Our colleagues Lars Quint and Rosy van Deursen attended the VNG (Association of Netherlands Municipalities) event on digitisation in municipal practice. It was an inspiring event where the growing need for strategic digital autonomy and national IT collaboration took centre stage.

During the event, it became clear once again: building a digitally resilient government can only be achieved through close cooperation between municipalities, knowledge networks, and the market. The recent situation regarding DigiD also highlights how vulnerable digital government services can be, according to Het Financieele Dagblad (article: https://fd.nl/politiek/1597783/kabinet-verbiedt-overname-solvinity-na-advies-toezichthouder).

Solvinity, the company behind DigiD, was on the verge of being acquired by the American company Kyndryl. To prevent this, State Secretary Willemijn Aerdts (Economic Affairs) intervened and blocked the acquisition to protect the public interest. US legislation could indeed enable the government to demand access to data in secret.

Clappform makes data simple, secure, and immediately usable. Our team of European developers builds and maintains the platform with a deep understanding of the public sector and the daily challenges organisations face. Data is stored on European soil, ensuring our customers always know where their data is stored, who manages it, and that everything complies with European laws and regulations.

For us, digital sovereignty is not an abstract concept, but a core principle. Organisations must be able to rely on technology where control, storage, and development are organised transparently and independently. This is particularly essential within the public sector to retain control over data, processes, and continuity.

Curious about how we help organisations strengthen strategic digital autonomy and implement data-driven solutions? Please do not hesitate to contact us.