Digital Pact 2.0 – another 5 billion, now split in half

This time it will be split in half – that has now been finally clarified. The federal government and the states have agreed on the Digital Pact 2.0 during the Conference of Education Ministers in Berlin. Like the “Digital Pact School,” the “Digital Pact 2.0” will also be initially funded with five billion euros for the digitalization of schools. This time, however, the states are to bear half of the costs, and the pact does not contribute to a sustained provision of funds for digital infrastructure in the school system. However, it is intended to create fewer bureaucratic hurdles.

States must pay more

The first Digital Pact (2019-2024) was financially more advantageous for the states, which only had to bear 10 percent of the costs. It was also topped up by 1.5 billion euros due to the Corona pandemic. For the Digital Pact 2.0, the federal government and the states are now to contribute 2.5 billion euros each, splitting the costs equally from 2026 to 2030. The federal share is to come largely from the special fund for “Infrastructure and Climate Neutrality,” which amounts to 500 billion euros.

Karin Prien (CDU), Federal Minister of Education and Research, sees the Digital Pact 2.0 as a decisive step for the future of schools and also an important contribution to the equal value of educational opportunities in Germany. She emphasized that for the Digital Pact 2.0, simplified administrative processes and the promotion of cross-state projects (Länderübergreifende Vorhaben, LüV) ensure “that all students benefit from digital education.” With the Digital Pact 2.0, “the foundation for a modern educational landscape” is being created, “so that all schools receive the necessary equipment to succeed in the digital world.”

She further explained, without sugarcoating it, that German school education will become “digitally connected” with Pact 2.0. She also made it clear that the states primarily bear responsibility for education: “The federal government also supports the states and municipalities in fulfilling their tasks here.” In order for the federal government to provide funds for the digitalization of schools in the states via a digital pact at all, the Basic Law had to be amended in 2019.

Lump-sum allocations

A central element of the Digital Pact 2.0 is the simplification of administrative processes. Municipal school authorities could receive lump-sum allocations in the future. This would reduce the bureaucratic effort and ensure faster and uncomplicated implementation. Federalism, otherwise considered a major obstacle, is somewhat broken up by the LüV. Accordingly, twelve states can now join together for a common project and access funds from a central pool. This strengthens cooperation between the states and ensures “more efficient use of funds.”

The funds from the Digital Pact 2.0 are also to be explicitly used for maintenance and support structures as well as modern digital learning environments. However, through the pact strategy, this is again only until the program expires and is not a permanent solution, as the Rhineland-Palatinate Minister of Education Sven Teuber (SPD) has recently called for. New funding gaps, as with the Digital Pact School, also seem to be pre-programmed.

Another element is the federal-state initiative “Digital Teaching and Learning,” explained the Federal Ministry of Education, Family, Seniors, Women, and Youth (BMBFSFJ), which focuses on the further training of teachers. The federal government will invest up to 250 million euros in practice-oriented research. This will be done with five research clusters and a scientifically managed transfer office. The goal is to develop innovative approaches for digital teaching together with practitioners and to prepare teachers specifically for new requirements.

(kbe)