Annual Report 2016

"The world is more chaotic than it has been for quite some time." This statement was made by the former German Foreign Minister and current Federal President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier in October 2016. Crises and conflicts are arising at an unexpected pace and intensity that no one could have anticipated.

What do these conditions mean for the work of the Robert Bosch Stiftung? How can we respond to these challenges with our resources and expertise? How can we make a meaningful contribution to a sustainable and peaceful development of society - both in Germany and abroad? How can we increase our effectiveness?

These questions were the starting point for a strategic development process that started back in 2015 and whose results have been guiding our work since 2016. One core result of this process was the definition of three focus areas:

• Migration, Integration, and Inclusion
• Societal Cohesion
• Sustainable Living Spaces

With these focus areas, the Foundation will be taking on three major social challenges over the coming years with its activities. The focus areas supplement our traditional areas of support - health, science, society, education, and international relations - while providing orientation for the development of new projects.

You will find detailed reports on our activities in both the focus areas and areas of support on the following pages.

Current information on our strategies regarding various topics, the individual projects, and the developments at our subsidiary institutions can be viewed at any time on our website and/or the websites of the institutions.

We would like to thank all of the employees and partners of the Foundation who have supported our work with great commitment throughout 2016.

Uta-Micaela Dürig                   Dr. Joachim Rogall

The annual financial statement as of December 31, 2016, which was prepared in accordance with commercial accounting rules, was reviewed by the auditing firm Ernst & Young GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and given an unqualified auditor’s opinion. Accordingly, the annual financial statement provides a fair and accurate view of the current net assets, financial position, and results of the Robert Bosch Stiftung, taking into account the principles of sound accounting.

The share held by Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH in the capital stock of Robert Bosch GmbH remained unchanged at 92%, or €5,055 million. The foundation received dividends of €126.8 million from this share. Overall, €163.6 million were available, of which €19.1 million came from the reversal of provisions from investment grants for a subsidiary. These were accounted for in the reserves at the same amount to ensure uniform presentation.

In the 2016 reporting year, dependent foundations had inflows from interest income and other income in the amount of €3.4 million.

Approvals granted by the Board of Trustees and the Board of Management of the foundation for third-party and internal projects amounted to €74.9 million. This also includes the €14.1 million in funding provided for research at the Robert Bosch Hospital, the Dr. Margarete Fischer Bosch Institute for Clinical Pharmacology, the Institute for the History of Medicine, and the Robert Bosch tumor center.

A total of €46.2 million was used for special measures and investments in the Robert Bosch Hospital that were not covered by the funding provided by the state under the Krankenhausfinanzierungsgesetz (German hospital financing act - KHG) - including the special item of €19.1 million mentioned above. The UWC Robert Bosch College was granted funding in the amount of €1.2 million; the German School Academy was supported with €3.1 million. The dependent Otto and Edith Muhlschlegel Stiftung received €1.2 million. Dependent foundations promoted projects with funding totaling €2.5 million.

A total of €20.8 million was spent on staff, administration, and communication during the reporting year.