The Road to Smart City Development

Being in the millennial era, dominated by the digital codes at every facet of life, it’s a known fact that the lifestyle of people, in general, is changing at a rapid pace. Technologies, once reserved for the very rich, have now become synonymous with our day-to-day life activities. Therefore, it doesn’t come as a surprise that modern municipalities and public governments are paying more heed towards making our very surroundings smarter—smart cities to be precise. Two APAC cities have been an inspiration to the rest of the world in this aspect.

Singapore is the first name among the two. Well renowned as one of the best-managed cities in the world, the government of the 720 square kilometer city has embraced ICT and data analytics to solve the various challenges prevalent in the city’s management. Some of the sectors where the government has witnessed tremendous success by applying breakthrough technologies are in housing, industries, commerce, retail, military training, and transportation. The second city that rounds off the list is Hong Kong. Roughly spread across 1100 square kilometers, the city has also raced ahead than most hi-tech cities of the world in the application of data analytics to solve their daily silos in city management. Hong Kong’s government has been using technologies such as GIS, AI, and more to build more public spaces for recreation, build better and smarter buildings, develop citizen-friendly transportation, enhance security surveillance, and optimizing management outcomes. With the application of the right blend of technologies and smart management capabilities, Singapore and Hong Kong serve as the perfect smart city models for the current world.