If the federal government actually cuts the money for integration courses from 1.1 billion to 500 million euros as planned, the state of Baden-Württemberg will not be able to fully compensate for this. “I don’t believe that the federal government’s financial gap can be closed by the state,” said State Minister of Justice Marion Gentges (CDU) in an editorial interview with tuenews INTERNATIONAL. The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Social Affairs is already spending 6.2 million euros a year to offer language courses for those who cannot find federal courses.
Problems with the language test
tuenews editors had previously reported that many immigrants find it difficult to pass the test for language level B 1 as they often work and have too little time to study. However, this makes integration and ultimately naturalization more difficult. In addition, they often have to attend private language courses. For Gentges, language is “an important key” when it comes to the integration of refugees. However, she also pointed out that not everything that is taught in the courses is what the immigrants need in practical life.
District Administrator Joachim Walter also believes that it is difficult to find enough teachers for the courses. He also confirms a financial deficit. The Baden-Württemberg finance minister has signaled that there will only be 227 million euros in the next budget for the areas of refugees and migration instead of the previous 1.2 billion euros. “A whole billion is missing,” said the district administrator. “The federal and state coffers are empty,” Walter continued.
For the Minister of Justice, the financial gaps are also so large because “the number of people coming to us is too high”, as she told tuenews INTERNATIONAL. They all need housing and support. Gentges said she was concerned about the growing rejection of immigrants in society.
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