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Agreement between the federation, Länder and municipalities on the establishment of a Coordination Council for Returns of Cultural Property and Human Remains from Colonial Contexts – a joint structure to coordinate returns centrally in the future
At the top-level cultural policy meeting in Berlin on 27 March, the Federal Foreign Office, the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the Länder and the municipalities agreed to establish a joint Coordination Council. In doing so, the federation, Länder and municipalities want to further develop their work on cultural property and human remains from colonial contexts and to coordinate their work with governments from the countries of origin.
In the future, the Coordination Council will serve as a central point of contact at governmental level, support returns processes and coordinate between those involved in Germany. The Council is to be comprised of representatives of the federation, the Länder and municipal umbrella organisations. Further participants and experts can be included on a case-by-case basis. The Council will be chaired by the Federal Foreign Office.
The aim is to make returns processes as transparent as possible and to coordinate communication with international partners.
Serap Güler, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, issued the following statement:
I am very pleased about the formation of the Coordination Council, which we have jointly agreed with the Länder and municipalities. In the future, the Coordination Council will serve as the central point of contact for our partner governments and as a forum for coordinated dialogue based on trust. We are thus sending an important message that we are serious about addressing our colonial past.
Wolfram Weimer, Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, stated:
The establishment of the Coordination Council is a further important step in dealing responsibly with cultural property and human remains from colonial contexts. The repatriation of human remains is of particular importance to me. The Coordination Council is the official point of contact for inquiries from other countries about returns and will help to make current and future returns processes more efficient.
Katharina Binz, President of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder in the Federal Republic of Germany and Minister for Family, Women, Culture and Integration of Land Rhineland-Palatinate, stated:
Work on cultural property and human remains from colonial contexts is a joint task for the federation, Länder and municipalities. In establishing the Coordination Council, we are making our work more reliable and creating a solid basis for coordinated and transparent returns processes.
Marc Elxnat, representative of the municipal umbrella organisations, stated:
Responsibility for many of the collections concerned lies at the municipal level. That is why we are creating clear and practical processes and close coordination between all levels of the state in order to do justice to this responsibility at local level.
Background information
Discussion on the return of cultural property and human remains from colonial contexts has intensified in recent years. At the same time, many countries of origin expect a designated state point of contact in view of Germany’s federal system, which has various levels of responsibility.
Several countries, including Cameroon, Tanzania, Ghana and Togo, have set up state structures and returns committees, which are seeking a coordinated dialogue with Germany.
In 2025, the federation, Länder and municipalities agreed on Joint Guidelines for dealing with cultural property and human remains from colonial contexts, which form the framework for transparency, cooperation and dealing with requests for returns.
A structured process is currently being developed on this basis in order to be able to coordinate communication with international partners in ongoing and future returns processes. The establishment of a joint Coordination Council, which is to serve as a central point of contact for the countries of origin and coordinate national communication, is a crucial step. The Council’s Secretariat will be set up in the Federal Foreign Office.
The full name of the Council is: Coordination Council for Returns of Cultural Property and Human Remains from Colonial Contexts.
The top-level meeting on cultural policy ensures regular exchange between the federation, Länder and municipal umbrella organisations on key cultural policy matters.