4/28/2019 Nobody Wants to Join the German Army | Acumen | OZY

ACUMEN

NOBODY WANTS TO JOIN THE GERMAN ARMY

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

The drop in military recruitment numbers for one of Europe’s leading
economies could stem from private sector competition.

By Tobias Buck
THE DAILY DOSE FEB 15 2019

Germany’s armed forces are struggling to attract much-needed recruits, with the
number of new soldiers joining the Bundeswehr falling to an all-time low last year.
The shortages are an urgent challenge for the German military, which has tried to
boost its strength and capabilities at a time of record-low unemployment, and against
fierce competition from both the private sector and institutions such as the police.

The need to build up the Bundeswehr reflects at least in part the recent pressure from
the U.S. and other allies to raise German defense spending to 2 percent of gross
domestic product, in line with a longstanding commitment given by all NATO
members. Berlin spent 1.2 percent of its budget on defense last year, a figure that is
expected to rise to 1.5 percent by 2024. Still …

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JUST 20,000 RECRUITS JOINED THE ARMED FORCES IN

2018, DOWN FROM 23,000 THE PREVIOUS YEAR, AND THE
LOWEST IN THE HISTORY OF THE BUNDESWEHR.

The hiring difficulties were highlighted by the revelation that 21,500 officer and non-
commissioned officer positions were vacant, according to a recent official Parliament
report, which is a closely followed assessment of the Bundeswehr’s strengths,
weaknesses and challenges. Recruitment troubles aside, the report points to another
critical but increasingly familiar failing: the poor state of military equipment and
weaponry.

“My report for the year 2018 finds the personnel situation of the Bundeswehr is
strained and the material situation still unsatisfactory,” says Hans-Peter Bartels, the
commissioner and author of the report. “I would like to say that spring has come, and
everything has changed. But the truth is: This is still winter.”

The report points out that crucial military hardware continues to be available only in
limited numbers. It cites, among other things, the A400M military transport aircraft,
of which less than half the German fleet was available for use over the course of 2018.
The same was true for the Luftwaffe’s fleet of Tornado and Eurofighter jets. Not one of
the country’s submarines was fully ready for service in 2018, according to the report.
Bartels also cites the poor state of readiness of Germany Leopard 2 battle tanks as a
big area of concern.

These and other problems were exacerbated, Bartels says, by excessive bureaucracy
and painfully slow procedures: “Our Bundeswehr, as I see it now, suffers from both
understaffing and over-organization. Too much work is done either twice or is done in
conflict with other work. Too many labor hours are dedicated to poor structures.”

He adds, “Many soldiers tell me: We are administering ourselves to death.”

However, the commissioner was satisfied with the state of the latest increases in the
defense budget, which rose by $5.6 billion last year to $49 billion. “A lack of money is
not the reason for failure,” Bartels says.
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Under the defense ministry’s plans, the number of active soldiers in the Bundeswehr is
supposed to rise from 181,000 at the end of last year to 198,500 in 2025. As Bartels
points out, personnel numbers continue to rise year on year, but largely because
serving soldiers decide to prolong their contracts.

“That means the Bundeswehr is growing older and is becoming more of a compact
professional army. That is not ideal if we want to maintain a lively exchange with
society,” he says.

By Tobias Buck
OZY partners with the U.K.'s Financial Times to bring you premium analysis and features.
© The Financial Times Limited 2019.

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