WeGO’s Grand Debut to the Middle East by the Annual Investment Meeting in Abu Dhabi, UAE

SEOUL, May 7th  – WeGO will be making a grand debut in the Middle East at the upcoming Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) 2023 from May 8th to May 10th, 2023 in Abu Dhabi, UAE hosted by the Annual Investment Meeting Foundation. This year’s theme of one of the world’s leading investment platforms is, “Investment Paradigm Shift: Future Investment Opportunities to Foster Sustainable Economic Growth, Diversity and Prosperity.”

The acceleration of smart cities is seen in the Middle East as their heavy investment in new smart city initiatives is underway. In the pursuit of WeGO’s regional expansion, this mission trip to Abu Dhabi will form a strong connection within the region. A bilateral meeting with Abu Dhabi Municipality and Masdar City will be commenced for discussing areas of cooperation with WeGO to connect with smart cities in the Middle East. One of the top smart cities in the UAE is Masdar City, Abu Dhabi’s planned city project, with the ambitious goal of zero emissions and zero waste striving to become the next self-sufficient smart city. 

During the visit, WeGO will have an MoU signing ceremony with the AIM Foundation to seek to promote WeGO’s vision and activities such as the Seoul Smart City Prize in the region, so that innovative smart city projects in the Middle East region can be presented in a multitude of cases to the international arena. WeGO will also explore a potential partnership with the Abu Dhabi Municipality, one of the founding members of WeGO for setting up a Regional Office in Abu Dhabi. 

At this AIM 2023, WeGO will be organizing a workshop, “The Making of Smart and Sustainable City: Implementing Smart and sustainable city projects through Private-Public-People Partnership (PPPP)”. The objective of this workshop is to concentrate on the possibilities of utilizing PPPP as a means to build smart and sustainable cities. Various cities’ will get a chance for teamwork in sharing challenges and solutions for the execution of new initiatives. Participants will comprise a broad range of individuals, including policymakers, government officials from both local and national levels, and other invested parties who are active in the field of smart cities. 

Furthermore, the generative discussion continues with WeGO members; Seoul, Baguio, Bishkek, Hebron, Maputo, and San Fernando – from all over the world joining the WeGO session. The session is an Interactive High-Level Dialogue on “Constructing Visions for the Future of Smart Cities”. As the landscape of global economies is shifting, the leaders of this generation require the foresight for the next generation of smart cities while keeping sustainability, inclusivity, and human-centeredness in mind. The conference aims to facilitate an interactive high-level dialogue to explore innovative ways to create future cities using smart technology.

The Secretary-General will be a panelist among the Acting Secretary General, Economic Commission for Africa, Head of Application Development, Dubai Development Authority, and the CEO of Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) at the Global Leaders Debate, “The Future Paradigm Shift: Future Investment Opportunities to Foster Sustainable Economic Growth, Diversity, and Prosperity” to have an engaging dialogue on how disruptive technology, climate change, and geopolitical tension intertwine to impact the economy.

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:  Jin Hwang
E-mail: jin.hwang@we-gov.org
Phone: 02-720-2931