Google has announced that it has signed a deal with the Dutch government that will allow the latter to make use of Google Workspace in the public sector. The search giant pointed out that this deal was made following the government’s decision to use Google Workspace for Education last year.
As part of the deal, public sector bodies in the Netherlands will get access to a range of Google tools such as Chat, Docs, Meet, and Sheets. Google said that the agreement will make it easier for the government to use these tools and improve digital services for citizens by enabling hybrid-working.
Joris Schoonis, managing director Benelux, Google Cloud, said:
“We"ve designed Google Workspace products and solutions, including Google Workspace for Education, to secure and protect the privacy of our customers" data. Our tools will empower the Dutch public sector, while adhering to strict security and privacy requirements. We are also looking forward to supporting greater choice and flexibility for public sector entities and are already doing so for education institutions across the Netherlands, providing access to innovative solutions, with cutting-edge security and greater resiliency.”
Google didn’t say when the government would begin using the tools but presumably, they can do so from today. The Dutch government has been looking at this solution for some time. It began checks on Google Workspace back in 2020 to ensure that it complied with the GDPR. The parties came to an agreement and Google says they will carry on working together on recommendations that the government provided.