This is one of the key events for sustainable urban development in Africa. The African Cities Lab forum, which will be held on May 23 and 24, 2023 in Cotonou, Benin, will bring together municipal officials, start-ups, and urban planning specialists. The meeting will focus on smart cities, especially digital solutions that can improve living conditions in the continent’s metropolises.
During two days, participants including those who will connect from Rabat in Morocco will scrutinize new technological advances in the fields of education, sanitation, mobility and climate. Networking sessions are also planned between entrepreneurs and students who will exchange together on green projects related to digital connectivity.
“African Cities Lab 2023 aims to create a truly inclusive, international and intergenerational platform where all stakeholders will think about smart cities. Topics include real-time data collection, building communication networks to connect devices and people in Africa, data analytics to optimize urban resource management, and creating basic public services,” says the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, which is co-organizing the event with other academic platforms.
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These are the Development Agency of Sèmè City, which prepares the digital transformation of the economic capital of Benin, the University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) of Ben Guérir in Morocco, the University of Science and Technology Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana, the University of Rwanda, and the University of Cape Town in South Africa. The latter is closely following the digitization of the Stellenbosch municipality’s transport system, which is being piloted by the German technology solutions provider PVT Group. The project, called “Jeans”, is expected to enable the remote management of traffic lights using artificial intelligence (AI).
For more information on the event, click here.
Benoit-Ivan Wansi