CAIRO, February 2019 –  UN-Habitat’s Egypt office is partnering with the National Housing and Building Research Center (HBRC) and the General Organization for Physical Planning (GOPP) to organize an international expert workshop to draw up standards for developing smart cities in Egypt

The workshop, to be held in March 2019, will bring together experts, academics and practitioners, along with members of the Egyptian Code Committee – a Governmental Committee drawn from different entities inside the Housing Ministry. The workshop will develop key performance indicators and benchmarks in several sectors, including urban management, governance, mobility, infrastructure and urban economy.

The workshop will support the Code Committee to draw up a Code for Smart Cities for Egypt. This will provide scientific and technical standards to be applied in the creation of new smart cities and transforming existing cities.

Egypt is keen to create fourth generation smart cities that will respond to the growing demand for more efficient and sustainable urban development.

Smart cities involve the development of digital policies and strategies that are people-centred and tap into technological innovations to build the capacities of stakeholders (smart grids, smart government, smart citizenship, etc.). Smart cities use technology to improve the quality of life of urban communities and build inclusive urban societies,