Towards Geopolitical German Development Cooperation? Recent History, Current Trends, and Future Prospects
German development cooperation (GDC) in a post-Merkel era can be expected to become more geopolitical. Recently adopted German policy documents like the Indo-Pacific guidelines as well as the support to the geopolitical ambition of the European Commission suggest such a tendency for future German policy making.
As Germany is a major player in international development cooperation, at least with regard to the amount of official development assistance (ODA), the future prospects of GDC are highly relevant to German international political and development partners.
GDC has recently seen significant shifts linked to the issue of migration and flight and also to a much stronger involvement by the private sector in development cooperation. Several German policy initiatives like Compact with Africa are exemplary for these trends. Moreover, they show that GDC focuses strongly on the African continent. The so-called BMZ 2030 reform of the Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung – BMZ (the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) underlines the ambition of GDC as relevant to current international trends.
The next German government will have to clarify the relationship of GDC with joint European approaches to development cooperation. Germany generally supports the politicization of European development cooperation and a more geopolitical thinking at the European level. Yet other political priorities, such as the French-German relationship, regularly limit German support for joint European policy-making in practice, as can be observed in Germany´s policies for the Sahel region.
This paper argues that GDC under a post-Merkel government will have to seek new legitimacy and thus German policy makers should look beyond mere geopolitical approaches. While little new thinking can be expected from the political parties of a new governing coalition – probably including the Green Party – development cooperation will be challenged by right-wing populists. The situation provides opportunities, however, to link geostrategic thinking with a more progressive development cooperation that builds on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Dr Manfred Öhm, currently acts as the Deputy Head of Finance and Organization of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES). He has lectured at the University of Freiburg (Arnold Bergstraesser Institute for Cultural Studies). He formerly served as country director for the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Sudan and Mozambique and headed the FES Africa Department from 2013 to 2021.
This publication is available in french (pdf): La coopération allemande pour le développement : vers une évolution géopolitique ? Histoire récente, tendances actuelles et perspectives d’avenir.
ISBN / ISSN
Share
Download the full analysis
This page contains only a summary of our work. If you would like to have access to all the information from our research on the subject, you can download the full version in PDF format.
Towards Geopolitical German Development Cooperation? Recent History, Current Trends, and Future Prospects
Related centers and programs
Discover our other research centers and programsFind out more
Discover all our analysesFrance, the U.S. Oldest and Most Complicated Ally: A Stubborn Defender of a Truly European Industrial and Defence Policy
France, the U.S.’ oldest ally, is also the EU country which most stubbornly defends genuinely European industrial and defence policies. It calls for ‘strategic autonomy’ in all political domains, a position increasingly difficult to hold against a hardening international climate.
The Franco-German Brigade and the Revival of European Defense
One thing has been clear since Donald Trump's return to the White House: the very existence of the European unification project is threatened. Unless it develops a sovereign defense policy to counter the war in Ukraine and the weakening of American security guarantees, the European Union will continue to see its internal cohesion and external attractiveness wane.
Friedrich Merz and the Zeitenwende 2.0. A “New Era” for Transatlantic Relations?
On February 23, 2025, almost 60 million voters were called upon to elect a new Bundestag. These elections will also give rise to a new government in Europe's largest economy.
After the Elections: Germany in Search of Shaken Stability?
With a voter turnout of 82.5%, Germany recorded its highest participation since 1987—an increase of 6.1 percentage points compared to 2021. As in the previous election, the high turnout particularly benefited the Alternative for Germany (AfD), which was able to mobilize many former non-voters. Many voters sought to punish the outgoing government with their ballots, as its approval rating had dropped to just 14% before the coalition broke apart in November 2024. Germany is now very likely heading toward a grand coalition between the CDU/CSU and the SPD, with exploratory talks having begun on February 28.