Eröffnungsrede bei der Smart Country Convention 2026 in Berlin

Es gilt das gesprochene Wort! Dear Minister Matias, Dr. Wintergerst, Dr. Tobias, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, or very simply: good morning everyone! Welcome to Berlin, to the Smart Country Convention 2026. Dear Mr. Matias, it's a real pleasure to open this convention with you. Portugal, our country of honour, shows what determined reform can achieve. You’ve made real progress in digital government. I've seen a vibrant startup ecosystem myself, and I value our partnership and the personal trust we have built. There is much we can learn from each other. Welcome and thank you for being here. And a big thank you to Bitkom and Messe Berlin for bringing us together. Congratulations on what you have built here and what you have pulled off. When you enter, it just looks amazing. It's a new record. I feel very proud. This is one of the largest conventions of this kind worldwide – and all this in Germany. Fantastic, so congratulations and thank you. And, most importantly, thank you to all of you, to everyone who's coming here, who builds, runs, improves public services, makes cities smarter, as well as regions. My ministry and my whole team here, we are very proud to be your partne...