Objectives of the civil security research programme

The aim of the Federal Government’s “Research for civil security 2012-2017” framework programme is to explore innovative solutions with which to increase security for the public. Security research concentrates both on prevention of damage and on crisis response measures. To ensure security solutions that meet the requirements on the ground, researchers from the fields of science, engineering and humanities work closely with end users such as the police, emergency services and industry, always being careful to take societal aspects into account. Their goal is to develop comprehensive security solutions that maintain a good balance between security and liberty.

Funding

Since 2007, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has supplied more than half a billion euros of funding for the national security research programme.

The topics of the framework programme are divided into the following three sections:

• Protection and rescue of people
• Protection of critical infrastructure
• Protection against crime and terrorism

under the two overarching headings of

• Society and the economy
• Cross-cutting issues and activities

Intelligent, scenario-based programme

The security research programme is constantly evolving, taking its lead from existing findings and changing challenges to civil security. It provides the framework for a long-term, flexible funding policy.  

The programme has a scenario-based approach. This means that the requirements of users (such as the police, emergency services and infrastructure operators) are incorporated into research work from an early stage. Researchers from the fields of engineering, science, humanities and social science work with authorities and enterprises to develop solutions based on realistic scenarios, taking societal aspects of security into account.  

To ensure security solutions that meet the requirements on the ground, researchers from the fields of science, engineering and humanities work closely with end users such as the police, emergency services and industry, always being careful to take societal aspects into account. Their goal is to develop comprehensive security solutions that maintain a good balance between security and liberty

Cooperation with other ministries

“Research for civil security” is a Federal Government programme dealing with the challenges facing civil security. The lead ministry on the programme is the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), which runs the programme in close consultation with the ministries responsible for security matters. This approach ensures that all topics that are in some way related to civil security research, including legal and data protection aspects, are taken into account and coordinated in an effective manner. A further aim, based on the High Tech Strategy, is to boost the competitiveness of businesses that contribute to security and to establish Germany as a leader in security technology.

International cooperation

The current and future challenges facing civil security are not tied to national borders – they are mostly global in nature. International cooperation is therefore a key part of the “Research for civil security” framework programme in addition to expansion of research collaborations at the European level. Bilateral intergovernmental agreements are in place with France, India, Israel, Austria and the United States.