Vietnam Mandates Cloud-First Approach for Government Systems
Hanoi adopts a national strategy requiring agencies to share cloud resources by 2030, ending isolated server purchases.
Key points
- Vietnam’s new digital strategy mandates a “Cloud First” approach, requiring agencies to share infrastructure rather than buy individual servers.
- Government bodies must align their digital architectures with the national framework by January 2027.
- The goal is to rank in the top 50 for e-government by 2030 by standardizing databases for AI readiness.
Vietnam is shifting its digital government strategy from standalone projects to a unified, cloud-based architecture. New national directives now treat cloud infrastructure as a core design principle rather than an optional technology choice for individual agencies.
This policy shift aims to position the country among the world’s top 50 in e-government by 2030. By prioritizing shared resources, the government intends to reduce redundancy and accelerate the deployment of artificial intelligence applications across public services.
Shared architecture replaces isolated systems
According to reporting by vietnamnews.vn, the new framework organizes digital capabilities into four layers, with infrastructure and cybersecurity at the base. The central government will develop shared platforms, while ministries and local authorities are required to connect to them rather than build separate systems.
Agencies have until the end of January 2027 to align their digital structures with this framework. The model explicitly adopts a “Cloud First” approach, prioritizing the reuse of existing infrastructure to avoid fragmented investments that often lead to compatibility issues and higher long-term costs.
Changing the public investment model
The move reshapes how the state spends money on technology. Instead of purchasing and maintaining dedicated servers for every project, government bodies are shifting to cloud services where they pay based on actual usage. This reduces the burden of managing hardware lifecycles and allows for faster application deployment.
The National Data Centre, operational since mid-2026, has already hosted the National Public Service Portal. Other systems linked to shared databases are expected to consolidate there in phases, while remaining needs like disaster recovery and AI computing capacity will be handled through cloud services.
High performance meets practical limits
The strategy targets 100 percent standardization of shared databases by 2030 to support AI readiness. However, the transition requires significant coordination to ensure data access controls are robust and that provincial intelligent operation centers can handle increased workloads without service interruptions.
