Germany made a step towards accelerating the development of 5G services in the country, pouring additional investments into backing domestic endeavours.

In a statement, the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) revealed 48 consortia stood to receive funding of up to €4 million per project, as part of a programme unveiled in 2019 seeking to support 5G projects.

The funding is intended for local authorities to develop 5G-enabled services in areas including agriculture, health, education and administration.

German Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure Andreas Scheuer described the move as a boost for the mobile communications sector in the country, while hailing the potential of new applications and services to reduce costs and carbon emissions.

The next-generation technology “creates completely new possibilities in everyday life and on site”, he added.

BMVI selected the initial ten projects in January, providing a total of €38 million towards developing a range of services employing 5G.