Integration of Muslims in Germany moving ahead

The integration of Germany's more than 4 million Muslims is moving ahead, especially when it comes to employment and language skills, according to a study.

The Bertelsmann Foundation said in its Religion Monitor 2017 study that about 60 percent of Muslims who moved to Germany before 2010 now hold a full-time job, while 20 percent work part-time jobs similar to ethnic Germans. Muslims also had higher employment rates in Germany than in other western European countries, in part driven by Germany's strong economy and big demand for workers.

The study called "Integrated, but not accepted?" compared the situations of Muslims who came to Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France and Great Britain before 2010. Categories for assessment included language skills, education, work and social contact, according to AP.

However, the study said it's still harder for very religious Muslims to find jobs in Germany than in Britain.

The study said 73 percent of children born in Germany to Muslim immigrants now speak German as a first language.

But when it comes to school education, Germany's shortcomings are stark: 36 percent of Muslim youths in Germany leave school without a degree, while it's only 11 percent in neighboring France, according to the report.

When it comes to daily interactions, 93 percent of German-born Muslims say they spend their free time with both Muslims and non-Muslims.

On the downside, 19 percent of non-Muslim Germans questioned for the study said they don't want to have Muslim neighbors.

More than 10,000 Muslims who were born in the country or arrived before 2010 and non-Muslims were questioned for the study in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France and Britain.

Source:WAM