We share the conclusions of the AOC workshop on new cloud services for the local world
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On June 4, the AOC organized a workshop with municipal ICT managers to explore the needs and opportunities of digital infrastructure services in the cloud. The meeting served to bring together particular situations, share global visions and build a joint workspace between city councils, supramunicipal entities and the AOC.
The involvement of the participants was maximum, demonstrating the shared will to advance towards an effective, secure and collaborative digital transformation. In this sense, as a major reflection of the workshop it is concluded that there is a long way to go and important decisions to be made, but that there is talent in our organizations to take on these challenges.
Main challenges detected
The reflections and demands were grouped into seven main blocks:
Data management: improve quality, control, integration and maintenance.
Innovation and technology: overcome outdated technology and encourage experimentation with AI.
Cybersecurity: strengthen protection and guarantee recovery from incidents.
Operational efficiency: automate processes and reduce response times.
Resources and economy: optimize costs and attract talent with limited resources.
Coordination and collaboration: improve the relationship between entities and suppliers.
Regulations and compliance: facilitate public procurement and guarantee legal compliance.
These blogs reflect shared challenges that are difficult to address individually. Compatibility and collaboration are key to moving forward.
Solution proposals
As a result of the debate, six priority lines of action were defined. The main proposals in each area are:
Shared and cloud digital infrastructure
Objective: Migrate securely, efficiently and scalablely to the cloud and shared services.
Featured proposals:
Redundant and high-availability shared data processing centers (CDP)
Còpia cloud backup and file replication
Shared data platform with regulatory compliance and cybersecurity.
Other proposals:
Shared Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
Virtual desktop
Safe space to share files
Data management and governance:
Objective: Improve the quality, interoperability and sovereignty of municipal data.
Featured proposals:
Common data inventories and catalogs
Country data dictionary
Public DataLake guaranteeing data sovereignty
Other proposals:
Common data repositories and services
Data cleaning tools
Standardized dashboards
Inter-administrative Business Intelligence
Practical application of AI and automation:
Objective: Introduce AI into public processes and services to increase efficiency and quality.
Featured proposals:
Basic AI toolkit for municipalities
Public shared AI infrastructure
Citizen support services with AI
Other proposals
Space to experiment with AI (proof of concept)
AI with models adapted to the local world
Shared knowledge base in AI
Superclerk (internal virtual assistants)
AI for decision-making
Recruitment generation and assistance
Procedural simplification with AI
Common services:
Objective: Share basic systems and avoid duplication of municipal ICT solutions.
Featured proposals:
Multi-entity case manager
Shared Smart Municipalities Platform
ERP/CRM solutions adapted to the local world
Other proposals
Accounting solutions, register, payroll...
Specific tools (prior appointment, etc.)
Security, regulatory compliance and technological sovereignty:
Objective: Guarantee security, legal compliance and control over ICT assets.
Featured proposals:
Shared cybersecurity incident management system (SIEM), with public oversight and advanced use of AI
Support in regulatory compliance: implementation of the national cybersecurity scheme and the general data protection regulation
Preventive and reactive cybersecurity operations service (SOC)
Other proposals
Common cybersecurity services
Cybersecurity best practices bank
Specialized technical support in cybersecurity
Catalog of certified cybersecurity solutions and implementation guide
ICT governance, recruitment and talent:
Objective: Improve the organizational and ICT execution capacity in the local public sector.
Outstanding proposals
Certification and repository of cybersecurity providers and solutions
Continuing training with the support of the EAPC
Supramunicipal teams of cybersecurity experts to support local entities with fewer resources.
Streamline AI procurement processes: models, standards, centralized public purchasing, etc.
From here, at the AOC, we face the challenge of proposing and developing solutions that help achieve these objectives, with the active collaboration of all the agents involved.
First AOC pilots
From the AOC, in 2025 the following pilots of new cloud services for the local world are being prioritized:
Data Platform for the Local World
Redundant and high-availability shared data processing centers (CDP)
Còpia cloud backup and file replication
Cybersecurity Incident Management System (SIEM) shared by local entities with few resources, with public oversight and advanced use of AI
On the other hand, the Barcelona Provincial Council is promoting (among others) the Local.IA project, as a basic AI toolkit for city councils.
Do you want to make us suggestions?
Do you have proposals for use cases for cloud solutions that the AOC should evaluate or prioritize?
