Microsoft, Maldivian government partners in software licensing

Microsoft has signed a software licensing contract with Maldivian government, allowing the government license for Microsoft software used in government offices.

The contract was signed in a ceremony held at Kurumba Maldives on Sunday by State Finance Minister Mohamed Ashmaly - who is in charge of running National Center for Information Technology (NCIT), and head of Microsoft Sri Lanka – Public Sector Poojitha Rajapaske.

Speaking to media after the ceremony, Ashmaly said that it was a 5-year contract for a governmental license.

‘If Microsoft Office or any other component releases any other version, upgrade and downgrade services will be available at a very low fee as part of this contract,” said Ashmaly.

He said that the contract with Microsoft was well-rounded, with government provided access to multiple types of Microsoft software.

Ashmaly said that public offices had previously bought Microsoft licenses separately, leading to differences in the charge.

“Having such a contract with the government means Microsoft license will be available at a steady rate for the next five years, making maintenance more convenient,” he said.

Ashmaly said that Microsoft would be able to provide security to public office systems and provide solutions to issues more quickly.

“Different public offices use different anti-virus scanners. Pre-governmental license, all malwares were detected at the lowest Microsoft security configuration. With this package,

Microsoft staff will be online 14/7, and provide immediate solutions to such security threats,” said Ashmaly.

With the contract, the information and communication network of the government will be standardized in accordance with ISO.

NCIT will be undertaking training of more than 3,000 civil servants to prepare for the change.