Advisory Boards at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy

The Scientific Advisory Board gives the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy independent advice on all aspects of economic policy. The 39 academics meet five times a year, discuss topics of their own choice, and then publish their findings in the form of expertises.

The Franco-German Council of independent Economic Experts is a permanent, bilateral body that was established by France and Germany on the basis of the Treaty of Aachen. It is independent and tasked with making policy recommendations on economic issues in which both countries have shared interests.The Council of Experts reports to the Franco-German Financial and Economic Council, which consists of both countries’ Ministers of Finance and Economic Affairs and the Heads of the two central banks. The comments by the Franco-German Council of independent Economic Experts are to be regarded as independent contributions to the debate. They do not reflect the position of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy or of the Federal Government.

The Women Economists Network is a group of female economists, all of them (junior) professors, who advise the Ministry on current economic policy issues. To this end, the network provides accessible and agile advice on economic policy topics, specific policy proposals and consultations of the respective divisions of the Ministry, complementing established scientific policy advisory bodies. The relatively young members, along with the focus on female professors, contribute to a more diverse and enriched exchange between politics and academia. The network also serves as a forum for collecting new impulses for economic policy, communicating issues relevant to economic policy to the scientific community, and discussing possible solutions.

Tasks

The SME advisory board at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy focuses on the current situation and future economic prospects facing small and medium-sized businesses as well as professional services. The board advises the Federal Minister on the impacts that structural changes in the domestic and global economy are likely to have on SMEs. In addition, it analyses the effects that current domestic economic policies are having on the SME sector. The members of the board may set up working groups and submit the results of their deliberations in the form of resolutions. 

Origins

The SME Advisory Board was set up in response to a motion by the Bundestag Committee of 7 May 1956 on Special Issues of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, following a request by Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. The first, constitutive meeting of the SME Advisory Board took place on 5 December 1956 and was chaired by Economics Minister Professor Dr. Ludwig Erhard. Since then, the members, who are appointed at the beginning of each term of legislation, usually meet twice a year in order to provide ideas about general SME-related issues.

Members

The body is composed of people whose practical work and experience in the field of SME-related issues makes them particularly suited to such a task. The members of the boad are not representatives of business associations, but are independent experts who represent only their personal opinion and are not bound by any instructions.

Tasks

The Accreditation Advisory Board supports and advises the Federal Government and the national accreditation body (Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS)[in German]) in all matters relating to accreditation. Its tasks include defining rules, promoting the use of accreditation as a means of building confidence within the context of conformity assessment, and coordinating German representation and Germany’s position at the meetings of the European co-operation for Accreditation (EA) - (www.european-accreditation.org).

The Accreditation Advisory Board sets up specialist boards for various sectors. Their main task is to support the Accreditation Advisory Board in defining sector-specific rules.

Members

The 16 members of the Accreditation Advisory Board were appointed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy to serve from 2016 to 2019.

Coordinating Office of the Accreditation Advisory Board

The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing hosts the Coordinating Office of the Accreditation Advisory Board: www.akb.bam.de (in German).

Accreditation Body Act

The Accreditation Body Act entered into force in August 2009. Its provisions regulate matters such as the tasks and powers of the national accreditation body and the Accreditation Advisory Board.

According to Regulation (EC) No. 765/2008, accreditation is a sovereign activity. Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH was entrusted with undertaking accreditations under the Accreditation Body Act ("entrusted entity"). Further information about accreditation in Germany can be found at www.dakks.de.