Cloud Computing Adoption by Government Agencies

Published 18/09/2023

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1. Introduction

Based on the role of the Digital Government Authority (DGA) in enhancing digital performance within government Agencies, improving the quality of digital services provided, and enhancing beneficiary experience in line with the DGA’s strategic directions, and in application of the best international practices in various fields related to digital government, DGA has prepared the “Guideline for Adopting Cloud Computing by Government Agencies” to take full advantage of cloud computing services by hosting integrated infrastructure capabilities and advanced cloud computing technologies in the region and to accelerate adoption of cloud computing services and their application in government Agencies, as well as to provide a comprehensive and clear guidance on the selection of cloud service providers (CSPs) in accordance with the adopted principles for classifying data and other related regulations issued by relevant authorities.

2. Objectives

The guideline's main objective is to accelerate adoption of cloud computing services in government agencies through:

Providing comprehensive and clear guidance for selecting service providers according to the principles of data classification approved and issued by various relevant government agencies.
Providing necessary support in the process of adopting cloud computing services, which requires migration of current services to the cloud computing system.
Improving productivity level of government agencies, contributing to increased flexibility and speed, supporting expansion, reducing costs, and ensuring business continuity.
Contributing to achieving the targeted adoption rate of cloud computing services in Saudi Arabia and measuring the progress made in this process.

3. Scope

These guidelines identify key aspects that can support government Agencies in their cloud computing adoption journeys, and Saudi Arabia's established strategy and vision in this regard. The guidelines also focus on adopting cloud computing services to ensure that this process is securely and efficiently executed, according to the following:

Summary of key sources of information from the regulating agencies and authorities assisting government agencies in their cloud adoption efforts.
Methodology for cloud services adoption and data classification considerations.
Guidance on CSPs selection criteria based on the approved principles of data classification, workloads as well as the classification criteria issued by relevant government authorities.
Application workload analysis and considerations to accelerate practices of cloud computing services adoption.

4. Target Audience

This guideline targets government agencies and transformation leaders responsible for digitalizing government activities and procedures, as well as operators concerned with administration of digital government activities.

5. Overview on Cloud Computing

For more information; Check the digital version.

6. Table of Definitions

The following words and phrases, wherever mentioned in this document, shall have the meanings indicated in front of each of them, unless the context requires otherwise.

Term	Definition
DGA	Digital Government Authority
Government Agency	Ministries, authorities, public institutions, councils, national centers including any additional form of a public agency
Digital Government	Supporting administrative, organizational, and operational processes within and among government sectors to achieve digital transformation and develop, improve, and enable easy and effective access to information and government services.
Digital Transformation	Digitally and strategically transforming and developing business standards and models that would rely on data, technologies, and ICT.
Beneficiary	Citizens, residents, visitors, government agencies, private sector, non-for-profit sector, inside or outside the KSA that require to interact with a government agency to receive any of the services offered in Saudi Arabia.
Cloud Computing	A model which enables convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g. networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.
Cloud Hosting	Services defined as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and/or Platform as a Service (PaaS), and/or Software as a Service (SaaS)
Software As A Service (SaaS)	Is a software that works in a cloud computing environment that enables users to access software applications over the internet, rather than installing and running programs on their computers or servers
On-Premise Infrastructure	Data center infrastructure which is owned and operated by a government agency for its exclusive use and is equivalent to the physical assets that make up data centers, including data center facility, data center uninterruptible power supply and power generators, data center cooling, fire suppression, data center LAN network cabling, data center physical security and physical wide-area network connectivity.
Infrastructure As A Service (IaaS)	Is a cloud computing model in which a provider offers virtualized computing resources over the internet, including servers, storage, networking, and operating systems, that users can rent and use to run their own applications and manage their own data.
Co-location Infrastructure	Colocation is the placement of enterprise-owned compute, storage and networking assets in a third-party leased facility. Infrastructure is equivalent to the physical assets that make up data centers, including data center facility, data center uninterruptible power supply and power generators, data center cooling, fire suppression, data center LAN network cabling, data center physical security and physical wide-area network connectivity.
Private Cloud	The Cloud Services are provisioned for exclusive use by a single governmental agency comprising multiple consumers (e.g., business units). It may be managed and operated by the organization, a third party, or some combination of them. Private Clouds may be deployed On-Premise at a governmental agency or Off-Premise.
Public Cloud	Any cloud computing system available for open use by an agency or an individual.
Government Community Cloud	Cloud computing system provided for the exclusive use of a closed group of subscribers who share some social, business, administrative or other goals, such as : DEEM.
Platform As A Service (PaaS)	Are services that provide specific platforms that enable users to develop, operate and manage applications without complicating the construction and maintenance of the basic infrastructure usually required for the development and launch of applications.
Off-Premise	Off-Premises means hardwareHardware and software that is deployed to a Data Center that is used by a community of Governmental Agencies and/or a Data Center that is open for use by the general public
Cloud Computing Services or Cloud Services	Provide ICT services through cloud, this includes storing, migrating, or processing subscriber’s data in the cloud computing system.
On-Premise	On-Premises means hardware and software that is deployed to a Data Center that is exclusively used by a single Governmental Agency or a Private Cloud.
Cloud User	Any individual person making use of a CSP's Cloud Services provided to a Cloud Subscribing Governmental Agency, based on a relationship between that Cloud Subscribing Governmental Agency and the Cloud User. An individual person can be both a Cloud User and a Cloud Subscribing Governmental Agency if the Cloud contract is concluded for the provision of Cloud Computing Services to a single Cloud User.
Cloud Service Provider (CSP)	Any person providing Cloud Services to the public either directly or indirectly, such as a Cloud Provider, Cloud Broker, Cloud Aggregator, reseller or agent of a Cloud Provider, which are defined in the following as:
Cloud Provider	Any natural or legal person providing Cloud Services to the public (agency or individual) through datacenters it owns and / or manages itself, in whole or in part.
Cloud Broker	Any natural or legal person that acts as an intermediary between one or more CSPs and Cloud Subscribing Governmental Agencies.
Cloud Aggregator	A type of Cloud Broker that packages and integrates several Cloud Services into one or more composite services that it offers to Cloud Subscribing Governmental Agencies
Reseller /agent of a Cloud Provider	A reseller or agent of a Cloud Provider refers to a company, or organization that acts as an intermediary or representative between customers and a cloud service provider. Their role involves selling or distributing cloud services and solutions on behalf of the cloud provider to end-users or organizations.
Hybrid Cloud	The Cloud Services are a composition of two or more distinct Cloud Services (private, community, or public) that remain unique services, but are bound together by standardized or proprietary technology that typically enables portability of data and / or workloads and / or applications (e.g., Cloud bursting for load balancing between Clouds). Hybrid Clouds are deployed to a mix of On-Premise and Off-Premise.

Term	Definition

Official government website of the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Links to official Saudi websites end withgov.sa

Government websites use the HTTPS protocol for encryption and security.

Cloud Computing Adoption by Government Agencies

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