Andorra General Council approves €2.6M budget for Andorra Digital after rejecting opposition amendments

The General Council has approved a €2.6 million budget allocation for Andorra Digital, the public company handling the country's digital transformation, after the governing Democrats and Ciutadans Compromesos majority defeated three opposition amendments to reject the text. The final vote was 17 in favour and 10 against. El Periòdic reported the figure as around €2.5 million.

The debate again exposed disagreement over whether digital transformation should be delivered by a public company or directly by the government. Concòrdia, the Social Democrats (PS) and Andorra Endavant all sought to return the text to the government. Public Function and Digital Transformation Minister Marc Rossell said the change does not increase public spending, arguing that the resources, the activity and the staff already existed and that the budget previously held by Andorra Digital within Andorra Recerca i Innovació was simply being transferred to the new company.

Concòrdia leader Cerni Escalé asked why two separate structures were needed and why the government had not planned coordination between the company's creation, the transfer of its functions and a sufficient budget. Rossell rejected the suggestion that the company duplicates the administration's work, saying the government sets standards and guarantees technological operations while Andorra Digital drives and executes transformation with a country-wide vision.

PS councillor Laia Moliné said more than €2.1 million of the roughly €2.5 million — over eight euros in every ten — goes to work carried out by outside companies. She warned of the consequences of such dependence on suppliers, asking what alternatives would exist if a manufacturer raised prices or changed conditions, and how costly a change of provider would be. She also argued that public officials are subject to confidentiality obligations in a way that external firms and companies are not to the same degree, raising concerns about citizens' data and digital sovereignty.

Rossell responded that public companies are governed by the same data-sensitivity criteria as the government, citing Andorra Telecom as an example. Democrats councillor Meritxell López said the commitment to protecting citizens' data is the same whether it is managed by Andorra Digital, the general administration or the government, and noted that the company is subject to public contracting law and audit by the Tribunal de Comptes. She described the model as one that coordinates strategic projects and draws on private-sector expertise without creating future dependencies.

Andorra Endavant's Carine Montaner said her group had opposed the company's creation and, for consistency, wanted the text returned to the government. She argued that public resources need to be optimised and that there are too many public entities whose work should be checked against what is already done. She said she regretted voting for the Housing Institute and that it could be eliminated if it produces no results.

Rossell also said documentation required from citizens and businesses had been cut by nearly 30%, and cited a Microsoft tender that can be used nationwide through a framework agreement to which other entities may adhere. Closing the debate, Moliné said digital transformation means rethinking processes rather than simply buying more technology, and urged the chamber to place more trust in the country's public employees.