WeGO takes part in Indonesian finance summit

January 22, 2019

JAKARTA – WeGO attended Indonesia’s premier finance summit, GovPay, supported by the Government of Indonesia, Indonesian mobile app payment system OVO, and European software corporation Dassault Systemes.

Over 330 people from 90+ public sector agencies from around ten countries attended the event, including Indonesian ministers for national development planning and for administrative and bureaucratic reform, the Governor of DKI Jakarta, and the Head of Jakarta Smart City Unit.

Following a presentation by on Indonesia’s national plan on digital economy development and a case study presentation by OVO, WeGO’s Secretary General Kyong-yul Lee presented on “Building Inclusive Smart Cities” in a session on data moderated by UN’s Pulse Lab Jakarta, alongside high-level officals and mayors from across South and Southeast Asia.

Secretary General Lee explained that a smart city is “a happy city for smart people,” and that “cities should make citizens happier, and citizens are welcome to make cities smarter.” He introduced smart city cases from Seoul including Eungdapso, mVoting, and Night Owl Bus, as well as WeGO’s own initiatives, including its partnership with the ASEAN Smart Cities Network (ASCN) and the launch of a “Northeast Asia Smart Cities Network.”

At a roundtable on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), chaired by Solaris Consortium of Management Consultancies, Secretary General Lee emphasized that although private sector expertise is necessary for smart cities, citizens are the most essential stakeholders for this process. “Public-Private-People Partnerships” are thus preferred over PPPs, he said. He described WeGO activities that promote this approach, such as its feasibility studies and pilot projects and Civic Participation System (CPS).

WeGO’s presence at the event and meetings with local partners lay the foundation for WeGO’s ASCN-related initiatives and strengthened its broader network in ASEAN.