Name: Germany looks to India to address skilled labor shortage
Uploaded: 2026-01-13T00:34:52.172Z
Duration: 2 min 53 s
Description: The German government has been easing visa and language requirements to attract students and young professionals from India. DW traveled to the Indian state of Haryana to meet students preparing to leave for Germany.

The German government has been easing visa and language requirements to attract students and young professionals from India. DW traveled to the Indian state of Haryana to meet students preparing to leave for Germany.

Haryana

Germany is collaborating with India to address a shortage of skilled labor by recruiting young Indians for vocational training and employment in sectors such as healthcare, hospitality, food processing, and transportation. Indian students are preparing by learning the German language and culture, with many set to begin jobs in Germany in the near future.

This initiative reflects strengthened people-to-people relations between the two countries, as Germany becomes a more attractive destination for Indian workers amid tightening immigration policies elsewhere. The program is seen as a win-win, providing Germany with much-needed skilled labor and offering Indian workers new career opportunities abroad.

Germany looks to India to address skilled labor shortage

They've got working German and are raring to go to Deutschland. These young Indians are preparing to join Germany's vocational training system that combines studies with practical experience on the job. It's not just the language, they're also learning about German culture and lifestyle. As the class breaks, they test each other's knowledge of their destination country. Most are due to start jobs in healthcare, hospitality, food processing or transportation this year. What you see here is diplomacy in action, as India and Germany take their people-to-people relations to a new high. Germany is short of skilled labour, while India has a wealth of untapped talent. The idea is to combine these together to create a win-win. To play their part, these students will have to get used to life in Germany. People are punctual, but the train system is not, so I hear you end up late. But even if we are five minutes late, they can scold us a lot. Then they may judge us based on that. And on top of that, the weather in Germany is always cold, cold, cold. That's not good. I don't like it. Germans drink a lot of beer. They believe in enjoying their lives. The people here are very stressed. I would love to go to Germany. I'll complete a three-year apprentice course. Then I'll continue my life in Germany as a truck driver. I can travel the whole of Europe as part of this programme. I'm very excited to go. I've started shopping already. Rajesh Kundru switched careers to take advantage of the German push to attract Indians. Germany used to be a hard sell to people looking for a future abroad. They would look at the UK, Canada, the US, Australia, New Zealand. I'd tell them that going to those countries would cost thousands of dollars, and with repeat course fees. But now that these countries are closing their doors, people are increasingly looking at Germany. Social media makes Germany feel just a swipe away. They giggle at a video of DIY plumbing in Germany. Not what they imagined they would be signing up for, but that could soon be a part of their lives too.

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