In this episode of East-West Connect, we explore how smart city innovations are transforming Astana into a model for urban sustainability, smarter living and economic growth in Central Asia.
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00:00Digital technologies and connectivity are helping to make urban areas cleaner, greener
00:17and more efficient. But smart cities also bring economic benefits, including new jobs,
00:24business and investment opportunities. Kazakhstan is one country embracing the smart thinking.
00:31So what's been the impact of smart cities and how are they changing urban living?
00:40Hello and welcome to East West Connect. We're highlighting business and economic developments
00:46in Kazakhstan and the wider Central Asia region, connecting them with Europe and beyond. Projected
00:53to reach 9.7 billion in 2050, the planet's population isn't standing still. In Kazakhstan,
01:01numbers are expected to hit 24 million over the next five years. More people means more demands
01:09and more impacts. Innovating in key sectors such as mobility, energy, health and education,
01:18cities are embracing the likes of 5G, big data, AI and other connected technologies to future-proof
01:26urban life. In Europe, revenues from smart city components and services are set to top 23.5
01:34billion euros by 2029 and 42.6 billion in Asia. Amsterdam was an early adopter of the smart city
01:45concepts and now new tech solutions are being worked up there to help reach climate neutral.
01:52I spoke to a research lab involved. One of our key focus area within our research group is actually
02:00deploying sensors on moving vehicles such as garbage trucks and taxis. And in one of the ways
02:05we're doing this is with the Project City Scanner, which we've been using in Cambridge in the United
02:10States, we've used them in Rome, we've used them in Amsterdam, we've used them in Beirut and these
02:16sensors actually collect air quality data and they can scan greenery and see how healthy it is. So
02:21that helps us to hyperlocally make assessments on the on the environment that citizens live in
02:26and hopefully help them get cleaner and better environments. What is crucial actually for all
02:31research is that you work with the city and that really leads to a lot of potential for economic
02:37growth. Think about startups that can leverage a new data set to see where urban heat is highest
02:43in the city and then go to local businesses and propose solutions for them to increase shading
02:49or increase thermal comfort for pedestrians.
02:54Amsterdam is transforming and so is Kazakhstan's capital Astana,
02:58which is adopting smart tech in key sectors like transport. Take a look at this.
03:07Raquel, an English teacher from the US, is heading out to meet friends in Astana.
03:17She's taking the bus and is using an app to track its arrival in real time.
03:26Once on board, Raquel pays using a QR code linked to her bank account. I take the bus three or four
03:33times a week and I usually take it to go to my hobbies. I always use the smart systems compared
03:41to the US for sure. It's very convenient and cashless. Raquel is traveling on an electric bus,
03:50one of a hundred now on the roads of Astana.
04:03This city control room helps to keep buses and other traffic on the move,
04:25monitoring a network of cameras and traffic light sensors.
04:33The smart system helps to optimize traffic flow and reduce emissions.
04:58Greener and more efficient. But what's Astana's smart thinking doing
05:02for business and the economy? I spoke to Astana Innovations,
05:07a company implementing the capital's transformation.
05:12First of all, we create the demand for IT specialists because the projects with AI is
05:20growing, right? That's why the demand is also growing. Last year, we initiated the new program,
05:25which is called Astana Smart City Acceleration Program. We as a company, we help to navigate
05:31the other IT projects, how to integrate with the system, like innovative infrastructure.
05:37Let's say if they don't have money to support the project, yeah, we can help them if their
05:44IT project is very relevant for us. In the utilities area, they already made an improvement.
05:49They integrated with the other utilities, governmental companies, and now we see the
05:55automation came very successfully. You also have in Astana a smart Astana app.
06:00Tell us how that works. We got the super app, which is called Smart Astana.
06:04In terms of health, you can get the, let's say, the appointment with the doctor. We have an air
06:09quality index over there. You can check in many parts of Astana where the air quality is good,
06:15where it's bad. You can monitor this. Also, there are also other many features in this app, like
06:25buses, navigation, where they're going, the roads.
06:31What is the economic, wider economic impact of having a smart city? In terms of economy,
06:37we would like to be more closer to the world. First stage, we got the ISO certificate from the
06:42UN as a sustainable development goals. Now we are planning to make a new ISO certificate,
06:49which is emphasized on smart city only. In order to improve economy, we need to
06:56trade with other countries. I think the certificate is going to make Kazakhstan a little one step
07:03closer to the world to create a very open environment and open economy for the world.
07:10As you look to the future, next few years, next five, ten years,
07:14what is smart Astana going to look like? As you know, that Astana is growing very rapidly
07:19in terms of infrastructure. The same thing, we have the same rhythm of growing the IT infrastructure,
07:27like innovative infrastructure, because now we have an emphasis on the artificial intelligence
07:33because it's trending in the world right now. It proves that it's a very useful tool to use to
07:40make people's lives easier.
07:45That's all we have time for in this edition of EastWest Connect,
07:49but you can get more business news on our website,
07:51euronews.com. From all the team here, thanks for watching and bye for now.