Municipalities in constructive dialogue with the state of Hesse

The mayors from Waldeck-Frankenberg, together with the district administrator and the first district councillor of the district, recently visited the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of the Interior as part of an official trip to Wiesbaden. They discussed various municipal issues with the state of Hesse.

All-day provision and vocational training
In the Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs, the exchange with the Minister for Culture, Education and Opportunities, Armin Schwarz, focused in particular on the challenges of implementing all-day provision. The background to this is the legal entitlement to all-day care that pupils in Hesse will have from 2026. The district is working together with the schools in Waldeck-Frankenberg to develop a corresponding programme.

Another point was the safeguarding of vocational schools in rural areas. Minister of Education Schwarz said: "Good vocational orientation and dual training are the prerequisite for economic strength in rural areas. Craft businesses, service providers and industry are dependent on qualified skilled labour. Our concept for sustainable vocational schools is a valuable contribution to securing skilled labour in rural areas."

Jürgen van der Horst, District Administrator of Waldeck-Frankenberg, emphasised: "In this context, we are particularly positive about the "sustainable vocational school" project. This will strengthen dual training despite declining pupil numbers - especially in rural areas." In this way, training close to the company is guaranteed while at the same time providing specialised training with high teaching quality.

Municipal finances and debureaucratisation
The exchange with the Minister of the Interior, Prof. Dr Roman Poseck, focused in particular on the critical development of municipal finances and possible solutions - especially in view of the municipalities' current budget crisis. Possible simplifications in the budget approval process were also discussed, as well as the debureaucratisation of budget management through digitalisation and support from artificial intelligence. New models for promoting cooperation between local authorities are also becoming increasingly important in this context. The district, cities and municipalities were open to possible pilot projects.

District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst emphasised the importance of the dialogue with the state of Hesse: "The intensive exchange with the state government is crucial to successfully mastering the challenges at municipal level." The aim is to focus more strongly on municipal needs, strengthen democracy, promote local self-government and thus also counteract disenchantment with politics.

Caption: The mayor and mayoress as well as the district administrator and first district councillor of the district recently visited the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of the Interior of the State of Hesse as part of an official trip to Wiesbaden. (Photo: District of Waldeck-Frankenberg)