Written by Vitor Pereira
Twelve new Spanish municipalities were integrated at Spanish Network of Smart Cities (SNSC). Since last April 17, this network includes Alcorcón, Aranjuez, Móstoles y Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid), Ávila, Badajoz, Oviedo (Asturias), Palma de Mallorca, Ponferrada (León), Sevilla, Tarragona y Torrent (Valencia).
There are now 41 cities, a number that Iñigo de la Serna, president of SNSC, “reveals the big interest that we have in Spain to use the technology in a intensive way to improve citizen quality of life, improve our public services and increment the economic activity levels to fight unemployment in our municipalities for example”.
The president also reaffirmed that the philosophy of SNSC is solidarity “for many projects we are developing technology that can offer other cities who feel the same problems and the same interests” since, clarified, “is absurd when we have duplicate resources with technical teams in other cities that are doing projects virtually identical. “
In this meeting was also approved the signature of collaboration protocols with Spanish Association of Parks and Public Gardens and with the Oficial College of Telecommunication Engineers. The objective, develop activities to improve the Smart Cities concept.
Besides this protocols Iñigo de la Serna also reinforced the intentions of SNSC to become the official communication bridge with central administration for technological projects.
Cities with many projects
Finally, he referred to the work that is being developed under the five groups created within the REDI: Social Innovation, Environment, Infrastructure and Liveability; Urban Mobility, Energy, Government, Economics and Business. Projects that focus on transparency and new process organization, best practices, remote management and control municipal water distribution and waste collection, irrigation systems or smart cards and electronic devices to interact with the administration.
This responsible ensures that Spain is the country with the most intense movement in Smart City or use of technological projects for the improvement of services “because there is a municipal boost very important in order to change the production model,” he said.
Among the challenges of SNSC, enumerated, “continue to invest in projects that can introduce as soon as possible and have more political weight and more visibility to continue growing,” he said.
Innovation is the way
Among the participants at the meeting, the governor of Castellón, Alfonso Bataller told us that this municipality continues to invest in technological innovation, “since it incorporates savings that since the beginning of the legislature were introduced in municipal management so that they now effectively translated savings in projects aimed at social or educational”. “We want to be smart cities to be efficient and improve the quality of life of our citizens,” he added.
On the other hand, the ruler of Valencia, Rita Barberá, recalled that the city of Turia, leads the working group “Government, Economics and Business” of SNSC, “because we believe that, from innovation we can harness the potential of Valencian society ” and highlighted some of the aspects of good practice in the city, ” in which they can make any process at any time and on any day, “or the web page, “fully accessible and in which citizens can learn that is invested every euro in accordance with the budget, ” she concluded.
About Vitor Pereira
Hi Vitor, i am planning a smart sustainable green city in Ghana and i will like us to talk. i am very much impress about your contribution to society and Africa will need you as well