The German government has adopted a migration action plan. It should lead to a turn in integration policy, the government is even talking about a “paradigm shift”.
Germany wants to prepare potential migrants for life in the country even when they are at home. On Wednesday, the cabinet decided that immigrants in the “countries of origin or transit” would be offered a so-called “pre-integration” project. On the one hand, its goal is to attract skilled workers to Germany and expose it “as an attractive country for immigration.” “At the same time, we want people not to come to Germany, full of illusions.” It is about the fact that migrants will be provided with complete information about their upcoming life in Germany, as well as about the possibilities of learning the language and getting an education.
“We want to set the course for integration even before immigration,” said Annette Widmann-Maus (CDU), Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration of Germany. “We rely on the experience of traditional immigration countries.”
Widmann Maus noted that the new approach should support the Immigration Act, which will enter into force on March 1. “Because through measures in the country of origin, such as language sentences, we can facilitate the immigration of skilled workers.” She added: “At the same time, we use outreach to prevent false expectations of life in Germany.”
The federal declaration on the first of the five phases of the National Integration Action Plan is called “Before Immigration: Monitoring Expectations – Providing Guidance”. Even before potential immigrants decide to emigrate, “they should be informed and as much as possible aware of life in Germany,” it says. “High-quality informational proposals are needed so that a decision can be made on the basis of facts.”
The head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Germany, Monica Gorci, described the action plan as “innovative.” All countries in Europe need labor. And citizens of Germany or other countries refuse to do dirty or hard work, for example, work on construction sites. Migrants are ready to take up any work.