The German Government on Tuesday announced plans to collaborate with two major universities; Kenyatta University and the University of Nairobi, to teach the German language to students in Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions (TVET) in Kenya.
This is according to the German Ambassador to Kenya Sebastian Groth who stated that this move would not only motivate but also prepare Kenyan students in the technical industry looking to work in Germany in different sectors.
Speaking during the celebration of 60 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries at the Malindi Museum in Kilifi County on Tuesday, Groth acknowledged Kenyans’ ease at learning new languages and noted that learning a fourth or a fifth language would not be difficult for most Kenyans.
“Kenyans are very gifted in learning languages. Most of them speak their mother tongue, Kiswahili and English so they already speak 3 languages so learning a 4th or 5th language is not a big challenge,” Groth stated.
“I have friends here on the Coast who already speak fluent German and we want to invest more so we want to give Kenyatta University and Nairobi University a partnership to train more German teachers so that they can go to TVET institutions all over the country and teach it.”
The move comes at a time when the Government of Kenya is putting more emphasis on securing foreign jobs for its citizens to solve the unemployment crisis currently plaguing the country.
During his most recent trip to Germany, President William Ruto announced that he had secured a whopping 250,000 jobs for Kenyans in the European nation.
The deal, which aimed to streamline the immigration process of skilled and semi-skilled workers, will highly benefit from this new plan to teach German in TVET institutions to open doors for more Kenyans in the technical sector.
Slated to benefit both countries, the job opportunities will help solve unemployment in Kenya as well as address the labour shortage in Germany.
Speaking from Berlin before the signing of the deal, Steffen Hebestreit, a spokesman for the German Government noted, “The framework agreement will facilitate the immigration of skilled labour and address the repatriation of those who are required to leave the country.”
The deal also included Kenyan workers who might be forced to return home under certain conditions, such as failed asylum applications, and offered structured solutions that would continue to benefit both countries.
For Kenyans seeking to work in Germany, the government advised using the National Employment Authority (NEA) web portal to utilise approved recruitment agencies or use the make-it-in-Germany jobs website run by the Federal Government of Germany.
