Denmark’s Ministry of Digital Affairs will move away from Microsoft services, including Windows and Office 365. The ministry will shift to Linux and LibreOffice as replacements, as reported by Politiken.
The migration will happen over time. Half of the ministry’s staff will move to LibreOffice and Linux between June and August. The rest of the staff is expected to follow suit between September and November.
We’ve seen government offices shift away from Windows and Microsoft products before, but the reasons cited have usually been cost related. While using Linux and LibreOffice will save some money, Denmark’s Ministry of Digital Affairs highlighted a different reason for the move: digital sovereignty.
Denmark wants to have control over its own data and systems. Denmark’s Minister for Digital Affairs Caroline Stage Olsen said:
“It is not about isolation or digital nationalism. We should not turn our backs completely on global technology companies – many of them provide solutions that we benefit from. This applies both today and in the future. But we must never make ourselves so dependent on so few that we can no longer act freely. Too much public digital infrastructure is currently tied up with very few foreign suppliers. This makes us vulnerable.”
The above quote was translated using Edge’s built-in translation feature, so it may not be an exact representation of Olsen’s LinkedIn post.
Copenhagen, which is both Denmark’s capital and most populous city, already planned to cut Microsoft services. The Copenhagen Audit Committee also spoke of digital sovereignty.
“If we suddenly can’t send emails or communicate internally because of a political fallout, that’s a huge problem,” said the committee.
Aarhus, the second-largest city in Denmark, also had plans to become independent from Microsoft. Politiken reported on the two largest cities in Denmark announcing plans to cut ties with Microsoft software.
The ministry has a backup plan in case the move runs into issues. “If phasing out proves to be too complicated, we can revert back to Microsoft in an instant,” said Stage Olsen.
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