Governing Smart Cities: Use Cases for Urban Transformation

The report highlights a gap between the rapid adoption of smart city technologies and the governance frameworks needed to manage risks. It details the G20 Global Smart Cities Alliance's effort to provide seven model policies and regional support networks to help cities implement standards for open data, privacy, and accessibility.

• Many cities lack fundamental governance to manage the risks of smart technology; for instance, while 80% of surveyed cities recognize legal obligations for data protection, fewer than 25% actually perform privacy impact assessments when deploying new technologies.
• Mexico City implemented an open data policy and portal to combat crime, leading to a 60% reduction in high-impact crimes between October 2018 and March 2023, and increasing the percentage of residents who feel safe from 7% to 42.5%.
• Tsukuba is developing a local ordinance for Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) to manage risks associated with Japan's "Super City" initiative, aiming to build public trust and ensure that elderly residents with limited digital literacy can safely use advanced services.
• Istanbul is implementing an information and communication technology (ICT) accessibility policy to ensure digital services are inclusive for people with disabilities, with a goal to increase annual social services from 800,000 in 2019 to 2.5 million by 2024.
• The G20 Global Smart Cities Alliance provides seven model policies covering open data, openness and interoperability, open contracting, ICT accessibility, cyber resilience, cyber accountability, and privacy impact assessments.
• To ensure global model policies are effective, the alliance operates regional networks in Japan, South-East Asia, India, and Latin America to adapt these frameworks to local language, culture, and governance structures.

APA

World Economic Forum (2023). Governing Smart Cities: Use Cases for Urban Transformation. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Governing_Smart_Cities_Use_Cases_for_Urban_Transformation_2023.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Governing Smart Cities: Use Cases for Urban Transformation. 2023. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Governing_Smart_Cities_Use_Cases_for_Urban_Transformation_2023.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Governing Smart Cities: Use Cases for Urban Transformation |date=November 2023 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Governing_Smart_Cities_Use_Cases_for_Urban_Transformation_2023.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2023governing, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Governing Smart Cities: Use Cases for Urban Transformation}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Governing_Smart_Cities_Use_Cases_for_Urban_Transformation_2023.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }