The districts of Saxony-Anhalt are calling for urgent investments for the future!

The districts of Saxony-Anhalt are calling for urgent investments for the future!

There is an urgent need for investment in infrastructure in Saxony-Anhalt. Today, districts have demanded their own budget to repair and expand broken roads, dilapidated bridges and inadequate IT infrastructure. Götz Ulrich (CDU), district administrator of the Burgenland district and president of the Saxony-Anhalt district council, emphasizes that the funds should be provided as a lump sum and directly. This happened as part of a meeting between the district administrators and Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) to advance the implementation of the planned special fund.

In March, the SPD and CDU decided on a special fund for infrastructure worth 500 billion euros. Of this, 100 billion euros are to be distributed to federal states and municipalities. Ulrich also emphasizes that greater confidence is needed in how counties use these funds. What is striking, however, is that Saxony-Anhalt has the highest per capita debt in Germany at 288 euros.

Financial challenges faced by municipalities

The high debts are related to the need to finance construction projects. A household is considered healthy when income and expenses are in balance. However, it becomes problematic when municipalities record a deficit year after year, which significantly limits the scope for action. In this context, André Schröder (CDU), district administrator of the Mansfeld-Südharz district, is calling for an expansion of municipal financial resources or a reduction in financing burdens.

An example of the precarious situation is the Lutherstadt Wittenberg, which suffers from a persistently poor budget. Mayor Torsten Zubehör describes the situation as a “misery administration” and points to the frustration among local politicians who are having difficulty recruiting committed successors. The prevailing opinion is that municipalities do not receive sufficient financial support.

Comparison with Thuringia

The difficulties in Saxony-Anhalt are also reflected in the neighboring federal states. Belonging doubts that the situation in Thuringia is better. While stricter supervision in Thuringia leads to balanced budgets, at the same time there are renovation backlogs as facilities rot and are passed on to the next generation as undocumented debt.

The municipalities agree that close involvement in the process of redesigning the hospital plan in Saxony-Anhalt is necessary. These measures could represent a step in the right direction to overcome financial challenges and sustainably improve infrastructure.

For more information read the reports from n-tv and MDR.