Germany aims to draw Colombian workers to address its labor shortage.

MAIN POINTS

- Germany seeks to attract workers from Colombia to address its labor shortage.
- Migration agreements have been established with various other countries alongside Colombia.
- In January, German authorities reported nearly two million job vacancies in the country.
- Germany faces labor shortages across critical sectors, as indicated by authorities.
- Consequently, Germany is exploring international avenues to attract skilled workers.

DETAILS

- A German delegation led by migration commissioner Joachim Stamp visited Colombia last week to establish a collaborative steering group, as reported by InfoMigrants.
- German Minister of the Interior and Community, Nancy Faeser, emphasized the country's aim to reduce illegal immigration while enhancing legal labor migration. Faeser highlighted Colombia's pool of young workers interested in temporary or permanent employment in Germany.
 "We want to consistently enforce the return of people without the right to stay — and on the other hand, we want to attract qualified workers that we urgently need in many sectors of our economy," Faeser stated.
- Germany received over 3,300 asylum applications from Colombians last year. While several requests are pending, the majority of decided applications were rejected.
- Besides Colombia, Germany aims to attract foreign labor from other nations. Agreements similar to the one with Colombia were reached with Georgia in December and with Morocco in January this year. Further agreements are planned with Kenya, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, according to InfoMigrants.
- German Economy Minister Robert Habbeck disclosed last month that the country is grappling with approximately two million job vacancies, with over 700,000 registered vacancies.
 "Our biggest concern is the shortage of skilled workers. We have more than 700,000 registered vacancies, but many companies are no longer reporting their vacancies. According to the estimates, we have nearly 2 million vacancies," said Habeck.
- Despite efforts to attract foreign workers, Germany recorded 1.38 million unemployed residents in January 2024, marking a 2.3% increase from the same period last year. However, employment also rose, with nearly 45.7 million residents employed in January this year, representing a 0.5% increase compared to January 2023.