrated here at some point. Companies like mine, and many others as well, train them \u2014 only to later find out that they have just received a deportation notice, which basically means: it was nice working with you, but now goodbye,” she said.<\/p>\n

Germany needs to adopt a different political and societal “mindset” toward immigrants. If that does not happen, the skilled\u2011worker alliance cannot succeed.<\/p>\n

This article was originally written in German.<\/em><\/p>\n

While you’re here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter, Berlin Briefing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/70216539_6.jpg”] https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5ApFJ Millicent Awiti, originally from Kenya, now drives public buses in Flensburg, northern GermanyImage: Axel Heimken\/dpa\/picture alliance Guido Seifen is the managing director of the medium\u2011sized German company, Omexom Hochspannung, which employs around 500 people and builds major power lines. He said it has become increasingly difficult to find skilled workers in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1841249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1841249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1841249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1841249\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1841249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1841249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1841249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}