According to the study, almost half of German social spending goes to old age security. (archive image)
Source: dpa
Germany spends more money on social security than any other European country, including the Nordic countries. This is based on a study conducted by the German Economic Institute (IW) in conjunction with employers, reported by the “Rheinische Post”.
Therefore, by 2023, 41 percent of total government spending in the country will be spent on social benefits such as pensions, health, care and unemployment insurance as well as social benefits such as citizen’s allowance. According to information, almost half of the funds went into old age security.
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Austria and Switzerland also have similarly high social spending
IW examines German spending overall and in various fields from 2001 to 2023.
The Nordic countries as well as Austria and Switzerland each provided 40 percent of the aid social Security in the Benelux countries the figure reaches 38 percent. The EU average is 39 percent.
While shopping at Health (16 percent), Germany is at the top along with the Benelux and Nordic countries.
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Relatively high expenditure on public administration
In comparison, the numbers are very high in this country Public administration spendingwhich increased sharply in Germany during the study period – from 7.2 to 11 percent.
In contrast, Germany is in the lowest position Education sector with the latter amounting to 9.3 percent of total expenditure. According to research, Austria and Switzerland are almost 50 percent higher. Also in staff (17 percent) and society Investment (6.2 percent) Germany lagged behind in the recording period.
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Average EU defense spending falls
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the portion Defense spending After experiencing a decline until the mid-2010s, this figure has increased again, especially in the Nordic countries.
Measured against total spending, this number recently reached 3.4 percent. This figure is roughly the same as the value in 2001. In contrast, the European Union average fell from 3.0 to 2.8 percent, the Benelux countries from 3.0 to 2.6 percent, and Austria/Switzerland from 2.4 to 1.9 percent. Germany maintained its value at around 2.3 percent.
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Measured in terms of economic output, which is also the basis for calculating NATO’s two percent target, the situation looks somewhat different. Therefore, the share of defense spending in all compared countries and country groups is below 2 percent, with the Nordic countries leading the way at 1.3 to 1.7 percent.
Germany reached 1.1 percent. In Austria and Switzerland, neither of which are NATO members, the rate even fell from 1.0 to 0.7 percent. However, IW expects increased spending across Europe due to geopolitical developments.
As comparison areas in Western Europe, the institute uses the Benelux countries Austria and Switzerland as well as the Nordic countries Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Iceland, which are relatively similar to Germany in terms of economic development and cultural influence.
Source: dpa
