Enough of piecemeal approaches and isolated solutions: local authorities need systematic implementation, scalability and top-down coordination to drive digitalisation forward. The participants in the SCCON panel discussion ‘Local Authority Digitalisation in Germany: Where are we now, and where are we heading?’ are in agreement on this.

“We must systematically roll out digitalisation across the board, create common standards and make solutions available across federal state borders. To achieve this, close cooperation between the federal government, the federal states and local authorities is essential,” says Prof. Dr Kristina Sinemus, Hesse’s Minister for Digitalisation and Innovation.

Sharing successful solutions

For Sinemus, inter-municipal cooperation also means that regions make successful digital projects available to other local authorities free of charge. “An early-warning system for heavy rainfall developed by the district of Fulda has now been rolled out across around 60 per cent of Hesse’s territory through systematic reuse,” she explains. Funding and advisory teams are intended to support small local authorities so that municipal boundaries do not become digital barriers.

One platform, common standards

“We must move away from a project-based approach and create structures,” urges Dr Kay Ruge, Chief Executive of the German Association of District Authorities. Projects should be scalable and made available to all local authorities on a single platform for reuse. “But the federal and state governments must provide the infrastructure, open interfaces and tender-compliant standards for this.” This requires a structured approach and political will.

Ralph Brinkhaus, Chair of the Working Group on Digitalisation and State Modernisation within the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, also sees a cultural shift as a prerequisite: “We need a culture of reuse in Germany. This is also a question of leadership – in every town hall, district office, public authority, federal ministry and indeed within the government itself.”

Thinking from the perspective of people

“A fundamental problem is that we think in terms of administrative structures rather than from the perspective of the individual,” explains Daniel Flemm, Lord Mayor of Solingen. This results in a patchwork approach. He advocates placing all digitalisation processes under the remit of the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs: “We need a top-down, unified approach for the federal government, the states and the local authorities, with one body in charge. The interfaces must function properly.”

Unlike schools, road construction and the fire service, digitalisation and administrative modernisation are not among the mandatory responsibilities of local authorities. “If budgets are in the red, as is currently the case in many places, cuts are made and digitalisation projects are the first to go,” says Flemm. Secure funding is therefore essential.