Only 29% OZG Implementation in Saarland: How Did It Come to This?

Saarland ranks last in the current Bitkom Länderindex 2024 in the “digital administration” category. Only 29% of the digital administrative services required by the Online Access Act (OZG) have been implemented. In comparison, the leader Hamburg achieves 63%, while the national average is about 50%. The results for Saarland are sobering and raise fundamental questions about the state’s digital strategy.

What Do the Numbers Say?

Here are Saarland’s rankings compared to other federal states according to the Bitkom Index 2024:

The discrepancy is obvious: In terms of digital society, Saarland ranks 2nd. 94% of citizens view digitalization positively. 65% consider themselves to have high digital competence. At the same time, there is hardly any digital infrastructure. Fiber optic coverage is at only 29%, placing it last in the national comparison.

Talents Are There – But They Don’t Stay

With an above-average proportion of IT students (10.5%) and trainees (4.4%), Saarland seems well-positioned at first glance. Yet these talents often leave the state immediately after their training. Why? Because they are not offered attractive prospects. Neither the administration nor the infrastructure provides an environment that retains digital professionals long-term.

Lack of Political Consistency

Saarland does not have its own Ministry of Digital Affairs. Responsibility is scattered across several departments. There is a lack of an overarching digital strategy with concrete, measurable goals. Instead: individual initiatives, pilot projects, and digital silo solutions without central coordination. The result is a patchwork of digital policy.

OZG and C5: Two Sides of the Same Coin

The Online Access Act obliges states to offer their administrative services digitally. At the same time, the federal government and municipalities increasingly require proof of secure cloud infrastructures according to the BSI C5 standard. Those who want to develop modern digital government services must deliver both: good processes and a robust technical platform.

But Saarland fails on both fronts. There is a lack of cloud-capable architectures, secure infrastructures, and know-how for implementation and scaling. The few ambitious professionals get lost in procedural loops and political trench warfare.

What Needs to Happen?

• Centralized Control: A Ministry of Digital Affairs with clear responsibility for strategy, infrastructure, and implementation.
• Retain Talents: Make public positions more attractive – through genuine remote work models, modern tools, agile methods.
• Expand Infrastructure: Fiber optics for schools, businesses, and households must become the standard, not the exception.
• Establish Cloud Capability: OZG services need secure cloud environments. C5 should be a mandatory standard.

The foundations for a successful German Administrative Cloud Strategy are in place. However, it requires the political will and technical expertise to implement modern digital sovereignty.

Conclusion

Saarland has the potential to become a digital pioneer. But that requires courage, consistency, and a genuine digital operating system for administration. 29% OZG implementation is not just too little. It is a symptom. And the problem runs deeper: not with the people, but with the lack of structure. Now would be a good time to change that.