People at GIZ

The strong commitment and great diversity of GIZ’s staff set them apart, and they are known around the world for their values and vision. For the past 10 years, they have been working under continually changing and increasingly difficult conditions to achieve the goals of international cooperation.

In figures

As at 31 December 2021, GIZ had almost 25,000 staff in Germany and abroad. Added to this number are around 430 seconded development workers and more than 640 integrated or returning experts, who are counted separately because they have a different type of contract. There are no less than 155 nationalities among the company’s staff in Germany and abroad; women account for 50.4 per cent of the workforce. The most common region of assignment for both the seconded experts (around 1,220) and national staff in the partner countries (almost 7,640) is sub-Saharan Africa.

Diagram with comparative figures for 2021 and 2020: a. There were 24,977 staff members in 2021 and 23,614 in 2020. b. There were 16,887 national staff in 2021 and 15,988 in 2020. National staff are staff members with an employment contract under national employment law. They perform a wide variety of duties, including management roles. c. There were 5,324 Germany-based staff in 2021 and 5,007 in 2020. Germany-based staff are staff with Head Office functions at locations in Germany and staff working on projects and programmes at locations in Germany. d. There were 2,766 seconded experts in 2021 and 2,619 in 2020. Seconded experts are staff with a German employment contract who are working as field staff members in GIZ’s countries of assignment. e. There were 2,640 Germany-based staff with Head Office functions in 2021 and 2,641 in 2020. f. There were 2,684 Germany-based staff in projects and programmes in 2021 and 2,366 in 2020. g. There were 431 development workers in 2021 and 483 in 2020. The German Development Workers Act (EhfG) provides the legal basis for GIZ’s Development Service to assign experts as development workers or as Civil Peace Service experts around the globe each year. h. There were 643 integrated and returning experts in 2021 and 728 in 2020. Integrated experts are experts and managers from Europe who are placed and supported by the Centre for International Migration and Development (CIM). They put their skills to use in key positions in developing countries and emerging economies. Returning experts are managers and young professionals who have acquired professional qualifications in Germany. CIM helps them to find a suitable position in their country of origin.

Women in the workforce
Percentage

Frauenanteil bei den Mitarbeiter*innen¹
2021	2020
59,8 %	59,2 %

WORKFORCE AS A WHOLE
Germany		Abroad		Total¹		National staff		Total²
2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021
65.6	66.1	46.9	47.7	59.2	59.8	44.5	45.9	49.2	50.4

MANAGEMENT BOARD		MANAGERIAL POSITIONS¹
		Germany		Abroad		Total
2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021
66.7	6.7	49.8	51.8	39.7	41.4	43.1	45

¹Including German employment contracts, not including national staff.
²Including national staff, seconded staff, Germany-based staff and project staff.

Staff members in the regions
Number

	Seconded experts		National staff		Development workers³		Integrated experts⁴		Returning experts⁴
	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021	2020	2021
Sub-Saharan Africa	1,129	1,223	6,995	7,637	270	247	60	53	188	162
Asia/Pacific	394	369	2,484	2,594	110	89	53	51	173	154
Europe, Caucasus, Central Asia	354	366	3,110	2,910	10	13	53	36	53	38
Latin America	183	204	1,318	1,506	51	43	33	23	75	90
Mediterranean Region and Middle East	496	532	2,023	2,179	42	39	13	14	27	22
Industrialised countries(Europe, USA)	63	72	58	61	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	2,619	2,766	15,988	16,887	483	431	212	177	516	466

³107 of the 431 development workers were deployed as Civil Peace Service experts.
⁴Integrated experts are placed with employers in cooperation countries by the Centre for International Migration and Development (CIM), which is run jointly by GIZ and the German Federal Employment Agency. The local employers pay them a salary at the going rate in the area, to which CIM adds a salary subsidy. Returning experts also receive a salary subsidy from CIM, as well as advisory and other support services.

Breakdown by age (years)

As at: 31 December 2021 (2020)
Percentage

Inlandsmitarbeiter*innen und entsandten Fachkräften
Alter	2021	2020
jünger als 31 Jahre	16,3 %	16,4 %
31-40 Jahre	34,1 %	33,2 %
41-50 Jahre	22,9 %	22,5 %
51-60 Jahre	19,3 %	20,0 %
61 Jahre und älter	7,5 %	7,9 %

Nationale Mitarbeitende
Alter	2021	2020
jünger als 31 Jahre	16,7 %	17,7 %
31-40 Jahre	40,4 %	40,6 %
41-50 Jahre	28,0 %	27,2 %
51-60 Jahre	13,0 %	12,6 %
61 Jahre und älter	1,9 %	1,9 %

Nationalities of our staff

Nationalitäten der Mitarbeitenden im In- und Ausland
2021	2020
156	155

Diversity: an integral part of our corporate culture

By officially setting out our understanding of diversity in 2021, we have made non-discrimination, participation and equal opportunities integral components of our corporate culture. Diversity is essential for our corporate success. Our understanding of diversity includes a code with eight basic principles. They specify how we see diversity in action, which will play a key role in setting the course for diversity management in the years ahead. In order to boost diversity in the Human Relations Department, a new position of Diversity Specialist was created.