The European Union
The European Union awards the title of "European Capital of Culture" on the recommendation of an international jury. In order to be considered for the award, candidates must fulfil a large catalogue of criteria. Even after a candidate has been awarded the title it must continue to inform the EU commission of how its work is progressing, in the form of monitoring panels.
The EU provides a one-off grant to the chosen Capital of Culture, amounting to 1.500.000 €.
The Slovak member of the European Commission for Education, Culture and Youth, Ján Figel, has been the officer responsible for the European Capital of Culture title since 2007.
The German Government Deputy for Culture and the Media (BKM)
Bernd Neumann has been the German government deputy for culture and the media since the 22nd of November 2005. As a State Minister he is directly responsible to the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.
In Bernd Neumann’s opinion the promotion of art and culture is a necessary investment in the future: "If our society wishes to remain innovative, creative and open, we cannot afford to dispense with the input of ideas and thought-provoking impulses provided by the arts and culture. These provide both the basis and the orientation for everything that makes a society worth living in."
The duties of the State Minister for Culture include promoting cultural institutions and projects of national importance. He is also responsible for developing and improving the framework conditions for arts and culture. As such he is an important partner for RUHR.2010. The government grant for the Capital of Culture comes from his budget.
(The office of the German Government Deputy for Culture and the Media is in the Federal Chancellery of Germany. He is supported in his work by a staff of around 190 in Berlin and Bonn.)