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The future of Germany’s Development Ministry (BMZ) is more uncertain than ever as discussions intensify about integrating its functions into the German Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt). As reported by Entwicklungspolitik Online, a German news platform for the international cooperation sector epo.

I wrote about what that might mean the other day, so have a look

#FutureOfCooperation

Full article in German: “Entwicklungspolitik: Die Zukunft des BMZ steht mehr denn je auf dem Spiel”

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In the context of major disruptions in global government-funded #InternationalCooperation (aka development cooperation and development aid), it may be interesting to learn about developments in this area in #Germany after the elections.

From what I can see at the moment, there will most probably be some changes in international cooperation in Germany:

• Reduced Funding: We will likely witness ‘peak aid’ also in Germany, indicating an upcoming notable reduction in development budgets.
• Political Focus: There will be an increasing emphasis on political dimensions of international cooperation, especially related to geopolitical challenges such as access to resources.
• Structural Change: Speculation is growing around the possible integration of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) into the Foreign Ministry (AA).

What could this mean? #FutureOfCooperation

• With tighter budgets now imminent, development actors must urgently embrace innovation, such as leveraging digital technologies, fostering new partnership models, and implementing adaptive cooperation practices. The sector prioritized top-line funding figures, and this moment demands becoming obsessed with impact. It requires moving decisively beyond previous reluctance to address evident, long-standing challenges, aggressively reducing overhead, and genuinely prioritizing localization and locally-led solutions.

• My experience working with the Foreign Ministry in development cooperation and nexus contexts has shown a pragmatic, results-driven approach, balancing clear expectations for impact with a realistic perspective. Their openness to innovative implementation models has been particularly valuable. If the ministry takes a leading role in the sector, this could signal a recalibration—potentially shifting towards more short-term, pragmatic approaches aligned with explicitly foreign policy-driven projects.

Follow my blog for more on these topics: Transformation - web3 - AI - International Cooperation.

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A Decade of Overdue Change - Embracing Politically Smart, Locally Led Development: More than 10 years ago, David Booth and Sue Unsworth challenged conventional donor practices in their paper Politically smart, locally led development. Their insights remain critical today, calling for a shift towards more adaptive and locally empowered approaches. #FutureOfCooperation

Key Insights:

• Iterative Problem-Solving: Flexible, step-by-step learning replaces rigid blueprints, allowing strategies to evolve with real-world challenges.
• Local Ownership: Empowering local leaders ensures that solutions are context-specific and address genuine community needs.
• Flexible Funding: Long-term commitments and adaptable funding models support innovative, sustainable interventions.
• Trust-Based Relationships: Building genuine partnerships among donors, governments, NGOs, and communities is key to lasting change.
• Rethinking Donor Practices: Conventional, one-size-fits-all approaches hinder progress; embracing political savvy and local insights can drive real transformation.

Despite being over a decade old, the paper’s call for critical reflection and innovation remains unheard in mainstream development practice. It’s time for transformative change that truly empowers local communities.

Source: David Booth and Sue Unsworth 2014

🌍✨📌 This post of Marina Kobzeva about “humanitarian sector’s best-kept secret” gives a personal and at the same time very analytical perspective on an often overlooked aspect of #InternationalCooperation: the crucial role of those traditionally referred to as “local staff”.

Full post on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/feed/upda… Marina Kobzeva @ LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/marina…

First, the term ‘local staff’: As described in the post, this too often implies lower visibility or status. More of a ‘helper’ than a key enabler. So what makes local staff ‘local’? Even HQ staff are local somewhere. So the baseline should be to recognise those colleagues in a global company or institution who play a critical role, and to respond to the costs they bear.

Let’s go one step further: What if, for a moment, we forgot the traditional system of well-meaning outsiders and instead built the whole system around these critical colleagues? Imagine a coaching team, like a soccer team, working for the success of its professionals.

For success it needs responsibility and professionalism in a balanced system that, in its own interest, respects the special role of the colleagues working in the cooperation country. This requires serious reflection. Innovative support systems can help to move from insight to real change.

🤝🌍 #FutureOfCooperation

Direct investment in national leaders was the justified demand from Talk To Loop in their post. t1p.de/dalb0

🤝 And that’s exactly what we’re aiming for with our mobile-first NGO.in.an.app #Niaa platform.

👉🏻 NGO.in.an.app empowers local change makers to manage funds transparently and share impact in real time, while maintaining their full control, and equips donors with tools that support their role vis-à-vis their funders — all of which addresses challenges of traditional cooperation models that too often ignore local expertise.

Interested? Comment od DM me!

This call for direct investment in national leaders is clear: the aid system must shift from a top-down, donor-driven approach to inclusive, locally-led development that puts community voices at the centre. Donors need to fund big and fund local. #FutureOfCooperation

But even now, the established players do not seem too keen on change: Just recently, a leading German think tank suggested in a op-ed for the Fourth Financing for Development (FfD) Conference:

“Innovation may have to wait. For now, simply keeping multilateral efforts afloat may be the best possible outcome.”

So even now, the industry seems more concerned with its top line figures and maintaining its structures than with the structural challenges it has been put off for too long already. A lot of work required for positive change!

Full post by TalkToLoop: t1p.de/dalb0

TalkToLoop on LinkedIn: t1p.de/q3swk

Op-ed of German think tank IDOS: t1p.de/dshow