Mrs. Abiodun Essiet, Senior Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Community Engagement, has elevated the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) to the forefront of the world’s smart cities by taking home the bronze Tech-InnovaCity medal at the Seoul Smart Cities prize.
Essiet announced it on her Twitter profile on Monday, writing, “I have re-elevated @AmacLg on the global stage. The grant that my team submitted for the Seoul Smart Cities award has just been given a bronze Tech-InnovaCity prize, making it the only African LG to receive recognition out of more than 240 submissions from all over the world.
The SSA Community Development was able to achieve this feat for Nigeria’s AMAC Area Council, Abuja, in her former capacity as the consultant to AMAC on development partner and the regional director Africa for the world smart and Sustainable Cities Organisation (WeGO), there by earning Nigeria’s AMAC local government the bronze award, making it the only African local government that emerged as winner in the contest.
According to Essiet, the Area Council as a result of the bronze award to AMAC representatives would have the avenue to be invited as participants in a tailored capacity building training program in Seoul Korea to experience peer-to-peer knowledge exchange and share technical know-how in advancing human-centered city development.
Representatives of the Area Council would also be given an opportunity to collaborate with the Seoul Metropolitan Government on a smart city project on various models including but not limited to a feasibility study and pilot implementation, triangular cooperation, and collaborative demonstration which will be customized to the selected cities’ smart city development stages and policy needs.
The Area Council representative would also be invited to join the ‘Seoul Smart City Prize Platform,’ which serves as a space for networking and interaction with relevant institutions, companies, and local governments.
The grant would equally afford the AMAC local government the opportunity to be invited to present it cases in a presentation, roundtable discussion, or exhibition format at international events, while the local government stand the chance of free publication of its achievements on the official websites of Seoul Smart Cities prize and other forms of media.
The official Seoul Smart City Prize application process had earlier announced that it will start the collection of applications on March 1st, 2023, and called on Cities, companies, organizations, and individuals who have developed or contributed to innovative and people-centered smart cities – in fields such as transportation, safety, environment, welfare, culture, and governance were invited to apply.
” It is our utmost honor to introduce and invite your city to apply for the Seoul Smart City Prize, which will be launched by WeGO in partnership with the President City Seoul, to promote an innovative yet inclusive smart city model that looks after underprivileged groups”.
The Seoul Prize aimed to commend cities that strive to implement an innovative and inclusive model of smart city in their respective capabilities, given different municipal circumstances.
