The COVID-19 pandemic is driving governments around the world to invest more heavily in IT.

One of the biggest lasting effects of the pandemic is an accelerated migration to the cloud and transition to digital-first workflows. The accelerated pace, however, has put a strain on IT departments across industries, including government.

As a result, according to Gartner, 2022 will see a 6.5% increase in government IT spending, for a total of $557.3 billion.

“Governments will continue to accelerate investments in digital technologies to respond and recover from the continuing evolution of public health uncertainties due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Irma Fabular, research vice president at Gartner. “The disruptions caused by the pandemic have also reinforced a key digital government tenet, which is public policy and technology are inseparable.”

Some of the fastest growing segments include the modernization of IT infrastructure and applications; improving public services responsiveness and resilience; and adoption of citizen digital identity.

“Digital identity is moving beyond authenticating citizens online and signing remote transactions,” said Fabular. “To raise the chances for greater adoption of digital identity, governments must treat privacy, security and user convenience as critical success factors.”