Romania prepares to spend EUR 45 mln on government cloud

Romania’s Communications Ministry is getting ready to spend up to EUR 45 million on developing a government cloud structure. Close to 85% of the funds will come from EU funds and the remaining 15% from the state budget. The Communications Ministry will work on this project with the Agency for Romania’s Digital Agenda (AADR) and the Special Telecommunications Service (STS), according to Hotnews.ro. This government cloud structure should be used by all public institutions in Romania in the future and future apps used in public administration should be developed in this cloud, according to the Communications Ministry. Communications minister Petru Cojocaru said this project aims to reduce the public institutions’ expenses with IT equipment and services. Moreover, public institutions will no longer have to ensure maintenance for their IT systems. Former communications minister Augustin Jianu, who served in the Sorin Grindeanu cabinet and last year left the Social Democratic Party (PSD) to join former prime minister Victor Ponta’s new party – Pro Romania, wrote on Facebook that the government cloud program, in its current form, will surpass the negative performance of the eRomania project, an online platform for which Romania’s Government spent EUR 12 million, but hasn’t been updated or used. Jianu says the Communications Ministry is ready to build this system without knowing what it will be used for and by whom. When he was minister, Jianu also wanted to start a government cloud project, but he wanted to develop it in public-private partnership. editor@romania-insider.com