Germany expressed interest in hiring skilled workers from the Philippines after the official visit of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock to Manila this week, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said on Saturday.

“(N)agsabi ang Germany na hindi lamang nurses ang gusto namin kung hindi other skilled workers, including mga electricians, electrical engineer, mga iba’t iba pong trabaho, sa hospitality sector (Germany said they want to hire skilled workers other than nurses, including electricians, electrical engineers, and different kinds of workers in the hospitality sector),” DMW Undersecretary Patricia Yvonne Caunan said during the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.

Caunan said Germany and the Philippines recently signed a “joint declaration of interest” on the recruitment of overseas Filipino workers, which spells out that Manila wants a “win-win situation” where recruitment is sustainable.

She said no less than President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. laid down the conditions to ensure that the Philippines would not suffer from labor shortage.

Germany and the Philippines’ increased interaction in the area of labor builds upon the 10-year-old Triple Win, a government-to-government program that allowed hundreds of Filipino nurses to work in the European nation.

Germany had also begun the phased implementation of its Skilled Migration Act in November, indicating its intention to welcome more skilled workers.

The German Embassy in Manila earlier said the new law creates even better incentives for Filipino skilled workers to consider working in Germany.

Marcos Jr. will also visit Germany on March 12, announced during Baerbock’s courtesy call at Malacañan Palace in Manila on Thursday. (PNA)

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