Co-creating Digital Sovereignty

Digital sovereignty means having the power to act

Our state is highly dependent on a few large tech companies, resulting in a serious loss of control over state IT. With a comprehensive sovereignty package consisting of a platform, products and consulting, the Center for Digital Sovereignty in Public Administration (ZenDiS) supports federal, state and local authorities in freeing themselves from critical dependencies and securing their ability to act.

Our offerings

Platform

Confidently shaping digitalisation

With our openCode platform and the services based on it, we promote cross-departmental and cross-level collaboration, strengthen the reuse of open source solutions, and provide public administrations with the basis for a secure and sovereign software supply chain.

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Products

Breaking critical dependencies

Digital sovereignty requires interchangeability. Only those who can choose can decide freely. And only those who are in control are truly sovereign. ZenDiS offers public administrations easy access to professional, needs-based and sovereign software solutions.

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Sovereignty check & advice

Taking a strategic approach to digital sovereignty

How can we become sovereign? There is a great need for advice in public administration. ZenDiS provides support for questions relating to digital sovereignty and open source and, with its sovereignty check, offers an important analysis tool for identifying critical dependencies and deriving suitable exit and migration strategies.

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From the newsroom

Currently only available in German.

26. March 2026

ZenDiS launches consultation process on sovereignty criteria

The Centre for Digital Sovereignty is launching a consultation process: the aim is to reach a consensus on criteria for digital sovereignty in public administration. Anyone interested is welcome to take part. To mark the start of the process, ZenDiS is presenting its criteria for digital sovereignty. Please note, that this discussion paper is only aviable in german right now.

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20. March 2026

Revised EVB-IT contracts make open source the standard

Open source is becoming the standard for public administration. The new EVB-IT contracts have been published. They standardise the legally compliant procurement of open-source software for public administration – and make open source the standard in development.

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17. February 2026

ZenDiS at Digitaler Staat 2026

The Center for Digital Sovereignty in Public Administration (ZenDiS) will have its own stand at the Digital State 2026 in Berlin. The focus will be on the openDesk and openCode services.

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6. January 2026

openDesk sales partner program delayed

We are very pleased about the great interest in the announced sales partner program for our sovereign office and collaboration suite openDesk. The new goal is to invite tenders for marketing licenses within the first quarter of 2026.

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3. November 2025

ZenDiS is now back on the road with a dual leadership team

In future, Pamela Krosta-Hartl will manage the business together with Alexander Pockrandt.

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30. October 2025

EU Digital Commons Consortium (DC-EDIC) officially founded

The establishment of an EDIC ("European Digital Infrastructure Consortium") for digital commons has been officially confirmed by the EU Commission. For Germany, the Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernization (BMDS) is part of the EDIC, while ZenDiS and the Sovereign Tech Agency will implement the first projects.

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30. September 2025

Social insurance companies prepare for the crisis with openDesk

Kickoff for the new project "Cloud-based communication in a crisis" (CKKI). The German Federal Pension Insurance (DRV), the Federal Employment Agency, BITMARCK and BG-Phoenics are testing the sovereign office and collaboration suite openDesk for communication in the event of a crisis. ZenDiS is managing the project, which is being carried out together with the partners IONOS, STACK-IT and T-Systems. The results will flow directly into the European 8ra initiative. The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE).

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30. September 2025

ZenDiS creates additional subscription options for openDesk

ZenDiS is opening up sales of the openDesk office and collaboration suite to public and private IT service providers. This is the company's response to the strong demand for its superior digital workplace solution from the public and private sectors.

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25. September 2025

Foreign IT of the Federal Foreign Office and ZenDiS cooperate on secure software for the administration

The foreign IT department of the Federal Foreign Office and ZenDiS are building a new ecosystem. The aim is to create hardened software containers for public administration and make them available for subsequent use. Further players are being sought for the ecosystem.

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26. March 2026

ZenDiS launches consultation process on sovereignty criteria

Read Article

20. March 2026

Revised EVB-IT contracts make open source the standard

Read Article

17. February 2026

ZenDiS at Digitaler Staat 2026

The Center for Digital Sovereignty in Public Administration (ZenDiS) will have its own stand at the Digital State 2026 in Berlin. The focus will be on the openDesk and openCode services.

Read Article

To the Newsroom

Technological self-determination is the foundation of a digitally sovereign state. Against the backdrop of the current geopolitical situation, promoting open-source software and strengthening digital sovereignty is more important than ever. ZenDiS ensures that the public sector remains capable of acting in this area.

Dr. Markus Richter State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Digital and Public Administration

It is crucial that digital tools and solutions are available quickly and from the outset in high quality and maturity. One thing is clear: for secure digitalization, we need digital sovereignty, and this requires many hands to work together. ZenDiS is a strong partner in this endeavor and delivers ready-to-use, productive solutions that can strengthen our sovereignty!

Claudia Plattner President of the BSI

Digital sovereignty is an essential prerequisite for the work of public IT service providers. With ZenDiS, we have a partner at our side who helps us to translate digital sovereignty into concrete projects and put it into practice.

Martin Schallbruch CEO govdigital eG

Open source is the working model for sustainable, trustworthy, and efficient public administration. Implementing this model requires exchange, expertise, cooperation, and concrete offerings. ZenDiS now offers all of this in one place.

Adriana Groh Co-CEO Sovereign Tech Agency

A modern community needs a digitally sovereign administration. Open source software gives the public sector the necessary design and control capabilities, greater flexibility, and speed. To this end, the Center for Digital Sovereignty, as coordinator and trusted advisor, initiates concrete development projects and connects stakeholders at all levels.

Peter Ganten Chairman of the Board, Open Source Business Alliance

With its clear commitment to open source, ZenDiS is making an important contribution to reducing critical dependencies in administration. Low-threshold, standardized offerings make it easy for actors at all federal levels to become more technologically independent and resilient in the long term.

Christina Lang CEO DigitalService GmbH des Bundes