President Ruto should consider cloud migration

There is a bounty of benefits to migrating government services to the Cloud.

It reduces costs, protects data better, streamlines services and enhances business continuity and disaster recovery in the event of cybersecurity-orchestrated data breaches.

Despite these benefits, many government efforts to migrate to the Cloud are mixed, problematic or nonexistent.

Several reasons contribute to this hesitation, including a lack of clarity on how to move to the cloud and cloud security concerns.

However, there are many examples to learn from. A legion of leading sectors, including FinTech, Telcom, banks, and many others, have demonstrated that Cloud computing is a wave that is here to stay.

Developed countries have migrated most of their essential services to the Cloud, such as water, electricity, banking and transportation management.

Have you ever wondered where your Gmail is stored? What about your Google Photos or Instagram posts? 

The only thing you need to access them is a digital device and an internet connection.

It's because a cloud service provider stores your information and makes it available to you whenever you need it, regardless of your location. 

Administration costs

That's a basic demonstration of cloud computing. To modernise the government and provide better, round-the-clock services to Kenyans, President William Ruto should consider moving many government services to the Cloud. 

By reducing their need for on-premises computers, other hardware, and software, the government can lower its IT administration costs.

Due to its economies of scale, cloud service providers offer continuous and efficient services at a fraction of current costs.

Despite the initial investment required to move to the Cloud, savings over time are likely to show that the total cost of the services is lower than the current traditional setup.

Dynamic shifts 

Cloud is not just good for the national government but also for the devolved governments. Cloud services are a boon for the devolved government services too.

By using it, county governments can respond more quickly to the often-dynamic shifts in computing capacity needs – such as requests for service from their populations – and data storage needs.

Cloud is arguably more secure. Cloud providers continuously update their software with patches, which makes it less likely that a hacker will be able to exploit a known vulnerability.

Furthermore, users can access their Cloud data even if a breach occurs, learn which data (if any) has been compromised, and stop intruders from gaining access to any other data.

Cloud adoption will also allow the government to convert many capital expenses into operating expenses, making it easier to make long-term plans and adjust them as circumstances change.

It also helps the government to move from antiquated software and hardware to modern technology. By making Cloud a top priority, President Ruto's government can join the league of highly digital and efficient governments.

Mr Wambugu is an Informatician. [email protected] @Samwambugu2