Ministry of Defence (Netherlands) - Organisation

Organisation

The ministry consists of the Minister and the State Secretary of Defence, the so called Central Staff, the Netherlands Armed Forces, and two supporting organisations.

The Central Staff of the ministry is led by the Secretary-General, the highest civil servant. The most important elements of the Central Staff are:

• several directorates for policy, personnel, materiel and finance
• the Defence Staff
• the Defence Audit Service
• the Security Authority
• the Military Intelligence and Security Service
• the Military Aviation Authority

The highest military official is the Commander of the Armed Forces (Commandant der Strijdkrachten). He is a four-star general and controls the branches of the armed forces, which are organised in three operational commands:

• the Royal Netherlands Navy Command;
• the Royal Netherlands Army Command;
• the Royal Netherlands Air Force Command.

The fourth branch of service, the Royal Netherlands Constabulary, falls directly under the Secretary-General.

The armed forces are supported by two civil organisations that reside under the Ministry of Defence:

• a Support Command (Commando DienstenCentra); and
• the Defence Materiel Organisation (Defensie Materieel Organisatie).

The ministry employs over 70,000 civil and military personnel.