Developing a national cybersecurity strategy (NSC) is one of the most important investments a government can make to secure its digital future. As the global digital ecosystem expands, nations that act early to establish a clear, coordinated approach to cybersecurity are far better positioned to safeguard their citizens, economies, and critical infrastructure. 

An effective NCS provides a shared vision and roadmap for government, industry, and civil society to manage cyber risks collectively. Without such a framework efforts are often fragmented, leaving critical gaps that adversaries can exploit. By setting priorities, aligning resources, and clarifying responsibilities, a national cybersecurity strategy ensures that cybersecurity is a core pillar of national security, economic resilience, and public trust in the digital age.

“Developing a National Cybersecurity Strategy” introduces a practical playbook for developing an NCS, outlining the essential components that should be included in the strategy document. Recognizing that there is no one-size-fits-all solution, the playbook offers a flexible framework that equips governments with tools to design, implement, and continuously improve strategies tailored to their specific environments. It also examines common lessons learned and best practices from countries around the world, providing practical examples that governments can adapt to their own contexts.

The playbook identifies concrete actions policymakers should take when developing a strategy, including:

• Assessing national cyber risks
• Establishing clear strategic objectives
• Engaging the private sector and civil society
• Designing effective governance structures
• Appropriately resourcing cybersecurity efforts

In addition, the paper recommends key policy pillars for inclusion in a national cybersecurity strategy, such as:

• Investing in cybersecurity education and workforce development
• Raising technology and security standards across the digital ecosystem
• Adapting to artificial intelligence
• Preparing for quantum computing and other emerging technologies
• Protecting government systems; strengthening resilience and response planning for critical infrastructure
• Harmonizing incident reporting requirements
• Establishing clear information-sharing guidelines

The paper emphasizes the importance of built-in flexibility and regular review mechanisms to ensure strategies remain responsive to an evolving threat landscape and technological change.

To provide further context, the playbook includes an in-depth review of national cybersecurity strategies from nine countries, as well as an analysis of several relevant international agreements.

The paper was the culmination of the Center’s past experiences working with governments, trade associations, and multilateral partners to develop national cybersecurity strategies, as well as the Center’s ongoing work in this area. Drawing on these experiences, Cisco presented the importance of examining this issue and supported the effort through funding, enabling the Center to synthesize lessons learned from a wide range of approaches tried in practice 

To increase relevance and utility, the Center presented a first draft to a collection of international government cyber experts, private sector companies, and other relevant stakeholders, at a Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) roundtable on this topic. We want to thank CSIS for hosting us and allowing us to receive valuable feedback from the high-level participants. We also want to thank Cisco for funding this paper, as well as contributing their expertise to the final product.

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