[South Africa] Global North poaching local talent to fill skills deficit

Talented South Africans are being poached by nations in the global north - including Canada, Germany, the UK and the UAE - to fill their skills deficit and young South Africans are accepting their offers, BusinessTech reports.

Immigration experts and surveys have demonstrated that the global demand for skilled South Africans is growing. Particularly, those with critical skills including doctors, nurses, teachers, engineers and IT professionals.

When such a demand is coupled with South Africa’s poor economic growth, high unemployment, stagnant salary growth and political uncertainty, a situation has reportedly arisen where young, talented South Africans are leaving.

As South Africa’s economy stalls, other countries’ economies grow. As do their populations. These countries include Canada, Germany, the UK and the UAE.

This growth in turn leads to an increased demand for critical skills.

According to German statistics, projections indicate that Germany’s ageing population will face a shortage of 7 million skilled workers by 2035.

Germany is suffering a deficit of skilled workers, particularly in rapidly growing sectors such as STEM.

The German Economic Institute (IW) reported a shortage of 320,000 STEM specialists. As a result, the number of foreign STEM employees in Germany reached 202,000; an astonishing 190 per cent increase since 2012, including South Africans.

The UAE jobs market has reportedly shown resilience and growth in the post-pandemic years, with unemployment down to 2.75 per cent in the country but the strength of the economy has reportedly exposed key shortages in the availability of the talent pool in the country.

Canada is actively recruiting foreign skilled healthcare and Information Technology (IT) professionals, including South Africans.

Persistent staffing shortages in the healthcare sector post-pandemic have led some organisations, including certain provincial government agencies, to rely more on foreign workers to fill positions in clinics, hospitals, and senior care facilities nationwide.

Nicholas Avramis - a Canadian immigration consultant from Beaver Immigration - reportedly said that he has seen a 50 per cent spike in interest from doctors and nurses who want to immigrate to Canada.

The situation is the same for IT specialists.

Mr Avramis stated that while all the northern and developed countries may have varying shortages of certain skills, they all need teachers, IT specialists and healthcare professionals such as nurses and doctors.

“There is a race to recruit healthcare and other professionals in the Global North (Canada, France, UK, UAE, Qatar, etc.),” Mr Avramis said.

Regarding why doctors and nurses choose Canada, Mr Avramis said the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognises South Africa’s healthcare education – meaning they don’t need to get re-certified.

The nations reportedly have varied appeal for young South Africans. Germany offers access to Europe, while the UAE has the world’s most competitive tax rates and a highly diversified economy with a growing number of South African expat communities.

Source: BusinessTech

(Quotes via original reporting)

Talented South Africans are being poached by nations in the global north - including Canada, Germany, the UK and the UAE - to fill their skills deficit and young South Africans are accepting their offers, BusinessTech reports.

Immigration experts and surveys have demonstrated that the global demand for skilled South Africans is growing. Particularly, those with critical skills including doctors, nurses, teachers, engineers and IT professionals.

When such a demand is coupled with South Africa’s poor economic growth, high unemployment, stagnant salary growth and political uncertainty, a situation has reportedly arisen where young, talented South Africans are leaving.

As South Africa’s economy stalls, other countries’ economies grow. As do their populations. These countries include Canada, Germany, the UK and the UAE.

This growth in turn leads to an increased demand for critical skills.

According to German statistics, projections indicate that Germany’s ageing population will face a shortage of 7 million skilled workers by 2035.

Germany is suffering a deficit of skilled workers, particularly in rapidly growing sectors such as STEM.

The German Economic Institute (IW) reported a shortage of 320,000 STEM specialists. As a result, the number of foreign STEM employees in Germany reached 202,000; an astonishing 190 per cent increase since 2012, including South Africans.

The UAE jobs market has reportedly shown resilience and growth in the post-pandemic years, with unemployment down to 2.75 per cent in the country but the strength of the economy has reportedly exposed key shortages in the availability of the talent pool in the country.

Canada is actively recruiting foreign skilled healthcare and Information Technology (IT) professionals, including South Africans.

Persistent staffing shortages in the healthcare sector post-pandemic have led some organisations, including certain provincial government agencies, to rely more on foreign workers to fill positions in clinics, hospitals, and senior care facilities nationwide.

Nicholas Avramis - a Canadian immigration consultant from Beaver Immigration - reportedly said that he has seen a 50 per cent spike in interest from doctors and nurses who want to immigrate to Canada.

The situation is the same for IT specialists.

Mr Avramis stated that while all the northern and developed countries may have varying shortages of certain skills, they all need teachers, IT specialists and healthcare professionals such as nurses and doctors.

“There is a race to recruit healthcare and other professionals in the Global North (Canada, France, UK, UAE, Qatar, etc.),” Mr Avramis said.

Regarding why doctors and nurses choose Canada, Mr Avramis said the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognises South Africa’s healthcare education – meaning they don’t need to get re-certified.

The nations reportedly have varied appeal for young South Africans. Germany offers access to Europe, while the UAE has the world’s most competitive tax rates and a highly diversified economy with a growing number of South African expat communities.

Source: BusinessTech

(Quotes via original reporting)