MINSK, 16 March (BelTA) - Belarus has been gradually embracing the smart city concept, Belarus Communications and Informatization Minister Konstantin Shulgan said at the forum “Smart Sustainable Cities: Organizational and Technical Aspects of Development” in Minsk on 16 March, BelTA has learned.
"We have moved from theory to practical implementation of the smart city concept. For example, in Polotsk we have offered local citizens a mobile application ‘Smart Polotsk' for effective relationship between residents and the city administration. Of course, business has access too. This concept is interesting for all categories. These issues will be in the spotlight of the forum which will suggest recommendations that we will implement in our lives in the future," Konstantin Shulgan said.
According to him, the forum has been held for the third year in a row gathering key specialists in digital solutions and accumulating ideas for smart and sustainable cities.
"Smart city is a very creative and technological concept. It creates comfortable conditions which, in the 21st century, we want to see everywhere, regardless of where we live. Such technologies should be all over the place. For this, we have done maximum preparatory work with regards the basic infrastructure that has already been created in our country and meets world standards," the minister said.
A smart sustainable city is an innovative city that uses information and communication technologies (ICTs) and other means to improve quality of life, efficiency of urban operation and services, and competitiveness, while ensuring that it meets the needs of present and future generations with respect to economic, social, environmental as well as cultural aspects.
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) forum “Smart Sustainable Cities: Organizational and Technical Aspects of Development” is running in Minsk on 16-18 March. The forum has been organized by the ITU jointly with Giprosvyaz and the Communications and Informatization Ministry of Belarus. Taking part in the event are representatives of the ITU, government, regional authorities and also major institutions of science and education. Speakers from Russia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan, experts from the Green Cities Project, UNDP, specialists of Belarus' major companies will share the practical experience and suggest ways of building a smart sustainable city.
The program of the forum includes a wide range of thematic reports of international experts in such areas as organizational and technical aspects of smart sustainable cities development. The objectives of the forum are to introduce Belarusian specialists to the latest global achievements in smart sustainable city construction implemented under the auspices of the ITU, and to consider the proposals of the ITU member countries in the region to unify approaches on this front. Another goal of the forum is to determine the area and procedure for interaction between state and commercial structures in the joint implementation of smart city solutions.
The forum will help leading specialists from different countries to exchange experience in the development of smart city technologies and solutions on the most pressing issues, to reach a common understanding of the problems of a smart city and ways to solve them.
The forum will also include a meeting of the regional group of the ITU-T study group 20 for Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Transcaucasia.
