Europe Archives

February 14, 2024

A week-long “Seeds for the future European Grand Finale,” bringing together a select cohort of “Seeds for the Future” alumni hailing from 18 European countries, ended on January 23. Hosted by Huawei Europe, the closing ceremony for the week-long journey showcased the collective achievements of Seeds alumni who had previously attended training programs organized in their respective countries. Throughout the week, participants engaged in illuminating sessions with tech experts, delved into the realms of connectivity and innovation, and contributed to insightful panel discussions on crucial topics such as diversity, green skills, and sustainability.

The pinnacle of the event, the Closing Ceremony, reverberated with the theme of international cooperation as a cornerstone for crafting a sustainable future for European talent. As we bid farewell to this enriching week of collaboration, Huawei proudly acknowledged the collective strides taken towards fostering innovation, knowledge exchange, and a shared commitment to a sustainable future.

Prof. Shahbaz Khan, Director of the UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office for East Asia, said during the closing event: “We are delighted to see UNESCO and Huawei’s visions align with each other on eradicating digital illiteracy in young people. On February 2023, Huawei become an associate member of the UNESCO Global Alliance for Literacy (GAL). As the first private company to be an associate member of GAL, Huawei is committed to enhance educators’ use of technology in developing countries.”

Also at the closing ceremony, the Senior Vice President of Huawei Europe, Radoslaw Kedzia, announced a planned expansion of Seeds for the Future in Europe: “Huawei is proud to unveil a new chapter in the “Seeds for the future” program – an immersive, fully offline edition set to take place in Rome, Italy, in July 2024. This initiative, driven by the spirit of international collaboration and dialogue, will bring together students from diverse corners of Europe to converge in one city, fostering a vibrant ecosystem for learning and collaborative development of Tech4Good startup ideas. Today we officially invite students pursuing studies in STEM to join this transformative offline experience and be a part of shaping the future of technology for the better.”

Earlier on, Huawei had unveiled the launch of a Seeds for the Future Scholarship program designed to support talented ICT students in the Netherlands, Bulgaria and Cyprus. This initiative underscores the company’s steadfast commitment to cultivating and nurturing exceptional talent.

Underlining the importance of such opportunities for students, the Ambassador of Cyprus, Martha Mavrommatis, speaking on behalf of the Minister of Education, Sports and Youth, Dr Athena Michaelidou, congratulated Huawei for the successful event and the students for all their efforts towards a sustainable and ecofriendly development. She said: “Companies like Huawei are making investments themselves, in parallel with institutional initiatives, like those of European Union and the member states. Huawei Seeds for the Future program, as the name suggests, is deeply engaged in identifying localized talent and in enhancing knowledge-sharing among professionals and youth.”

Also present, Annette Nijs, Former State Secretary for Education in the Netherlands, noted: “The commitment of Huawei to encourage students who embrace technology is as admirable as it is important. After all, technology will continue to create a fundamental shift in the way we work and live. ICT students of today will use technology in their careers to give wings to the changes of our societies.”

The Ambassador of Moldova, Dumitru Braghis, added: “Seeds for the Future, as Huawei’s flagship CSR program, not only exemplifies corporate responsibility but also showcases a commitment to guiding young talent globally. The program, designed to shape the next generation of leaders in the digital age, goes beyond technical skills. It promotes a sense of global citizenship, encourages cultural exchange, and fosters an entrepreneurial spirit.”

November 23, 2023

YANCHENG, CHINA – Media OutReach – 22 November 2023 – Offshore renewables play a pivotal role in the realm of renewable energy, and its development stands as one of the key paths to combat climate change, expedite energy transition, and ensure energy security. In recent years, the integrated development of offshore wind, offshore solar and marine energy has become a new trend, while advanced technologies and innovative models including offshore hydrogen production and energy island developing rapidly.

Yancheng, situated on the eastern coast of China, has excellent offshore renewable energy resource, and is known as the “No.1 city of offshore renewables in China”. As of 2022, Yancheng has 5.54 GW of offshore wind in Yancheng are 4.5 GW and 8.94 GW respectively, underscoring its huge potential in the near future. Furthermore, Yancheng attaches significant importance to international cooperation, and has already achieved a milestone by completing the first China-Europe offshore wind cooperation project in China. Yancheng maintains an open, welcoming stance and eagerly anticipates practical collaboration on offshore renewables with European countries and the rest of the world.

Signing ceremony of major projects at the forum

On November 21, the 2023 China-Europe Forum on Offshore New Energy Development took place in Yancheng, Jiangsu. The forum, themed ” Strengthen China-Europe cooperation on offshore renewables for a shared green future,” the forum consists of the main forum on 21th morning including opening remarks, release and signing ceremony and keynote speeches, 6 sub-forums on 21th afternoon focusing on Offshore Wind and Solar, Energy Storage, Hydrogen, Building of a New Power Industry, Green Electricity & Renewables Certificate, and Zero-carbon Industrial Park respectively.

China’s farthest offshore wind power project

The opening ceremony was attended by Ren Jingdong, Deputy Director of the National Energy Administration; Zhou Bin, Secretary of the Yancheng Municipal Committee of the CPC; Wang Bin, General Manager of Power Construction Corporation of China; Marjo Crompvoets, Consul General from the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Shanghai; Lise Nordgaard, Consul General from the Consulate General of Norway in Shanghai; and Miguel Montoya, Vice Chairman of the China-EU Chamber of Commerce. Fu Cong, the Head of the Chinese Mission to the EU and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, addressed the conference via video. Zhang Mingkang, Mayor of Yancheng, presided over the opening ceremony.

China’s first smart offshore wind farm in Yancheng City

After the opening ceremony, the forum released significant outcomes, including the “2023 Yancheng Declaration of the China-Europe Forum on Offshore New Energy Development,” “Public Solicitation of Technical Solutions for Offshore Photovoltaics, Offshore Energy Islands, and High Proportion Application of New Energy,” and the “Comparison Analysis and Cooperation Potential Study of Key Technologies and Industrial Chains of Floating Offshore Wind Power in China and Europe.” Twenty-five major projects were signed, with a total amount reaching 29.48 billion yuan, injecting new impetus into the further advancement of technological innovation and industrial upgrading in offshore new energy and deepening pragmatic China-Europe cooperation.

June 27, 2023

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, retailers and organisations are continually having to embrace and implement innovative payment changes to streamline payment processes and improve the overall customer experience. An important consideration in this regard for retailers who own their own payment switch is moving it to the cloud, a complex but necessary upgrade and safeguard that requires industry expertise and experience to deliver the programme without introducing extra operational risks.

As a leading global PayTech solution provider, Stanchion has more than 20 years’ experience solving complex payment problems for clients around the world. Currently, Stanchion is engaging with the largest payment switch vendor on a strategic European project, which entails migrating a large on-premise infrastructure to cloud. The project’s scope involves moving an existing multi-tenant payment switch to a well-known Cloud provider with Stanchion providing a solution architect to design the solution and provide support during the implementation and go-live phases to the project team.

It is this hands-on experience that makes Stanchion a smart choice for retailers and organisations looking to migrate their payment switch to cloud, with their team of experts having clear insights into both the short- and long-term benefits and challenges.

Key drivers

The main drivers for moving to the cloud include cost-saving, flexibility and compliance, with scalability set to come into play in the future.

Migrating a payment switch to the cloud can help reduce infrastructure expenditure as the cost of leasing on-premise data centres is high. By moving to the cloud, costs can drop significantly as hardware, software licences and maintenance costs fall to the cloud vendor.

Furthermore, maintaining PCI compliance of a self-hosted data centre is always a painful and risky process – it requires lots of working hours and brings risk to the organisation in case of a PCI audit failure. Moving to the cloud reduces compliance operations for the organisation as, once again, a subset of the responsibility shifts to the cloud vendor.

In terms of flexibility, this is enhanced by built-in cloud services such as network firewalls and HSM services.

While scalability is not one of the current key drivers regarding mainly the payment switches, it is likely to become so in the future. By implementing their payment switch migration now, retailers can stay ahead of the curve and be ready to take immediate advantage of the scalability benefits when they come. As Stanchion’s Senior Solutions Consultant, Costas Valakas, points out that most payment platforms are not cloud optimised, meaning they often do not utilise microservice benefits. “Having said that, however, we are going to see the real benefits in scalability as soon as the switch vendors start redesigning their products based on the microservice architecture. These benefits will be huge as retailers and organisations will be able to spin off multiple miniature switches on-demand,” says Valakas.

He lists the example of retailers being able to scale up to meet the transaction surge over the festive season (or even worse on Black Friday) and then scale back down afterwards when transactions ease off. “Similarly, if there is a service disruption in one region, new switch instances can be created in real time in another region and provide the necessary bandwidth for the online processing.” And because it is cloud based, this could all be done almost automatically with minimal manual intervention.

Valakas highlights that taking advantage of the DevOps-friendly cloud infrastructure means a lot of operations can now be performed automatically, including one-off operations like the deployment of payment servers and repetitive ones, such as software maintenance, patches installation, parameters configuration, back-office operations and more.

Time challenges

Despite these benefits, moving their payment infrastructure to the cloud is a big step for retailers and many are reluctant to embrace this change. As well as needing a culture shift within the organisation and buy-in from the top down, migrating a payment switch to the cloud requires careful assessment and planning, as well as preparation and testing to ensure a smooth transition.

The time frame is lengthy: in Stanchion’s experience, organisations need at least two years from initial decision to going live, depending on the infrastructure’s complexity.

· The first phase involves the setting up of the cloud infrastructure, including DevOps workflow preparations and can take up to 9 months to complete.

· Phase two, typically, requires an additional year and involves migrating the actual payment platform to the respective cloud servers and covers software installation, parameterisation and extensive testing.

· The final go-live phase is done gradually, with a full-store migration taking up to two months, depending on the retailer’s size.

Optimised solutions

Stanchion’s Verto and Switchcare solutions can be utilised to underpin and ensure a smooth migration to the cloud.

“During the preparation phase, before moving to the cloud, Verto can abstract a lot of the switch’s functionality and integrate it with the Verto framework,” explains Valakas. And because Verto is cloud-optimised, it makes the migration smoother and easier. “Additionally, Verto can be easily scaled horizontally, providing redundancy to any service it performs. The organisation can also benefit from other out-of-the-box services Verto provides such as notifications, integration with alternative payment channels, card token life-cycle management and more.”

SwitchCare’s combination of on-prem and cloud-based deployment support means it can give retailers the assurance they require to deliver the high service levels customers demand. SwitchCare’s full stack combination of platform, application and real-time transaction monitoring can support the transition, minimising the risk of outages and providing assurances during this critical time.

With extensive migration project experience over the last two years, combined with the experience the team acquired on cloud architecture during the development of its Verto and SwitchCare solutions, Stanchion is ideally positioned to guide and assist organisations as they migrate their payment switches to the cloud by designing the solution and providing implementation support.

As Valakas says: “Our hands-on experience, combined with our team’s deep payment switch knowledge and long exposure to payment-related projects, means Stanchion can provide a full range of services to retailers and organisations looking to take this crucial – and essential – next leap forward on their payments journey.”

March 30, 2023

Colombo, Sri Lanka, 2023 – Red Apple Travel, a Global DMC travel company with a presence in APAC, Middle East, Australia & Europe successfully concluded their first training programme for local chauffeurs and tour guides based in Sri Lanka on March 10, 2023, at Jetwing Colombo 07. The recently concluded training is the first in a series that will be a part of an ongoing project to improve tourism services and hospitality for incoming tourists to Sri Lanka.

Speaking with Managing Director, Red Apple Travel and Holidays Lanka (PVT) Ltd – Nipuna Lokuhetty, stated: “The training programmes underway for SL’s Tourism front-liners – chauffeurs and tour guides – is of utmost importance. Sri Lanka and its people are known for their hospitality and kindness, which is innately a part of who we are. It was a no-brainer that with additional training we could provide a leg-up for our local guides in order to equip them on how to handle different nationalities, in order to provide excellent customer service and create a positive experience for tourists.”

The training event which welcomed over 50 chauffeurs and tour guides from across the country, delved into several topics such as Grooming, Historical information, Country information, etc, and even provided attendees with new methodologies and tools in Communication as well as Etiquette (do’s and don’ts) when handling a plethora of foreign nationals.

Concluding, Lokuhetty said: “It is our prerogative to ensure that our tourism front-liners are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to interact with tourists from various nationalities. By providing training on cultural awareness, communication, and customer service, our chauffeurs and tour guides will be able to better understand and meet the needs of tourists. They will also be able to anticipate potential cultural barriers and avoid misunderstandings, which can lead to a smoother and more enjoyable experience for everyone involved. In addition to improving the customer experience, investing in training of this nature also benefits the industry’s growth in the long run. It helps us to maintain a positive reputation for the country, its people and the industry as a whole, and encourages repeat business from satisfied holiday-goers.”

Red Apple Travel offers packages for Leisure Free Independent Travellers (FIT), Leisure Group Independent Travellers (GITs), MICE and Special Interest Groups. From offering an extensive portfolio of dynamic, customisable and ready packages, contracted & OTA hotels, apartments, villas, attractions, restaurants and in-house fleets, Red Apple Travel is known for its complete spectrum of services across the DMC value chain.

January 10, 2023

VitalHub Innovations Lab, the software development hub of Canadian-based VitalHub Corp., a leader in providing cutting edge technology solutions for healthcare organizations across Canada, USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Middle East and Europe, recently celebrated 15 years of enduring success, growth and resilience in Sri Lanka with a glamorous event held at Cinnamon Grand, Colombo.

The event saw the participation of Dan Matlow, President and CEO of VitalHub Corp. and Vijit Coomara, EVP Product Development as chief guests including Daniel Bood, Acting High Commissioner/Counselor – Political and Trade and Abdul Majeed, Senior Trade Officer from the High Commission of Canada to Sri Lanka, and SLASSCOM Chairman Ashique Ali.

‘VitalHub has been a long-standing and well-respected member of the IT&BPM industry in Sri Lanka and have been supportive of the industry growth more so on the talent development throughout the country,’ said Ashique. ‘I was impressed to witness the key role VitalHub Innovation Lab in Sri Lanka play supporting the rapid global growth of the parent company VitalHub by bringing innovation, integration, and services to the healthcare sector they serve in many countries.’

Daniel Bood said ‘I was proud to be part of celebrations marking the 15th anniversary of VitalHub’s operations in Sri Lanka. As an ethically managed Canadian company consisting of talented individuals who produce high quality products that save lives, VitalHub is making the world a better place.’

Long-standing employees serving the company for 5, 10, and 15 years were facilitated with awards and recognitions, which speaks volumes for itself given the industry’s retention. ‘I couldn’t be prouder of what our talented team have achieved in the last 15 years, contributing immensely to VitalHub’s achievements. It’s been an incredible journey and we’re excited to take on the future,’ added Vijit Coomara – EVP Product Development.

The celebratory event also featured various colorful performances of music, dances and also crowning a king and queen, with full of surprises and competitions among colleagues. This joyful evening was filled with unforgettable memories to reminisce.

With over 300 employees engaged in engineering, product development, client support, acquisitions and mergers, operations, and business development, VitalHub Innovations Lab is only growing stronger, being constantly on the lookout for passionate individuals to be part of its fun, skilled and energetic workplace culture that champions creativity and support.

Employees here are often referred to as change makers, and the very fabric of bringing innovative solutions and exploring new possibilities to take on the world of healthcare technology. Some of the benefits include hybrid work culture, CAD pegged salaries, funding for renewal power, internet allowances, among various others.

Being in Sri Lanka for 15 years, we strive to Digitize Innovative Healthcare Solutions across the healthcare continuum. Headquartered in Canada, VitalHub develops and deploys information technology solutions for North American healthcare organizations. Our software development team uses the latest tools and techniques to ensure that our SaaS web / cloud-based software releases are innovative.

October 26, 2022

Infomate ( Pvt ) Ltd, Sri Lanka’s first BPO and Business Process Management firm with clients across Australia, UK, USA and Northern Europe, has embraced and ushered in a new era of sustainable business in the IT/BPM sector.

From setting ESG objectives and goals, developing a strategic ESG roadmap and framework, setting action plans and KPIs and reporting and communicating their progress, Infomate has gained much credibility amongst stakeholders and clients.

With their mandate for the future to be carbon neutral, improve employee health and well-being, support communities and strengthen their gender equity and diversity among board members and other leadership positions, Infomate looks at ESG as an important investment in the company’s future resiliency.

Speaking of their journey in adapting to ESG Jehan Perinpanayagam CEO of Infomate stated “many investors and stakeholders today want to support companies that align in fighting climate change and promoting equality. Companies that accept and play this role effectively will prosper in the years ahead, while those that do not, will experience increasingly limited prospects and eventual failure. ESG and sustainability therefore is a board level topic that also offers new growth opportunities. To avoid ESG being seen as “greenwashing,” it needs to be integrated into the organizations overall strategy and risk management, so it transforms the way they operate. Governance is also an important part of ESG, which begins with a thorough assessment of the materiality and implications of ESG for the enterprise. The board and senior leadership must share accountability for developing a strategy to address the associated risks and opportunities, and for implementing strategies to achieve near-term and longer-term ambitions. At Infomate these were some of the first steps that we took in adapting to ESG”.

Upon designing an integrated sustainability strategy that reinforced environmental, social and governance being incorporated into their important business and operational decisions, Infomate’s next steps were in making significant strides in terms of inclusion and diversity and has today, one of the largest female workforces amongst the BPM organizations in the country. At a time when women employment has experienced drastic drops, Infomate’s strong focus on successfully implementing gender diversity policies in their organization is clearly a benchmark to be celebrated in their adaption towards ESG. Aligning with their goals of supporting disadvantaged communities, Infomate set up three BPM centers in Mahaviliachiya, Seenigama and Jaffna thereby supporting job creation which has led to self-sufficiency of the people in these rural communities as well as training them to engage and work with international companies. Infomate further launched a project to reduce its carbon footprint, by planting of over 200 mahogany trees, in Ratnapura.

Measuring performance through a set of criteria developed for rating and reporting these activities has resonated well with their clients in the west and helped tap into new businesses, leading to expanding their portfolio of businesses from offering finance and accounting services to now including shipping documentation, sales, admin support, and HR and legal process outsourcing with automation being a key enabler in these activities.

Outlining the future of ESG, Jehan explained that it will be the next billion-dollar opportunity in terms of green tech. Businesses in general would have a standardized and universally applicable definition of what counts as green. Data would be key to unlocking ESG and providing a framework to efficiently channel funds towards solutions that can eliminate emissions, where capital will need to flow to solutions with Carbon returns.

September 5, 2022

Leading DJs from Mexico who have entertained crowds across Europe, North and South America, Marisol and Ivonne Grajales were touring Sri Lanka recently, storming some of Colombo’s most happening venues. The sisters, who have spun their vibrant sounds to full houses and performed at epic DJ sets across the world including the USA, Brazil, Honduras, Ecuador, Germany and Spain; kept the Sri Lankan party set grooving at some of the most exciting night spots in town over the past two weeks.

Marisol is ranked seventh as a DJane in Mexico and 38th in North America, has a degree in music production and released 12 singles which are featured on Beatport and Traxsource.

They performed at venues around Colombo including at The Love Bar, Industri, Botanik, Kava, The Travelling Bruncher and the Flamingo Breeze Pool Party, the latter of which has fast become a trendy, sought-after monthly event. In addition, Marisol and Ivonne spun discs at the chilled-out Sunday Smooth Drunch. Both these events were at the poolside of Cinnamon Grand.

The DJ sisters performed at C VIBES with renowned Sri Lankan artists – ACE, Clifford, TrevD, Binu, Madaid and Shan. C VIBES is an entertainment entity which curates and hosts events at popular venues in Colombo which includes a roster of international DJs and artists performing at select venues and a number of exciting party additions which promise great revelry and celebrations.

July 14, 2022

COLOMBO (11 July 2022): The European Union (EU) Delegation in Sri Lanka and the Maldives together with the Threads of History Museum presents “Threads on Threads: an exhibition on the textile heritage in Sri Lanka, South Asia and Europe”. The two-week exhibition is an initiative of the EU Cultural Heritage Series.

Curated by Deshika Van Haght, the exhibition currently underway at Barefoot Gallery, with free walk-in entrance, primarily features Somanas and Chintz textiles, their making and their trade. The exhibition showcases the long standing trade relationship between Sri Lanka, South Asia and Europe.

EU ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Denis Chaibi, said at the opening of the exhibition “Cultural heritage can be an important vector for peace, reconciliation, mutual understanding, intercultural dialogue and sustainable development. I am therefore happy to open the Threads on Threads exhibition that showcase Sri Lanka’s rich heritage and its linkages with Europe.”

Visitors can experience the history of modern day Sri Lanka’s textile heritage though exhibits consisting of 19th and 20th century fabrics made in Sri Lanka and India as well as European cotton textiles made for the Sri Lankan market, as well as text and high-resolution image panels.

These textiles are part of both the tangible and intangible heritage of Sri Lanka. Indeed, the cultural heritage of textiles does not end with the preservation and collection of costumes and other textiles in museums. It also includes living traditions inherited from past generations.

The exhibition held from the 9th to 24th of July 2022 is showcased at Barefoot Gallery, 704 Galle Road, Colombo 3, from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm each day.

This will be followed by an international conference co-organised by Lanka Decorative Arts and Threads of History Museum scheduled to take place later this year. It will be a free event with pre-registration required. The conference will see art historians, ethnologists, museum curators, and designers from Sri Lanka, South Asia and Europe debating and discussing history of textiles, their preservation, links and influences, contemporary craftsmanship and the challenges of modern entrepreneurship.

June 22, 2022

Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Beijing, London & Seoul are the top 5 digital cities in the index
European cities ran highly successful traffic management systems, while Beijing applied digital technologies to tackle air pollution and optimise utilities and sharing economy
Involving citizens in design of smart city schemes underpins meaningful inclusion – a key aspect of successful smart city projects
Smart city schemes delivered major public health benefits in areas like telemedicine, covid management and remote monitoring of patients

TOKYO, JAPAN – Media OutReach – 22 June 2022 – The Digital Cities Index 2022, produced by Economist Impact and supported by NEC, is an inaugural ranking of 30 global cities across four thematic pillars: connectivity, services, culture and sustainability. Of the top 10 cities of the index, four are in Europe (Copenhagen, Amsterdam, London and Paris), four are in Asia Pacific (Beijing, Seoul, Sydney, Singapore) and two are in the US (New York and Washington DC).

Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Beijing, London & Seoul performed the best, with successful open data projects and major strides in smart technology-powered sustainability projects like utility management. Cities with very defined goals realised the greatest benefits: European cities ran highly impactful traffic management systems, whereas Beijing made progress using applied digital technologies – tackling air pollution, optimising its utilities and promoting its sharing economy. The Atlantic nation cities led in open data innovation with a boom in travel and mobility apps.

Sustainability was the biggest impact area highlighted by the White Paper, with leading smart cities realising major gains in air quality through smart utility management. Sustainability brought the highest overall scores, with Copenhagen, Seoul and Toronto scoring highest for their use of digital technology to support urban sustainability.

Copenhagen and Singapore were the most connected cities, followed by Zurich, Beijing and Sydney. Singapore’s strategy for developing digital connectivity is built on the premise that AI, 5G and cyber security will drive the country’s growth and innovation post-covid. Smart cities are anticipated to drive economic growth: 5G alone will enable an estimated US$660 billion global mobility and transportation market by 2035.

Unaffordable, unreliable or inaccessible internet services impact other city level goals. Half-a-million households reportedly lack a reliable internet connection in New York City, for instance, disadvantaging low-income children for remote learning. By contrast, Washington DC has offered low-cost or free services and devices to families unable to afford a broadband subscription and Paris has the most affordable mobile data of all the cities analysed.

Ritu Bhandari, manager, policy and insights at Economist Impact, noted: “Smart cities will be safer, cleaner and more inclusive urban landscapes, where citizens enjoy better public health and services, more efficient transport and major economic improvements to be shared as public goods. The index highlights how outlier cities are leveraging technology to improve quality of life for millions of citizens around the world. While we see strong leadership from cities in Western Europe, the table is led by major cities from a wide geographical spread. The most significant improvements were delivered against tightly defined goals – a critical success factor for urban digital transformation.”

Since the pandemic, digital technologies have enabled real progress in public health. In Asia, apps were central to managing covid-19, while telemedicine and real time remote monitoring of chronic patients has marked digitisation everywhere. In New York, for instance, a diabetes-prevention initiative for adults has reduced the risk of type 2 diabetes in high-risk individuals by 58%.

Singapore, São Paulo and New Delhi ranked the highest for their delivery of digital municipal services. New Delhi ranks high in part because of the success of Aadhar, India’s ground-breaking national digital identity scheme. In Korea, Metaverse Seoul, announced in November 2021 by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, will provide citizens with access to government services via the metaverse.

The report’s authors note that involving citizens in the design of smart city schemes underpins meaningful inclusion, a critical success factor for smart city projects, along with delivery against tightly defined goals.

Download the full index results, report and infographic on: economistimpact.com/digitalcities

Digital Cities Index 2022 results:

About Digital Cities Index 2022

The Digital Cities Index (DCI) 2022 is an inaugural ranking of 30 global cities across four thematic pillars: connectivity, services, culture and sustainability. Combining quantitative and qualitative analysis, and including a survey of 3,000 residents spread across all cities in the DCI, the results show how cities are performing in terms of both quantitative metrics like internet speed and qualitative factors such as the presence of strategies, policies and plans for technologies like 5G and AI.

About Economist Impact
Economist Impact combines the rigour of a think-tank with the creativity of a media brand to engage a globally influential audience. We believe that evidence-based insights can open debate, broaden perspectives and catalyse progress. The services offered by Economist Impact previously existed within The Economist Group as separate entities, including EIU Thought Leadership, EIU Public Policy, Economist Events and SignalNoise.

Our track record spans 75 years across 205 countries. Along with creative storytelling, events expertise, design-thinking solutions and market-leading media products, we produce framework design, benchmarking, economic and social impact analysis, forecasting and scenario modelling, making Economist Impact’s offering unique in the marketplace. Visit www.economistimpact.com for more information.

About NEC

NEC Corporation has established itself as a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies while promoting the brand statement of “Orchestrating a brighter world.” NEC enables businesses and communities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in both society and the market as it provides for the social values of safety, security, fairness and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential. For more information, visit NEC at https://www.nec.com

June 20, 2022

In a media release in May, the network had announced how it intends to deploy its Tech Spaces to connect the African continent to Europe

HELSINKI, Finland, June 17, 2022/APO Group/ –In a panel discussion at Aalto University’s 5G Summer School on Thursday, experts from the U.S., Africa and Europe explored the business opportunities that the latest communications and network technology, remote learning, work, and entrepreneurship from Africa can bring to U.S. companies. These are at the same time opportunities for positive impact on African economies. The webinar was organized by Start North, the Finnish technology learning accelerator network.

One prominent theme was how the 5G Mokki Tech Space network can serve international companies. In a media release in May, the network had announced how it intends to deploy its Tech Spaces to connect the African continent to Europe, promoting the learning and adoption of technology, remote work, and entrepreneurship.

In addition to promoting education, jobs, and the economic development of the regions, the network also aims to curb climate change by utilizing the latest technology.

This time, rather than focusing on the African-European connection, the discussion revolved around the possibilities of a Tech Space network for American companies that are keen on taking advantage of new opportunities swiftly. The purpose of this discussion was to highlight the diverse opportunities and benefits of the 5G Mokki Tech Space network for international companies that recruit tens of thousands of people each year and launch hundreds or thousands of innovation and technology projects each year.

‘Mokki’ is derived from the Finnish word ‘mökki’, meaning ‘cottage’. The cottage enables innovative uses of fifth generation (5G) mobile communication technology. Where 5G frequencies and networks are not yet available, Mokki works with previous-generation technologies.

Regardless of the technology it runs on, Mokki already brings knowledge and know-how related to the latest 5G technology and its application in several different areas that are important for each region. Mokki is a catalyst for the development of fixed and 5G networks across Africa, including underserved areas. Investments in fixed networks, the latest mobile technology and green energy, combined with the deployment of Mokkis to accelerate education, work, and other services, is one of the fastest and surest ways to develop regions.

The panel discussion highlighted the many benefits that collaboration with the 5G Mokki Tech Space network offers to international companies.

Professor Leonard Wantchekon from Princeton University cited China and, more broadly, Asia as an example of a region that has boosted business growth and productivity in recent decades. Known for its natural resources and large young population, Africa is the next continent comparable to Asia that will provide businesses with expertise and other resources.

The Covid pandemic has taught us the value of remote learning, work, and entrepreneurship. By taking advantage of the latest technology, new resources can be quickly made available to companies to grow their businesses and promote regional economic development. The 5G Mokki network helps with this.

Professor Wantchekon is also the founder of the African School of Economics with campuses in Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Benin, recruiting students from more than 20 African countries. He argues that 5G Mokki can play a crucial role in supporting research activities and providing cutting-edge teaching materials to studies across campuses.

Professor Marko Nieminen from Aalto University in Finland put forward that the latest network and communications technology, together with new solutions for energy and electricity, open up completely new opportunities to export know-how, work and entrepreneurship, even for underserved rural areas. This will bring more expertise and other resources to businesses.

Professor Nieminen elaborated on hands-on development projects such as in remote villages in Namibia and Zambia, where his research team has built electricity and energy systems as well as internet connections. Villages have rapidly moved to a new level of development. As one of the players in the Start North network, Aalto University is now utilizing the 5G Mokki network for research and education to facilitate and accelerate development.

Dr. Olatundun Adelegan from Nigeria, currently a Visiting Professor at Aalto University, presented research findings on what is slowing down or hindering Africa’s development. She highlighted infrastructure deficiencies, poor learning outcomes, and weak internet connections, youth unemployment and adverse effects of climate change and financial exclusion as hindrances to economic growth. She further explained that a robust information and technology network will lead to innovation in education and entrepreneurship and enhance financial inclusion and adoption of digital financial services and mobile money among rural dwellers as well as facilitating trade.

In addition, strong internet and digital technology will reduce the adverse effects of climate change through the provision of early warning systems on extreme weather events (floods, drought, storms, heat waves); boost agriculture yield with digital information on the onset of rainfall and sensors to monitor soil and plant conditions; minimize post-harvest loss from farm-to-fork; and enhance online nomadic education on adaptation techniques to minimize conflicts between herdsmen and farmers induced by climate change.

A robust information and technology network will contribute significantly to improving sub-Saharan Africa’s ability to create new business and attract international companies and investors.

Mr. Boris Ngala, Founder and CEO of BB Incubator in Douala, Cameroon and one of the co-founders of the 5G Mokki Tech Space network, having spent seven years abroad, returned to his home country with a vision to reduce poverty through technology-driven solutions, entrepreneurial training, and business advice.

When he heard about the 5G Mokki concept and its potential to accelerate the learning and application of new technology for the benefit of the region and its youth, he immediately seized the opportunity and set out to promote a concept that connects young people in Africa to each other and to other continents. Young people who are hungry for knowledge, learning, work, and entrepreneurship will make a significant contribution to the development of local and international business, as long as they are provided with advanced environments for learning, technological development and entrepreneurship.

Mr. Douglas Ogeto, Co-Founder and CEO of Ludique Works, the Pan-African video game publishing company in Nairobi, Kenya, said: “The 5G Mokki Tech Space network has the enormous potential to serve international and local companies, to provide creative-economy and technology-based jobs and promote entrepreneurship based on the learning of the latest technology and hands-on projects that serve local conditions. Furthermore, this is supported by extensive national and international collaboration with universities and companies.”

He is also a recent co-founder of the 5G Mokki Tech Space network. Ludique Works conducts numerous game development and business acceleration programs across Africa each year. The 5G Mokki network significantly improves the business opportunities for game developers.

Atte Leskinen, one of the driving forces behind Start North, the Finnish technology learning accelerator network, and one of the inventors of the 5G Mokki learning and technology environment, told that 5G Mokki is a concept invented by young people themselves and developed together with experienced professionals.

The concept has been tested and developed at an early stage in leading U.S. universities such as Stanford, UCLA, UC Berkeley and USC and has since been developed in cooperation with leading universities and companies in Finland and other Nordic countries.

Mr Leskinen however emphasised that the Mokki is only a tool to accelerate the learning and application of new technology. Most important are its benefits for businesses, young people and the sustainable development of the regions and our planet. Leskinen also welcomes the cooperation with African universities and business incubators and invites U.S. companies such as Microsoft, as well as universities such as Princeton University, to use the network to promote their operations and global sustainability.

The webinar was moderated by Lars Ling, founder of CleanTech Region Impact Group. Mr Ling highlighted his particular interest in developing the new kind of education needed to promote sustainable development in the world.

He ended the panel with the notion that all change starts with a change in an individual’s own behavior.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of 5G Mokki.

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