Everyone wants to build own Singapore
Last week, on July 8-12, Singapore gathered almost all countries of the world to discuss international issues of territorial development and recent technological developments of urban improvement. A number of activities took place under the aegis of improvement week. These are World Cities Summit, Singapore International Water Week, CleanEnviro Summit, Young Leaders Symposium.
120 MAYORS OF THE LARGEST CITIES IN THE WORLD
The most important in a series of business events was World Cities Summit 2018 "Embracing the Future through Innovation & Collaboration": an exhibition of more than 30 000 sq.meters, over 1000 companies, representatives of 1200 cities, 70 heads of corporations, 120 mayors. The main organizer is the Ministry of National Development of the Republic of Singapore. The summit is held for the sixth time and its main task is to study development mechanisms that leaders use to foster innovation in the field of urban development, attract investment and improve the quality of life of the population. Established in the frames of the Summit, an award named after Lee Kuan Yew, is presented to exceptional cities for unique achievements. In 2018, Seoul city (South Korea) won the first prize. Urban policy is based on pre-election thesis of the Mayor of Seoul of 2011 Mr. Park Won-soon "In Seoul, the mayor is the residents of the city". It was the moment that led to comprehensive involvement of citizens in territorial development. Active public discussions and retreats with invitations of activists began.
In 2012, the program "Open Government 2:0" was implemented - full disclosure of all government documents (which were not personal data) to achieve the maximum of trust between citizens and authorities. After that, Social Media City Seoul was opened for processing appeals from citizens from 44 social networks. System of assessment of governmental t actions by population was also implemented. Seoul development plan till the year 2030 was developed, and about 5% of budgetary expenditure for city development is distributed by the townspeople.
KAZAN SHONE AGAIN ON THE WORLD MAP
In addition to the main prize, 4 cities of the world have been given special mention of Lee Kuan Yew award in 2018: Hamburg (Germany), Kazan (Russian Federation), Surabaya (Indonesia), Tokyo (Japan).
Hamburg has pleased the world community with the development of water space and landscaping of surrounding area, as well as development of green spaces. The system of encouraging the use of public transport, development of walking and cycling routes were also marked.
The Indonesian city of Surabaya covered 20% of its territory with park zones, implemented colored urban containers for waste separation, as well as implemented the program to stimulate domestic entrepreneurship.
Well-known Tokyo was recognized as the city, creating public spaces in business districts based on public-private partnership. In addition, the system of public transport, namely the metro and trains, owned by private companies, recognized as an excellent practice. Commercial hubs and social spaces for people deployed at the stations. In the frames of preparation for hosting the 2020 Summer Paralympics, Tokyo implements special program "Safe, diverse and smart Tokyo 2020".
"I feel special pride. The only city of the Russian Federation given a special mention for the whole period of existence of the award became the millennial beauty Kazan. The city is marked as a cultural hub and an example of peaceful coexistence of different religions and peoples. Strong infrastructural development by holding world sport events also affected the jury's decision. The next World Cities Summit will take place in Singapore on July 5-9, 2020 as the event is held every two years. I want to believe that in 2020, other Russian cities, worth of international acclaim, will receive well-deserved international prestigious awards. And for Kazan, this is first of all global promotion, increase of recognition and, as a result, increase of investment attractiveness", - the CEO of Tatarstan Investment Development Agency Taliya Minullina commented.
WORLD CITIES SUMMIT YOUNG LEADERS SYMPOSIUM 2018
Taliya Minullina is the youngest female Minister in the Government of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Head of Tatarstan Investment Development Agency became the only invited participant from the Russian Federation to the Young Leaders Symposium 2018, which was held in Singapore in the frames of World Cities Summit 2018. The list of world leaders included 103 young leaders, the vast majority of whom are representatives of Asian countries, young top-managers both in public and commercial sectors in the age from 30 to 40.
The Summit was dedicated to the close interaction of government, business and society. The event consisted of the rounds of discussions, including ones on innovations, territorial development, digitalisation, challenges of future related to technological progress. The participation of the representatives of Tatarstan in such events strengthens not only republican, but also Russian image as an area with high potential.