The “Deutschland-Stack” is not merely a technical project, but also an initiative at the intersection of national politics, federal administration, local implementation and public discourse on digital policy. For this reason, the Deutschlandfunk background episode “Der Deutschland-Stack: Alle Behörden auf einer digitalen Plattform” features not only Sabine Pfeiffer but also representatives from politics, administration, civil society and the tech sector. These include Thomas Jarzombek, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernisation; Jan Pörksen, Head of the Hamburg Senate Chancellery; Frank Karlitschek, founder of Nextcloud; and Bendix Sältz and Julia Schöpp from the D64 association – Center for Digital Progress.
Administrative procedures, some of which take days, are to be digitised using the “Germany Stack” and thus significantly accelerated in future. Bendix Sältz from D64 explains how the platform is intended to work using a simple example such as re-registering one’s address when moving house. Many authorities currently have to be informed and consulted individually. He sees a major opportunity in a centralised registration system using a digital ID to simplify administrative procedures and improve communication between numerous government departments. The guiding principle here is the ‘once-only’ principle: information should, where possible, be entered just once and then processed by the relevant authorities.
Standards instead of isolated solutions
Thomas Jarzombek, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernisation, describes the “Germany Stack” in the programme as an attempt to bring greater cohesion to the hitherto fragmented digitalisation of public administration. Unlike previously, when ministries had largely developed digital projects separately, a more structured process is now to be established at federal level. In future, IT projects from federal ministries would have to be submitted to the Ministry for Digital Affairs; they would only be funded if they were compatible with the planned platform. The aim is to standardise the digitalisation of public administration more effectively, make basic technical components available for shared use, and lay the groundwork for federal states and local authorities to join the initiative.
“We are building, so to speak, the platform for all products from all ministries and government agencies, so that we can make things easier and better.”
Thomas Jarzombek
Federal implementation and unresolved issues
However, Germany’s federal organisational structure could complicate this ambitious project. Local self-government is enshrined in the Basic Law (Grundgesetz), and the adoption of new IT systems requires the voluntary consent of the various local decision-makers. Jan Pörksen, Head of the Hamburg Senate Chancellery, represents the perspective of the federal states and local authorities and advocates a gradual and “bite-sized” – i.e. easy-to-implement – introduction of such systems.
Sabine Pfeiffer, a sociologist specialising in technology, work and society who researches and teaches on digital transformation processes, is fundamentally positive about the idea of the “Germany Stack” and its gradual introduction. At the same time, she makes it clear that, in her view, the decisions taken so far remain too vague. The consensus formulated so far relates primarily to the fundamental goal of creating a “Germany Stack”. When it comes to specific implementation issues – such as financing, responsibilities and technical design – however, many points remain unresolved.
“The statements regarding the ‘Germany Stack’ read like declarations of intent. This applies both to the technical components and to what the ‘Germany Stack’ is supposed to be capable of—and what it is not. At some point, we need to translate that political will into a technical specification and ask: What exactly do we want to implement?”
Prof. Dr. Sabine Pfeiffer To the profile
Digital sovereignty as a technical and political challenge
The “Germany Stack” is also intended to be a step towards digital sovereignty. Pfeiffer emphasises the importance of reducing dependence on large US companies and hopes that the policy statements will go beyond mere “lip service”. At present, politicians and managers often base digital procurement decisions on established providers – partly due to uncertainty regarding technical details. This could entrench existing dependencies and lead to “vendor lock-in”.
However, much has changed in this regard, says Frank Karlitschek, founder and developer of the German open-source provider Nextcloud. The government’s efforts to increase digital sovereignty and facilitate the switch to a different cloud have intensified and are being actively supported. The motto is increasingly: European, open source and digitally sovereign.
to the episode (In German)
