The term “cloud” means storage that can be accessed through the internet. The usage of Cloud Computing in Pakistan is unavoidable now. It is a model which allows access to an easy, on-request network. It provides a network of computing resources that are quickly accessible and can be provided without any interaction with the service provider or efforts of the management.
The Advantages of Cloud Computing
Local data storage systems have served us for decades. But then came the cloud! The advantages of cloud computing include cost reduction, more user-friendly, greater accessibility, more privacy of the data and better management, easy sharing of the data with almost anyone in the world, retrieving of the data is easier and more command over the documents.
The Current data management in Pakistan
In Pakistan, a lot of industries have adopted cloud computing and it has changed many industries quite a bit. Back in the previous decade, data storage used to require a lot of maintenance regularly. Today, the cloud has taken over. However, the majority of the country’s data management infrastructure is quite shattered and outdated. This is mainly because the internal IT teams of the companies are not competent enough to cater to the advances in technology. This results in the lack of new updates and technologies to be implemented in data management.
Need for Cloud Computing in Pakistan
Whilst other developing countries like India and Vietnam were there in the ranking list, Pakistan could not make it to the Cloud Readiness Index of Asia’s Association of Cloud Computing. In addition to this, Pakistan only has four notable service providers locally which include Jazz Garaj, Multinet, PTCL, and RapidCompute by Cybernet. Moreover, more than three-fourths of the budget of IT in large organizations goes for the maintenance of infrastructure and only 10-20% is left for modernization and gradation to new technologies. The finance sector, for instance, has a major need for cloud computing in their loan disbursements. If the whole process gets shifted to the cloud and becomes automated, a lot of human resource time that is spent on assessing the credit eligibility of the customers can be saved and loans can be disbursed timely. Essentially, a centralized data server minimizes the lack of information sharing that exists between departments of organizations that maintain internal storage of the data. Moreover, cloud systems have advanced analytical tools to improve precision and data processing speed.
Currently, in Pakistan, cloud computing is not being actively used in the government sector and various large data centers serve the needs of one organization, which is one of the main hindrances to the utilization of cloud computing to its fullest potential. The government will be better able to scrutinize and analyze the data, hence resulting in a better quality of electronic government services. In addition to this, the cost of running separate data centers for federal organizations will be reduced if cloud computing is in place, thereby decreasing the substantial load on the treasury of the country. Furthermore, the extent of the security of the data can also be increased, in particular for those organizations that are vulnerable to cyber-attacks frequently.
Cloud computing will not only serve as a foundation for introducing newer technologies but will also be a cause of reduction in costs for big industries in both the private and public sectors along with protecting the financial assets of the country.[1]
[1]Looking beyond the haze: Pakistan’s cloud computing prospects, Profit by Pakistan Today.