Welcome to the United Nations
Hung Vo, UN Major Group for Children and Youth, UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board, Harvard Graduate School of Design;
Kristopher Hartley, Lecturer in Public Policy, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne;
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires evidence-based policies at both the national and local levels. The Voluntary National Reviews are crucial for measuring SDG progress, with data highlighting policy challenges and best practices. However, data collection capacities are not uniform across all Member States, raising the familiar mantra that “if we don’t count the poor, the poor don’t count.” The creation of the United Nations (UN) Inter-Agency Task Team on Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), the Technology Facilitation Mechanism, and other agency-led science and technology platforms is an encouraging sign that the UN understands the relationship between good data and development outcomes in building sustainable and resilient societies. The next step is equalizing technology capacities around the world.
Achieving the SDGs, particularly Goal 11 on sustainable human settlements, requires technologies that equip decision-makers with context-informed data. This involves both formal and informal applications that strengthen government responsiveness by helping leaders understand societal needs, identify challenges, and design effective solutions. For example, monitoring technology is generating valuable data on access to housing, transport, and public space—all of which are targets of Goal 11. Harnessing such technologies can also help public watchdogs promote accountability, support good governance, and collaborate on achieving “inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” cities.
The application of technology to urban planning is driven not only by the increasing relevance and convenience of applications, but also by a deeper understanding among policymakers about technology’s transformative potential. Creative and context-based adaptation of “smart city” initiatives is generating new opportunities to integrate technology with the daily lives of urban residents; this is particularly valuable in developing countries where urbanization and population growth remain stubborn challenges. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines a smart city as:
“an innovative city that uses information and telecommunication 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 and environmental aspects.”
Vietnam provides instructive examples of the potential of smart city technologies, as the country’s population, income level, and digital penetration are representative of many developing countries. Vietnam continues to enjoy the strong economic growth prompted by the Doi Moi economic reforms of 1986, and the country’s cities are entering a new era of technology-based economic restructuring. As of 2017, nearly 20 of 63 provinces or special districts have initiated smart city pilot projects. For example, in 2015 the city of Da Nang received an IBM Smarter Cities Challenge grant to collect real-time data on bus routes and water quality.
A recent study of 10 Vietnam cities found that e-government—the use of technology-based engagement tools in public policy—can help control corruption, a practice that has long inhibited national development and poverty eradication. The study also suggests that smart city development is as much about governance as hardware. Focusing only on technology and its efficiency dividends, while ignoring the institution-building and sound strategy-making that support economic growth, fails to liberate the full potential of smart city development. Technology cannot overcome bad policy.
Many Member States are already making notable progress in smart city development. As many as 500 cities in China currently employ smart city technology in some capacity, while India’s Smart Cities Mission pledges to technologically upgrade 100 cities by 2020. In Africa, smart city development was the focus of the 2016 Transform Africa Summit, which convened 300 mayors from around the continent to discuss issues like mobile payments, public WiFi, and smart transport.
There is growing worldwide acknowledgment of the role of smart city technology in national development. When applied to SDGs, urban technologies can stimulate economic growth that “leaves no one behind.” As such, the global community must ensure that the smart city agenda is not coopted for exclusive private gain, but supports broader social goals and extends benefits to even the most vulnerable populations. Member States should accept this challenge, as the smart city concept can be instrumental in realizing sustainable and resilient societies and in achieving Agenda 2030.