‘The analogue must be overcome’

For a long time, Germany had a reputation for having more dead spots than mobile phone coverage. He is now repeatedly asked by his international partners ‘how we managed to get into the fast lane like this’, said Dr Volker Wissing, Federal Minister for Digital Affairs and Transport, in his keynote speech at the Smart Country Convention. ‘Three years ago, just one in six households could book a fibre optic connection, now it's one in three.’ Three quarters of households can now use gigabit bandwidth, while mobile coverage for 4G is 97 per cent of the country's area and 93 per cent for 5G.

Germany's race to catch up

The EU Commission is talking about a spectacular race to catch up, said Wissing - and made it clear that this is how things should continue. Of the 100 measures from the gigabit strategy from summer 2022, 87 per cent have either been fully implemented or are currently being implemented. The next step will be the Telecommunications Network Expansion Acceleration Act. Wissing conceded that its title does not sound like a bureaucracy tamer. In terms of content, however, the law will ensure clarity in the approval process - among other things because the expansion of telecommunications networks will take priority in the event of conflicts of interest in future. This will result in more applications and faster approvals.

‘We need to focus on expanding our digital infrastructure because it will be the basis for participation, growth and prosperity in the future,’ said Wissing - and went even further: ’Digitalisation is the great problem solver of our time.’ The goal for Germany must therefore be to introduce ‘digital only’ as quickly as possible and leave hybrid systems and offerings behind. Wherever there are digital solutions, the following must apply: ‘The analogue must be overcome.’ Because: ‘Anything that does not provide data does not contribute to becoming more efficient, faster, more precise, more cost-effective and better.’ However, this must be ‘the aspiration of our society’.

Using artificial intelligence ‘courageously’

It will also be important to ‘boldly utilise’ artificial intelligence, and Germany can be optimistic about this in particular, said Wissing. The OECD had only recently confirmed ‘that Germany has been able to develop into a world leader in AI research’. Artificial intelligence could help the authorities in particular: Time-consuming routine checks could be completed by AI, while employees could concentrate on the more difficult tasks. This makes jobs more attractive.

‘The acceptance of an administration and therefore the acceptance of a state and our democracy depends on whether we are efficient,’ said Wissing. This service-oriented thinking is ‘what we need to internalise. We cannot meet these requirements with analogue systems.’