In today’s world of digitalization and the pace of technological progress is staggering, a new trend is emerging. The Smart City, also known as the “intelligent city”, is emerging in an economic, environmental and social context. However, with its impressive population growth and expanding cities, Africa could well take advantage of new technologies to meet these major challenges.

So, you are wondering how new technologies can address the sustainability issues facing African cities? In this article, we answer all your questions!

1. What is a smart city?

A smart city is a city that uses information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve the quality of urban services or reduce their costs. In other words, Smart Cities are areas where technology and connectivity are at the heart of the infrastructure. The result is urban spaces that are a pleasure to live in.

2. Can we already talk about smart cities in Africa?

Africa is undergoing a major digital transformation as well as a rapid urbanization, in a world where the ecological transition appears to be an absolute priority. Therefore, the solution to anticipate these problems and their consequences on housing, water supply, electricity, road traffic and waste disposal is the smart city, which is precisely designed to manage and optimize all types of flows.

3. What are the key factors of a smart city strategy?

The success of a smart city strategy relies on the ability of cities to innovate in certain key areas including: the economy, environment and energy, government and education, life and health … etc.

• Economy

With digitization and disruptive technologies changing the demands of many jobs today, smart cities will need to develop strategies to meet the jobs of the future that will fuel Industry 4.0. 

• Environment and energy

Cities must push for wiser resource use, from implementing sensors that detect leaks to using behavioral economics and gamification to encourage citizens to make thoughtful decisions about resource use.

• Government and education

Smart cities must rely on analytics to help them develop informed policies, track performance and outcomes, foster citizen engagement, and improve government efficiency. 

• Life and Health

Cities should foster connected communities by building smart buildings, innovating in healthcare, and using data to monitor and improve social programs.

    In conclusion, one could say that smart cities contribute to societal performance and infrastructure growth in evolving markets. They will obviously be a crucial means for Africa to avoid a demographic, political and human catastrophe.