Organisation

The Secretary-General is the ministry’s top administrative official and provides direct leadership to the directors general, inspector general and heads of directorates who report directly to him.

The Secretary-General is Jan Hendrik Dronkers and the Deputy is Marc Konings.

In the policy section, four Directorates-General are concerned with developing policy in the areas of mobility, water management, aviation and maritime affairs and the environment. The Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management (Rijkswaterstaat, RWS) ensures that policy is implemented. Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) oversees compliance with statutory regulations by private individuals and companies. The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) gathers information on the weather, climate and seismology and performs research. The Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management, Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT), the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency and the KNMI are agencies of the ministry.

Directorate-General for Aviation and Maritime Affairs

The Directorate-General for Aviation and Maritime Affairs is responsible for policy development in the fields of:

• maritime affairs;
• aviation.

The Directorate-General for Aviation and Maritime Affairs is headed by Director-General Ruth Clabbers.

Directorate-General for the Environment and International Affairs

The Directorate-General for the Environment and International Affairs is responsible for policy development in the fields of:

• a clean, safe, healthy and sustainable human environment;
• air quality;
• circular economy;
• sustainability;
• environmental security and environmental risks.

Futhermore the Directorate-General coordinates the international component of the ministries policy.

The Directorate-General for the Environment and International Affairs is headed by Director-General Afke van Rijn.

Directorate-General for Mobility

The Directorate-General for Mobility is responsible for policy development in the fields of:

• roads;
• road safety;
• public transport and railways;
• bicycle traffic;
• sustainable mobility.

The Directorate-General for Mobility is headed by Director-General Kees van der Burg.

Directorate-General for Water and Soil Affairs

The Directorate-General for Water and Soil Affairs is responsible for policy development in the fields of:

• water policy and flood risk management;
• climate adaptation;
• water projects in specific areas;
• water and soil issues.

The Directorate-General for Water and Soil Affairs is headed by Director-General Jaap Slootmaker.

Rijkswaterstaat

Rijkswaterstaat is the executive organization of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. Rijkswaterstaat manages, maintains and develops the three major infrastructure networks of our country: the main road network, the main waterway network and the main water system.
More than 10,000 Rijkswaterstaat employees are working across the country to make the Netherlands accessible, safe and liveable. From one of the seven regional organizational units or one of the seven nationally operating organisations, they work daily on the implementation of Rijkswaterstaat's core tasks:

• a sustainable living environment;
• flood protection;
• sufficient and clean water for all water users;
• smooth and safe road and water traffic;
• reliable and useful information and data.

Important actual focal points in the organizational development in this are working on a climate-proof Netherlands and working on the major replacement and renovation task for the main infrastructure of our country with professional asset management.
Rijkswaterstaat is managed by deputy director-general Patricia Zorko.

Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT)

The Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) ensures compliance with statutory regulations pertaining to sustainability and physical safety.
The ILT is organised into seven inspectorate domains, which adopt an integrated approach in their supervision wherever possible. This reduces the burden of supervision and facilitates collaboration with other inspectorates and enforcement organisations. The inspectorate strives for an unequivocal supervisory relationship with its supervisees, increased collaboration with other inspectorates and a risk-oriented supervision policy based on trust and aimed at a reduction of supervision and administrative burdens.
Savings are achieved in eliminating duplications as a result of the merger and in reducing the number of executive and support functions. In the primary process, the inspectorate sets course for new supervision formats (digital inspections, system supervisions in case of diligent compliance), which render the inspections less labour-intensive and keep the level of compliance up to par. The simplifications in legislation and regulations and the decentralisation of responsibilities will also affect the staff capacity and deployment of the inspectorate. In this, central government confines itself to upholding state interests.

The inspectorate is led by Inspector-General Mattheus Wassenaar.

Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL)

The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) is the national institute for strategic policy analysis on environment, nature, and spatial planning issues of national and international significance. The agency contributes to political and administrative decision-making by conducting outlook studies, analyses and evaluations that take an integrated approach. Policy relevance is the prime focus in all studies, which are commissioned by the Ministry, other national bodies, and international agencies. These studies investigate current environmental, nature and spatial quality, and identify and explore future social trends and evaluate potential policy options.
PBL is headed by Director Mr. J.T. Mommaas.

For more information, see: www.pbl.nl/en/

Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI)

The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute is the national institute for weather, the climate and seismology. The KNMI provides weather information in the areas of safety, the economy and a sustainable environment to the public, the government, the aviation sector and the shipping industry. In addition, the KNMI performs research into climate change and earthquakes and related phenomena.  

This combination of infrastructure, technology, science and service provision is unique in the field of weather, the climate and seismology. At the global level, the KNMI works in close collaboration with other institutions and research institutes.

The major task of the KNMI is to make available the knowledge, data and information it has at its disposal. From its central weather room in De Bilt, the institute provides weather forecasts and warnings 24-hours a day. The KNMI delivers meteorological data and provides services on location especially for Schiphol national airport and Rotterdam Airport.

The climate research the KNMI performs is focused on observing, understanding and predicting changes in the climate system. The choice of research subjects is based on national and international climate research and on questions submitted by the government and civil society.

The KNMI is an agency of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. The duties of the institute are set forth in the KNMI Act.
The Managing Director is Dr. Maarten van Aalst.

Knowledge, Innovation and Strategy

Knowledge, innovation and strategy are important themes for Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management in which additional resources will be expressly invested in the years ahead. I&W has a Knowledge, Innovation and Strategy Agenda.

Strategy Department

Strategy Department is a small, high-quality unit supporting the Secretary-General as the knowledge, innovation and strategy portfolio holder for I&W.  

Netherlands Institute for Transport Policy Analysis (KiM)

The Netherlands Institute for Transport Policy Analysis (KiM) performs research in the area of mobility. Through exploratory studies and policy analyses, the institute lays the basis for the mobility policy. The institute’s products are independent of policy-based and political steering. The policy Directorates-General of I&W and the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) are involved in drawing up the research programme of the KiM.
The Director is Mr H.L. Stipdonk.

Administrative and Legal Affairs Department (HBJZ)

The Administrative and Legal Affairs Department (HBJZ) contributes, in its role as ‘policy partner’, to the realization of the policy objectives of the Ministry. The department concerns itself with legislation, legal and administrative advice, covenants, agreements and basis for decisions and conducts legal proceedings. HBJZ connects the various topics which fall within the scope of the Ministry from a legal perspective. HBJZ is responsible for legal quality assurance for the whole of the Ministry and also functions as a guardian of the principles of proper governance and the rule of law. HBJZ acts as an advisor for its colleagues from the implementation and inspection departments, and is working, through a network with other Ministries, on the further development of national policies on (the quality of) legislation. On an international level, HBJZ cooperates with its partners in other member states on developments in European legislative policies (Better Regulation). HBJZ is headed by its managing director, Ms G.M. ter Huurne.