Riga has risen 24 places in the International Smart City Index in a year, ranking 59th out of 142 cities, beating European metropolises such as Barcelona, Istanbul, Rome, Athens, Milan, Krakow and Manchester.
The IMD Smart City Index is organised annually by the World Competitiveness Centre and assesses the infrastructure, technological solutions and services available in cities. During the study, 120 residents were also surveyed in each city, asking them to rate the city performance in areas such as health and safety, mobility, activities (environment and culture), access to work and education, and city governance.
In assessing Riga's achievement, Inese Andersone, Chair of the City Development Department of Riga City Council, said: “Our work on smart cities is bearing fruit and we are making good progress in introducing a range of innovative technologies into local government. But success is based on smart municipal governance, and with more and more knowledgeable, experienced and talented people joining the municipal team, Riga's growth will only increase.”
By introducing digital technologies in the work of the municipality, the already integrated transport systems in Riga make moving around simpler and more convenient. Operational traffic management and real-time data make it easy for everyone to get around the city. "Green buildings, solar energy, smart public lighting and eco-friendly commuting reduce your carbon footprint, creating a cleaner and greener Riga. The municipality's online services, digital tools for urban planning and 5G technology solutions allow everyone to play their part in shaping the city. Free Wi-Fi in city parks, improved public safety and a wide range of city services improve the daily lives of residents and visitors. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, in turn, are being tested to increase the efficiency of local government and respond more quickly to citizens' requests.
The opportunities provided by Riga are appreciated by foreign partners, as more and more entrepreneurs choose Riga as their innovation environment and the municipality becomes a partner in developing and testing solutions in the urban environment and its pilot areas. For example, the Municipal Geospatial Data Portal "GEO RIGA" provides access to Riga's geospatial data for different groups of society, including investors, entrepreneurs, innovators and researchers. Together with the Municipality of Turin, Riga participates in the European Union pilot project "5G4LIVES". The pilot areas of this project - Vecāķi and Kīšezers beaches - will be equipped with the latest 5G technologies and automated drone flights will be introduced in the work of the municipal police. To make Riga safer, the number of CCTV cameras is being increased and the administration of traffic offences is being automated.
These are just some of the digital technology projects that the municipality is implementing in the city environment and services to make life easier and safer for citizens and businesses, and services and processes faster and more productive.
The top three cities in the IMD Smart City Index are Zurich, Oslo and Canberra. Additional information about the assessment is available here: https://www.imd.org/smart-city-observatory/home/rankings/
Information was prepared by: Tatjana Smirnova, Project Coordinator of the Department of External Communication of the Communication Department of the Riga Municipality e-mail: tsmirnova11@riga.lv.