## 1 Introduction  
The strategic adoption of cloud computing by government departments represents a critical pathway to economic and social development in emerging economies. In developing countries like Nigeria, cloud technologies offer the transformative potential to improve public service accessibility, reduce socioeconomic disparities, and foster inclusive governance through efficient digital service delivery [1, 2, 3]. The digital transformational journey of Nigeria is particularly compelling given its position as Africa's largest economy and most populous nation, where over 220 million citizens require efficient public services amid persistent infrastructure deficits and resource constraints [4]. Notwithstanding the projections that cloud adoption could generate NGN 30.2 trillion between 2023 and 2033, only 27% of Nigerian organisations adopted cloud computing as of 2021, significantly lower than the 49% adoption rate in Western Europe, highlighting the urgency of addressing adoption barriers [5]. Cloud adoption enables governments to overcome resource constraints, democratise access to public services, and create development opportunities previously hindered by technological limitations [6]. However, significant barriers continue to impede the full realisation of these development benefits through government cloud adoption [7; 8; 9]. These challenges primarily encompass information security vulnerabilities, privacy concerns, regulatory compliance issues, and the complexity of cloud infrastructure implementation, all of which directly impact development outcomes by undermining citizen trust and institutional effectiveness. Information security and privacy challenges have consistently ranked among the most persistent concerns in cloud computing adoption [10; 11], with particular implications for development in resource-constrained contexts. In Nigeria's unique context, these challenges are compounded by the country's complex governance structure with varying levels of digital maturity and cybersecurity capabilities [12; 13]. As governments increasingly rely on cloud platforms for government-to-government (G2G) and government-to-citizen (G2C) systems, they face escalating information security threats and privacy risks that can erode the developmental gains of digital transformation [14; 15; 16; 17]. Addressing these challenges is essential not only for operational efficiency but also for building the trust necessary for citizens to participate in digitally enabled development initiatives. Yet, existing measurement instruments could not capture the unique nature of Nigeria's governance structure, regulatory compliance, and cultural and regional contexts that characterised Nigeria's cloud adoption landscape. While extensive research has examined cloud computing adoption in developed economies and emerging studies have explored cloud adoption challenges in developing countries, a critical gap exists in understanding the unique nature and challenges within the Nigerian context. This gap is particularly significant for Nigeria, due to the absence of literature that captures relevant aspects of research unique to government cloud computing adoption challenges. This study addresses a critical gap in understanding how security and privacy concerns influence the development potential of government cloud adoption in emerging economies. Specifically, we investigate the following question: \"What measurement scales can accurately assess these challenging factors influencing government intention to adopt cloud services and enhance development outcomes?\" This research question directly explores the intersection of technological adoption barriers and their implications for human and social development through digital governance. Through a comprehensive literature review, we identified key challenging factors and relevant theoretical frameworks for examining government cloud adoption within a development context.