The foreign minister and the labor minister were full of hope in Brazil that they would be able to recruit nursing staff. But two years later: disappointment. A case of wasted taxpayers’ money?
Following the suspension of an agreement for the recruitment of Brazilian nursing staff, the German Foundation for Patient Protection is calling for an investigation by the Federal Audit Office. “Hubertus Heil and Annalena Baerbock have raised great expectations with flights to Brazil,” said board member Eugen Brysch to the German Press Agency in Berlin.
The Federal Employment Agency (BA) had previously suspended the recruitment of Brazilian nursing staff to Germany through a placement agreement. According to the Federal Ministry of Labor, Brazil’s government had expressed concerns. At the start of the program, the BA had considered it possible to recruit up to 700 nursing staff per year. However, after a change of government in Brasilia, the Brazilian side doubted the surplus of nursing staff it had originally communicated.
Foreign Minister Baerbock (Greens) and Labor Minister Heil (SPD) initiated the increased cooperation among nursing staff during a trip to Brazil in June 2023. Other topics were also discussed, such as the demand to stop deforestation in the Amazon region or the positioning towards Russia.
According to Brysch, the German nursing shortage should be remedied “by recruiting foreign specialists.” “But nothing will be gained except millions of dollars in tax money being wasted.”
Foreign nursing professionals want to take on tasks other than basic human care, which is usually all they are allowed to do here. “After all, the people recruited are responsible for other activities at home,” explained Brysch. “It is also not true that Brazil has a surplus of workers. The Federal Audit Office is called upon to review the federal government’s political recruitment practices.”
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