Germany is a country of migrants. True, politicians do not officially admit this yet. Hence the numerous mistakes and omissions of past years in the integration of migrants. Today, representatives of almost all parties swear that now they will fix everything. And indeed: there are countless initiatives for the integration of foreigners. A year ago, the so-called nationwide integration plan was even adopted. It was compiled with German meticulousness, but what are the results?
How much more integration can there be? Every year there is a round table on integration issues chaired by the Chancellor. And in between, a dialogue on integration issues, also under the patronage of the Chancellor. The Federal Chancellery has a Commissioner for Integration; a year ago, a 200-page integration plan was adopted. It seems that the government decided to fix all the mistakes accumulated over the past decades in one fell swoop.
Migrants make up a fifth of Germany's population, and their share is constantly growing - for the simple reason that they have more children than the so-called 'native' population. Politicians have finally realized that the issue of integration determines the country's future, and they adopted a special plan. It is intended to unite all efforts, and most importantly, the efforts of the migrants themselves.
The flaw of this plan is that it is full of good intentions and goals, but the paths to achieving them are poorly calculated - often the necessary facts and statistics are lacking. Nevertheless, this fall, interim results of the plan's implementation are supposed to be summed up. Angela Merkel promised 'not to engage in self-deception.' The other day, the cabinet approved a whole range of specific indicators. They will take into account the housing situation of migrants, which media they prefer, and even how often they go for preventive dental check-ups. We hope that these studies will be conducted with German meticulousness and that the federal government will not squander €750 million, which is allocated annually from the budget for integration, on small projects.
But even so: money invested in integration always pays off. For now, the level of German language proficiency, as well as education and vocational training among migrants, is catastrophically low. Therefore, the government has begun to allocate billions of euros for the development of preschool institutions. These funds will help improve the German language skills of migrant children, which will later have a positive impact on their chances of getting a good education and job. It is necessary that as many people from other countries as possible work in schools, the police, state and municipal institutions. Black presenters on television are not only pleasing to the eye - no, their presence on the screen reflects the real situation in the country.
However, whether the government will succeed not only in improving the prospects of migrants but also in winning their hearts will largely depend on how long the old dogmas persist. For example, the refusal to recognize dual citizenship for people from non-EU countries. This primarily concerns the largest group of migrants in Germany - Turks. Currently, upon reaching adulthood, people from Turkish families are obliged to choose whether to be citizens of Turkey or Germany. In the era of globalization, this is simply an anachronism.
Bernd Gresler.
Deutsche Welle