EMC and IDC launch research to provide essential guidance on ICT building-blocks for of the smart city
The rapid pace of urbanisation today, coupled with the adoption of technology by individuals, businesses and governments, are driving the social and economic transformation of cities around the world.
A recent UN report predicts that, by 2050, nearly 70 per cent of the world's population will be concentrated in urban centres.
Last week, EMC Middle East and International Data Corporation (IDC) released a white paper that provides insights designed to empower governments around the world and in the region to aid the transformation of their urban centres into smart cities.
The GCC countries are widely expected to have one of the highest urbanisation rates in the world, ranging from 80 to 100 per cent.
“The GCC is home to some of the most ambitious digital transformation events and initiatives such as the Expo 2020 in the UAE and the Fifa World Cup 2022 in Qatar; that are all aimed at establishing sustainable facilities and infrastructure to enhance quality of services and life while achieving goals for economic diversification and social development,” said Habib Mahakian, Vice President, Gulf and Pakistan at EMC.
IDC predicts that by 2020, the world will see more than 30 billion connected devices forming the internet of things ecosystem and all the apps and devices creating as much as 44 zettabytes of data (or 44 trillion gigabytes) in the digital universe.
This transformation will lead to a data-driven software-defined world in which every “smart device” will be receiving or transmitting vast amounts of data.
“As we continue on this exciting journey of digital transformation, we have the opportunity to create ‘smart societies’ that foster innovation, collaboration and open engagement between governments and citizens, visitors and businesses alike,” added Mahakian.
In the UAE, Dubai has taken the lead in the deployment of smart services, with a hundred in active use already.
Preparations for Expo 2020 have further catalysed the local government towards the adoption of smart services. These initiatives align with the aspirations of GCC governments to improve the quality of life for their citizens, stimulate business and drive economic growth in the future.
The wider GCC region is already witnessing the innovation-powered transformation of cities across the region. In Saudi Arabia, cities such as Jeddah, Makkah and Riyadh have been earmarked for modernisation.
“The GCC’s transformation agenda has leapfrogged in terms of IT development and e-governance, with major cities in the region increasingly leveraging ICT in a bid to transform themselves into 'smart' or 'digitally-transformed' cities,” said Megha Kumar, Senior Research Manager, Software, IDC Middle East, Africa and Turkey.
“A growing number of cities are realising that they need to ensure an environment that is conducive to economic growth, sustainability, and efficiency. More importantly, they also recognise the need to improve their levels of citizen engagement,” she said.
With Vision 2030, Qatar aims to transition into a ‘smart country’, with its Lusail City currently under development and set to be a hub of integrated infrastructure, smart grids and intelligent transportation.
The whitepaper provides cases and best practices of smart city initiatives from the Middle East and how it forms a core part of the countries’ national strategy to ultimately enhance the quality of life for citizens, residents and businesses, provide diverse and sustainable economy and foster innovation.
“As we continue to become a community of digital citizens always connected with the world’s information at our fingertips, the need to meet citizen expectations drives cities and businesses to use technologies to deliver faster, always-on and personalized end-user experience,” said Mohammed Amin, Senior Vice President and Regional Manager, Turkey, Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East at EMC.
“In addition, the astonishing urbanization growth rates are driving cities to better plan for the optimisation and allocation of their resources as well as ensuring a sustainable secure environment. A successful future-proof smart city must be built on a strong ICT foundation layer that allows for efficient city management, better allocation of resources, economic development, sustainability, innovation and citizen engagement,” he added.
The research shares insights into the effective deployment of a comprehensive set of transformation technologies including cloud, big data analytics, data lakes, and security to build the agile, data-driven cities of tomorrow.
Citing the need for a strong, collaborative ecosystem of stakeholders, the research also outlines a smart city maturity model 2 that can be used to assess a single smart city stakeholder or project or multiple stakeholders within the city ecosystem.
IDC provides insight on the five stages of maturity of a smart city each based on the evaluation of ICT readiness, government processes, coordination, collaboration and data governance.
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Quelle/Source: Emirates 24/7, 16.10.2015
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