The Saudi Digital Government Authority (DGA) recently published the “Whole of Government Platforms Policy” and the “Government and Compliance Policy”, marking the DGA’s latest efforts in operationalizing the Kingdom’s E-Government Regulatory Framework, which was issued in 2021.
The Whole of Government Platforms Policy aims to facilitate the interaction between government entities by regulating digital government platforms for shared services, including cloud computing. Among other things, the Policy calls on all government entities and private sector companies developing or operating digital platforms to enhance compliance, user experience, digital adoption, service maintenance, and innovation. In alignment with the Ministry of Communication and Information (MCIT)’s “Cloud First Policy” and the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC)’s “Cloud Computing Regulatory Framework”, the policy also urges all government entities to adopt cloud solutions for digital platforms.
Similarly, in terms of e-government service delivery, the Governance and Compliance Policy stipulates that all government entities should: oversee e-government service effectiveness through policymaking and evaluation; strengthen the protection and confidentiality of data; enhance the return on investment for digital government business; facilitate the issuance of licenses and accreditations to private sector service developers and operators; and enable procurement.
In line with Saudi Vision 2030, both policies seek to enhance government effectiveness through the development of e-government service delivery, which creates public-private partnership opportunities for private sector digital service providers. It is also noteworthy that both policies have established the foundation for a wider expansion of cloud adoption in the public sector, benefiting cloud service providers’ business operation and expansion in the Kingdom. Therefore, we strongly encourage e-government and cloud service providers to engage with government entities regarding business opportunities at this stage.
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Access Partnership is closely monitoring developments regarding the “Whole of Government Platforms Policy” and the “Government and Compliance Policy”. For more information regarding the policies or for engagement in Saudi Arabia, please contact Hussein Abul-Enein at [email protected].
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