German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged the Indian IT workers to consider working in the European country as he announced plans to simplify the visa process for them.
The fervent appeal by Scholz, who wrapped up his two-day visit to India in southern Bengaluru city on Sunday, comes as the country faces a severe shortage of workers, especially in the field of pharmacy and Information Technology (IT).
The chancellor said that Germany needs skilled workers to meet the demand for software development in the country, and assured to modernise the bureaucratic process and legal requirements to make it easier for workers and their families to come to Germany.
He, however, provided no further information as to how many workers Germany hopes to attract from India.
“I am quite sure that many will want to take advantage of the opportunities to work as skilled workers in Germany,” Scholz told reporters after holding roundtable discussions with workers of software company SAP Labs India in Bengaluru.
“We need this in all areas of employment, but of course especially when it comes to skills such as those we have seen today in the area of software and IT development,” Scholz was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrives in India, Prime Minister Modi welcomes him
He said that Germany was already in the process of relaxing language requirements to make the German-speaking country a more attractive destination for IT professionals, who have traditionally veered towards English-speaking nations.
“It is clear that anyone who comes to Germany as an IT specialist can first easily converse with all his or her colleagues in English because many in Germany can speak English,” Scholz said, adding that German could be learned later, DW reported.
“A lot of reform proposals have already been collected and we are continuing to work on them,” Scholz said.
In the last leg of his visit, Scholz visited several IT firms in Bengaluru and praised India’s “booming” software development sector.
Scholz also said that around 1,800 German companies are active in India and have given thousands of jobs.
(With inputs from agencies)
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