Alarming emigration: East Germany threatens economic decay!
Alarming emigration: East Germany threatens economic decay!
A political earthquake shakes the East German countries of Thuringia and Saxony! The elections throw a shadow on the economy and it could be a tilting point that threatens the progress of the past thirty years. Is this the beginning of the end for the economic upswing after reunification?
The statistics speak a clear language: In the constituencies with a high AfD share, a striking number of young and well-qualified people live-and they wander! The dissatisfaction with regional services of general interest skates. Schools and daycare centers close while shops and medical practices close. A vicious circle? Absolutely! This emigration not only weakens the local economy, it also stirs up radicalization - and it leads to even more emigration!
radicalization and their devastating consequences
The results of a new study by DIW Berlin reveal a worrying picture: It is not only the foreigners who hesitate to move to these regions - numerous German companies and citizens also avoid areas in which intolerance is. The business leaders in East Germany raise the alarm. A dark forecast: Over the next 20 years, the population could melt up to 20 percent in many constituencies!
This is a real drama! The per capita income in the east is already only 80 percent of the western level, productivity even around 75 percent. Nonetheless! Some East German regions are innovative and develop new economic strengths. Industries such as renewable energies and semiconductors could change the image radically if you only take the right steps.
The AfD paradox-a tricky dilemma
From a politically speaking, an astonishing phenomenon shows that the AfD poster a neoliberal economic and social policy, which mainly affects its own voters- the so-called "AfD paradox". People with low incomes and minimal mobility are the main suffering! Anyone who thinks that there could be a wave of emigration will find that it is extremely difficult to stop them afterwards.Every day when young talents and companies are looking for space, the survival of the East German regions becomes more questionable. The responsibility now lies with the democratic parties and companies: they have to react to this worrying development and initiate a trend reversal. It means creating perspectives, the citizens must be able to trust them again!
The President of the German Institute for Economic Research, Marcel Fratzscher, looks into the future - will those responsible succeed in counteracting the trend with clever decisions? Will the investments in technology locations such as Cottbus give a pioneering impulse? One thing is certain: time is pushing!