German Council of Economic Experts


The German Council of Economic Experts is a group of economists set up in 1963 to evaluate economic policies of the German government. In the media, the council is often referred to as the "Five Sages of Economy", or simply the "Five Sages".

Role

Every year the Council prepares an annual report which is published before or by November 15. The federal government has to publish its comments and conclusions within eight weeks of the publication of the annual report.
The Council’s secretariat is based at the Federal Statistical Office of Germany in Wiesbaden.

Membership

Composition

The Council has five members which – based on the recommendation of the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy – are nominated by the federal government and appointed by the President of Germany for a term of five years. Every membership expires on 1 March of the term’s final year. Traditionally, the Joint Committee of German Associations in Trade and Industry – including the Confederation of German Employers' Associations and 14 other leading business associations – and the country’s trade unions each nominate one member of the SVR..

Current members

In 2011, the Council proposed a plan for the issuance of collectivized European debt as part of a mechanism for contending with the European sovereign debt crisis.