alt Hacker News> can't compete with private companies, especially not in IT services.
FWIW, SURF [1] (the Dutch university network operator) successefully operates much more complex digital infrastructure. So, going with a fully private infrastructure provider was a choice, not a necessity.
Using SURF would not be without precedent. The Greek government has been successfully using GRNET [2] (the Greek counterpart of SURF) for hosting and developing digital infrastructure.