Muslim Migrants in Germany: Problems of Adaptation and Integration

Abstract

Nowadays, every fifth German citizen has migration background, while Islam has become the second largest religion in the country. The number of Muslims increases every year, which raises concerns of the local population. Integration of Muslim migrants appears to be a great challenge for the country. Low education level, high religiousness, specifics of Islamic culture, often negative attitude toward this migration group – all of this creates problems with their integration. Modern Germany is an immigration country where integration policy is developed and implemented. The policy is oriented towards establishing conditions for successful integration of Muslims and shaping stable positive opinion about this group of migrants among the local population. German government structures regularly carry out studies of the Muslim population and the specifics of its linguistic, professional and social integration, which allow adapting integration programs. Using the example of Turkish migrants, who represent the largest group of Muslims in Germany (63%), the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees carried out studies that demonstrate specifics and difficulties of their adaptation, as well as successes of integration of the second and the third generations of Muslims. The peak of recent migration activity happened in 2015–2016, where more than 70% of migrants applying for the refugee status were Muslims. In this situation, the most valuable thing appears to be a successful implementation of the integration programs in the spheres of labour, education and socialisation. Taking into account demographic difficulties forecasted for Germany in the coming decades, the living standards and economy stability of the country will depend on the successful integration of migrants.