The administrative board oversees the management board, approves plans put forward and the annual figures, represents the company in legal matters together with the management board and deals with questions of fundamental policy.

It comprises 16 members and generally meets three times a year. The members of the administrative board are elected by the shareholders' assembly until the end of the last ordinary shareholders' meeting in the next but one calendar year.

The administrative board comprises government representatives (Federal Foreign Office, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), representatives of the work group Lernen und Helfen in Übersee (Learning and Helping Overseas, AKLHÜ), political party representatives, public figures and development worker/DED permanent staff representatives. In 2007-2009, administrative board members are as follows:

Chairman of the Administrative Board:
Dr. Uwe Runge
President emeritus of the Consistory of the Evangelical Church in Berlin-Brandenburg

Deputy Chairman:
Hans-Jürgen Beerfeltz
Secretary of State for the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

Deputy Chairman:
Dr. Susanne Nonnen
Senior Experts Service (SES)

Further members are:

Gerhard Thiedemann
Federal Foreign Office (AA)

Eva Maria Welskop-Deffaa
Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth

Michael Steeb
Association for Development Cooperation (AGEH)

Dr. Konrad von Bonin
Church Development Service (EED)

Dr. Kambiz Ghawami
World University Service (WUS)

Dr. Wolf Bauer
MP, CDU

Hans-Christian Ströbele
MP, Die Grünen

Dr. Karl Addicks
MP, FDP

Dr. Sascha Raabe
MP, SPD

Prof. Dr. Siegmar Schmidt
University Koblenz-Landau

Bruno Schuckert
Representative of development workers

Christiane Oermann
Representative of development workers