diff --git a/.gitlab-ci.yml b/.gitlab-ci.yml
index 1531b1d6b962084a2e384236829a2cca1d73d0db..c1355e78945916d62705384d961f4425a488f3d1 100644
--- a/.gitlab-ci.yml
+++ b/.gitlab-ci.yml
@@ -65,6 +65,8 @@ variables:
   # we override the max_old_space_size to prevent OOM errors
   NODE_OPTIONS: --max_old_space_size=3584
   GIT_DEPTH: "20"
+  # 'GIT_STRATEGY: clone' optimizes the pack-objects cache hit ratio
+  GIT_STRATEGY: "clone"
   GIT_SUBMODULE_STRATEGY: "none"
   GET_SOURCES_ATTEMPTS: "3"
   DEBIAN_VERSION: "bullseye"