Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing sees the National Ports Strategy as an important step towards strengthening German ports, according to dpa-AFX. On Wednesday, the FDP politician spoke of a "course book" with almost 140 concrete measures that point out solutions to the most pressing challenges facing ports - from the great opportunities of digitalization to scarce space, skilled workers and resources.
While the ports are the original responsibility of the federal states, the federal government is responsible for the construction and maintenance of the federal transport routes leading to them and also finances them in accordance with the Basic Law, said the Minister. In the past ten years, the federal government had invested an average of around 500 million euros per year directly in the maintenance and expansion of the connections for the fairway adjustments on the Elbe and Weser, the deepening of the Außenems, the measures on the Kiel Canal and the expansion of the seaward approaches to Rostock and Wismar alone.
Wissing also rejected criticism from the CDU/CSU that the federal government was doing too little for the ports. The federal government continues to stand by its shared responsibility for the ports, he said. "This also includes the question of the federal government making an appropriate contribution to the costs of the federal states. But what is important to us is: first the plan, then the money. With a common understanding of the port strategy, we can now work on stabilizing the high level of investment and accelerating planning."