ZenDiS seeks criteria for digital sovereignty

The Center for Digital Sovereignty of Public Administration (ZenDiS) aims to work with interested partners from administration, business, civil society, and research to define what digital sovereignty specifically means. And above all: how it can be measured. To this end, the organization has launched a public consultation process that runs until May 15, 2026.

The goal is to create a catalog of criteria that defines requirements and evaluation standards for digital sovereignty. It is intended to serve as a guide for politics and administration, for example, when selecting software and digital infrastructures.

Public administration faces the challenge of making its digital infrastructure more independent, secure, and sustainable. However, there has been a lack of a common, binding understanding of what constitutes digital sovereignty.

Open process in several stages

The consultation process is multi-stage. Interested parties can contribute, among other things, with written statements. Further exchange formats are planned. ZenDiS provides details on the procedure, deadlines, and participation opportunities on its website. The criteria catalog can be commented on directly at souveränitätscheck.de.

ZenDiS pursues a deliberately open approach: different perspectives are to be incorporated so that the criteria are practical and broadly applicable. As a center of expertise and service, ZenDiS generally promotes the use of open-source software to avoid vendor lock-in in public administration. Furthermore, the public company operates the collaborative development platform openCode and the online office suite openDesk. ZenDiS intends to publish the results of the consultation process after its conclusion.

(fo)