Poverty Threatening Turks in Germany

A new study has found that every third of the 1.9 million Turks in Germany lives below the poverty level. Conducted by the Essen-based Center for Turkish Studies (ZfT), the study said that a further 35 percent lived just narrowly above the poverty level. The researchers blamed the depressed economic situation in Germany, in particular the closing down of traditional sectors such as coal and the steel industry, for the poor situation of people of Turkish origin. They pointed out that Turks found it especially difficult to gain a footing in other economic branches due to their lack of education. Though the children of Turkish immigrants to Germany did do better than their parents at school, just about five percent of Turkish students visited a high school that would lead to university, the study found. The ZfT has appealed to politicians to do more to promote the importance of education and training among Turkish immigrants.