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Image: RON
As the World Economic Forum (WEF) continues in Davos this week, a less visible but increasingly urgent issue is gaining traction among policymakers and tech leaders: digital sovereignty, the ability of states to control their digital infrastructure, data and systems independent of external corporate and geopolitical pressures.
While discussions at the Swiss Alpine Forum traditionally focus on growth, innovation, and geopolitical tensions, stakeholders are now grappling with how sovereignty itself is being reshaped by the digital age.
Governments worldwide are grappling with the fact that platforms, data and digital infrastructure, once mere tools, have become strategic levers of power controlled by a few global tech giants.
“Governments increasingly deliver public services, engage citizens and store sensitive data on private systems they do not control,” says Prof Eldrid Jordaan, whose work highlights this challenge.
“When public interest technology is built on private infrastructure, the state becomes a tenant in its own house.”
Digital sovereignty is not just about data storage; it involves control over where and how data is stored, processed and governed, as well as the ability to enforce local laws and protect democratic accountability.
Analysts describe digital sovereignty as a multi-layered concept that extends beyond where data is stored. At its core is data sovereignty, which ensures that information is governed by a country’s own laws and regulations, regardless of where it is processed. Closely linked is operational sovereignty, the ability of a state to run, manage and secure critical digital systems without being dependent on foreign entities or external operational control.
A third pillar, technological sovereignty, focuses on a nation’s capacity to develop, own and govern its own digital technologies rather than relying entirely on imported platforms and tools. Taken together, these dimensions determine whether a country genuinely controls its digital destiny, or whether essential public and economic functions are effectively outsourced to technology companies headquartered far beyond its borders.
The implications of weak digital sovereignty are wide-ranging and touch the foundations of modern governance and economic stability. When essential citizen engagement platforms and public services operate on privately owned digital infrastructure, decision-making power and accountability can drift outside democratic institutions.
At the same time, countries with limited control over critical digital systems face heightened economic risk, including exposure to supply-chain disruptions, foreign regulatory decisions and geopolitical shocks beyond their control.
Privacy and legal compliance are also at stake, as sovereign control over data helps ensure that information is stored and used in accordance with local laws rather than foreign jurisdictions.
Conversely, experts argue that strong digital sovereignty can act as a catalyst for innovation and competitiveness, enabling governments and organisations to nurture local technology ecosystems and build digital capabilities aligned with national priorities and public interest.
Across Europe, digital sovereignty has moved from buzzword to policy priority. Politicians and cybersecurity officials have expressed concern over dependency on U.S. cloud and software providers, arguing that this reliance weakens strategic autonomy and resilience.
Similarly, Nato has pursued secure sovereign cloud arrangements with major tech firms to ensure sensitive defence and analytics workloads remain controllable and compliant with security demands.
At Davos, observers expect leaders to push for a shift from abstract debates about trust and ethics toward concrete strategies for reducing digital dependency.
Jordaan frames this as pro-democracy rather than anti-innovation, asserting that foundational platforms should be built and governed in the public interest.
As geopolitical tensions and technological shifts (including AI) continue to dominate global risk assessments, digital sovereignty is likely to remain a central topic for states and international institutions alike.
Critics argue that without structural changes in how digital infrastructure is owned and regulated, sovereignty itself may become conditional in the digital age.
For policymakers, technologists and business leaders watching Davos, the question is no longer whether digital sovereignty mattersm it’s how far they’re willing to go to secure it.
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