Presidency of 2023

The Standing Conference of the Ministers and Senators of the Interior of the Länder (IMK) has been held under an annually changing chairpersonship of the Länder since 1954. On 1 January 2023, the Land of Berlin took over the chairpersonship of the IMK from the Free State of Bavaria, which held it in 2022. In 2024, the chairpersonship was handed over to the State of Brandenburg.

Priorities of the Berlin Presidency

The political priorities of the Berlin Presidency were the protection and development of a society that embraces diversity and multiculturalism as well as the strengthening of security authorities to ensure they are fit for the future.
In addition to the technical and security policy priorities, another focus of the Berlin Presidency year lay on promoting a citizen-oriented, inclusive approach. In this context, a communication campaign was devised under the motto “Diverse. Colourful. Different.” to make the work of the IMK more visible and highlight its importance in and for the everyday life of citizens. For the first time in the history of the IMK, citizens could directly follow the IMK Presidency on the social media platform “Instagram” under the hashtag #imk2023be, and learn more about the activities, work processes and results of the IMK.

The Chairwoman: Senator Iris Spranger

In 2023, Senator of the Interior Iris Spranger oversaw and coordinated the official business of the IMK as chairperson and acts as official representative to the outside. She was the first female IMK chairperson in the history of Germany:
“The successful continuation of the IMK’s work is my top priority. Many topics from the past year remain relevant in 2023: initiatives must be implemented and measures further coordinated. At the same time, we must react to new challenges and issues in an appropriate and forward-looking manner. Against the backdrop of the Berlin Presidency in 2023, it is therefore particularly important to me that we as the IMK are flexible and able to act, and that we continue to shape and cultivate transnational cooperation in a future-oriented manner.”
As Chairwoman, Iris Spranger also lead the meetings and conferences of the interior ministers and senators. In June and December 2023, Berlin hosted the spring and autumn conferences of the IMK.