WeGO Strengthens Global Partnerships and Advances Smart City Initiatives in Switzerland
[Switzerland, July 16th, 2025] — The World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO) recently concluded a successful mission to Switzerland, aimed at fostering international collaboration and advancing smart city initiatives in the cities of Geneva, Bern, Lucerne and Zürich. Building upon WeGO’s engagements with ITU, UN-Habitat, and UN–ODET, WeGO continued building partnerships with Geneva-based international organizations during a recent mission to Switzerland. During this mission, WeGO representatives engaged in a series of high-level meetings with key stakeholders, including United Nations officials, city leaders, and academic institutions.
Collaborations with International Organizations
WeGO’s delegation met with several United Nations entities to explore areas of collaboration. A productive meeting with Kamal Kishore, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, and Head of UNDRR, identified potential collaborations on the “Make Cities Resilient” disaster prevention campaigns in cities. UNDRR emphasized the important role of their Incheon-based office in coordinating their work on global resilience and highlighted the opportunities for partnerships with WeGO to help cities become resilient with digital tools and infrastructures.
Additionally, discussions with Ronald Jackson, Head of Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery for Building Resilience at UNDP, focused on involving WeGO members in pilot projects aimed at supporting cities in addressing the climate crisis through their flagship program “Resilient Urban Futures”.
WeGO also engaged with Dmitry Mariyasin, Deputy Executive Secretary-General of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to discuss potential involvement of WeGO and its members at the UN Forum of Mayors hosted every year in October in Geneva and highlighted WeGO’s new partnership with the UNECE-University of Geneva Center of Excellence for Smart Sustainable Cities, supported by WeGO’s advisors and partners Alexandre Hedjazi and Bruno Lanvin to enhance the Smart Sustainable Cities Index.
WeGO also paid a visit to the UN Office in Geneva and met with Kira Kruglikova, Director of Administration of UNOG who notably deals with issues of building and facilities management at Geneva’s UN Headquarters. Discussions included collaborating on events such as UN International Days and bringing WeGO’s expertise on relevant topics such as smart cities and sustainability.
WeGO’s delegation also met with Thomas Asare, Assistant Secretary General at the World Meteorological Organization who shared insight on their work with national weather agencies and discussed the impact on cities and the importance of data sharing for smarter local weather predictions. WeGO and WMO identified events to participate in together and promote each organization.
Finally, WeGO had a meeting with Anh Thu Duong, Co-Director, and Andras Szorenyi, Senior Policy Advisor at Global Cities Hub (GCH) to discuss enhancing the ongoing partnership between WeGO and GCH. GCH works with Geneva-based international organizations such as ITU, UNEP, and UNHRC, and focuses on amplifying the voices of cities within state-level policy-making processes. WeGO and GCH agreed to mutually help each other connect cities and international organizations by continuing their joint participation in events such as the Smart Cities Leaders’ Talk and more ahead.
Academic Partnerships and Promotion of WeGO’s initiatives
The mission included visits to prominent academic institutions such as the University of Geneva, where discussions with Vice-Rector Sébastien Castelltort explored ways of collaboration to promote the WeGO Sustainable Smart City Champions Program to students of the university. WeGO also met with Marilyne Andersen, Director General of GESDA (Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator), think-tank based in the University of Geneva, whose mission is to anticipate emerging scientific discoveries and translate them into concrete actions from local governments for the benefit of society, to discuss future collaborations on events and workshops with WeGO’s members.
Finally, a meeting with Martina Rechsteiner, Senior Researcher at ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences and Managing Director of the Future City Alliance, an organization that supports Swiss cities and regions in their sustainable development by connecting public and private organizations. They also conduct research such as smart city surveys for Swiss cities that could serve as an excellent example for the Seoul Smart City Prize. Finally, this meeting highlighted the potential involvement of ZHAW students in WeGO’s Champions program and the potential integration of the lecture into the students’ curriculum.
WeGO’s mission to Switzerland reaffirmed its commitment to promoting smart, sustainable urban development through strategic partnerships and international collaboration. By engaging with key stakeholders and exploring new opportunities in the region, WeGO continues to strengthen its global presence and advance its mission of transforming cities into smart sustainable cities.
High-Level Meetings and Strategic Discussions
WeGO’s mission began with a significant meeting with the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva. The Ambassador emphasized the growing importance of artificial intelligence (AI) and highlighted WeGO’s pivotal role in a multi-stakeholder approach in the field of AI, given its inclusion of corporate membership.
WeGO also met with Thomas Cho, the President of the Switzerland (Leman Region) Korean Association and former City Councilor of the Municipality of Vich. Mr. Cho agreed to promote WeGO to his network in cities, corporations, and institutions in Switzerland for membership and WeGO initiatives such as the WeGO Sustainable Smart City Champions program and the Seoul Smart City Prize.
A notable meeting was held with the Deputy Mayor of Evian, Lise Nicoud, where discussions centered on the benefits of joining WeGO and potential collaborations. Evian expressed interest in becoming a WeGO member and hosting future WeGO events, given its extensive experience in organizing large-scale international events.
WeGO concluded its visit with a meeting at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to the Swiss Confederation in Bern. The delegation met with Minister Counsellor and Deputy Ambassador Woosic Sin, who provided valuable insights into city development and the growing interest in smart cities in Switzerland and the eastern regions of France. This meeting emphasized the potential for further collaboration and exchange of knowledge in advancing smart city initiatives in the region.
About WeGO
The World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO), is a membership-based international association of local governments, smart tech solution providers, and institutions committed to the transformation of cities into smart sustainable cities through facilitating public-private partnerships (PPP). WeGO was founded by 50 member cities in 2010 as the World e-Governments Organization, hence our acronym. In response to the evolving concept of smart cities, WeGO expanded its vision and mandate at the 7th General Assembly (2017) and its name to the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization. WeGO’s Secretariat is based in Seoul, Korea, and has regional offices in East Asia (Chengdu, China), the Mediterranean (Beyoglu, Turkey), Africa (Abuja, Nigeria), Middle East & North Africa (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), Latin America (Cuenca, Ecuador), and Central Asia (Almaty, Kazakhstan). As the leading platform on smart city development, WeGO’s mission is to share knowledge and good practices in e-Governance; strengthen administrative efficiency and transparency; advance digital capacity; facilitate civic involvement; bridge the digital divide and inequality; and promote cooperation solidarity among cities and local governments around the world.
WeGO serves for its members as their international platform to improve the quality of life, innovate in the delivery of public services, and strengthen regional competitiveness.
Press Contact:
Name: Kakim Danabayev
E-mail: kakim@we-gov.org
Phone: +82-70-4202-9169