Seoul to export its smart city policy to Ecuador’s Guayaquil
Seoul to export its smart city policy to Ecuador’s Guayaquil
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- Seoul and Guayaquil signed an agreement for cooperation in smart city policies, made online in real-time between Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jung-hyup and Guayaquil Mayor Cynthia Fernanda Viteri Jiménez
- Seoul’s smart city policy export was made at the request of the Latin American regional headquarters of Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency and the Municipality of Guayaquil
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, October 30, 2020 – Seoul will export its smart city policy to Guayaquil, Ecuador. Guayaquil is the largest city and the leading trade gateway for the Pacific. The Ecuadorian government selected Guayaquil in 2019 as the city where the nation’s digital smart city initiative will be implemented.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said that the two cities signed an agreement for cooperation in smart city policies. The agreement was made online in real-time at 8 a.m. (KST) on October 30 between Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jung-hyup, who was in SEOUL ON, a video conference studio in Seoul Citizens Hall, and Guayaquil Mayor Cynthia Fernanda Viteri Jiménez in Ecuador.
According to the agreement, Seoul will provide consultation and support for Guayaquil’s smart city initiatives. The fields Seoul will export to the Ecuadorian city are the establishment of a security and transportation control center; establishment of the data-based decision-making system; expansion of the scope of cooperation between the two cities for smart education and health services; and provision of training programs for public officials in Guayaquil to strengthen their capacities.
Seoul’s smart city policy export was made at the request of the Latin American regional headquarters of Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), its Korea Business Center in Quito, Ecuador’s capital, and the Municipality of Guayaquil. Through the cooperation, Seoul and Guayaquil will share each other’s smart city policies and establish a master plan suitable for Guayaquil. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it will expand the scope of cooperation by stages.
The Mayor of Guayaquil is known to have interests, especially in free wi-fi network, remote education, the digital platform for real-time communication with the citizens and policy decisions and integrated smart solutions, such as smart disaster control system.
Based on cooperation with the City of Guayaquil, Seoul expects that it can actively exchange smart city policies, particularly in transportation and crime prevention, and cooperate with other Latin American cities, such as Peru and El Salvador, where have a higher demand for those services.
Meanwhile, Seoul has been sharing its outstanding policies, including transportation and smart city, with overseas cities by utilizing the Official Development Assistance (ODA) funds. So far, Seoul’s 85 initiatives worth KRW 800 billion (USD 705 million) were exported to 60 cities and institutions in 34 countries. Seoul also helps private companies advance into international markets by exploring opportunities of overseas projects for, specifically, transportation (36), railway establishment (7), e-government solutions (15), waterworks, and urban planning, in Asia (50), Africa 12), and Latin America (10).
Acting Seoul Mayor Seo Jung-hyup said, “Seoul is the world’s best e-government city selected for the seventh consecutive time. Now the city is becoming a sustainable and inclusive smart city focusing more on people by utilizing cutting-edge ICT infrastructure and core technologies, such as big data, artificial intelligence, and IoT in the municipal administration. Now we are sharing our know-how with cities around the world.”
He added, “Starting with the cooperation with the City of Guayaquil, we will further share various smart city public services with the world, especially data-based smart city model and smart technologies that bridge the educational gap in the COVID-19 era. I expect Korea’s top companies to make more advancement into Ecuador.”