The ITU case study traces Moscow's smart city journey from its origins in Moscow's Information City strategy launched in 2011 to its successor the Smart Moscow 2030 strategy. It highlights the role of Moscow's Government in coordinating the implementation of a wide-array of smart city projects in the city and how these projects have substantially improved the quality of life for city residents. The report assesses Moscow's smart city performance using U4SSC indicators that measure impact on three dimensions: the economy, environment and society & culture.
The case study serves as a valuable reference point to other cities in Russia and Commonwealth of Independent State countries - as well as to cities around the world pursuing greater efficiency and sustainability.
"Home to more than 12 million people, Moscow is the largest urban area on the European continent," said ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao. "Considering the size of Moscow and its population, this case study offers a unique set of lessons learned for other cities around the world developing a 'smart city' strategy. I commend Moscow's leaders for their efforts to share these experiences and this knowledge with the international community, towards creating a 'smart' world for everyone, everywhere."
The findings of the case study will feed into the work of ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) Study Group 20, the expert group leading the development of ITU standards for the Internet of Things and smart cities. These standards assist in optimizing the application of ICTs within smart cities, in addition to supporting efficient data processing and management.
The findings will also be taken up by the U4SSC initiative, which advocates for public policy to ensure that ICTs, and ICT standards in particular, play a definitive role in the transition to Smart Sustainable Cities. U4SSC also promotes the adoption of international standards in reaching the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the reporting of associated experiences.
"Moscow has made a rapid smart city journey from 2011 and we are keen on keeping up with the pace. No matter whether it is Moscow, Singapore or Barcelona - every city has the same task to make their residents' lives enjoyable, safe and comfortable," said Strategy and Innovations Advisor to the Chief Information Officer of Moscow, Andrey Belozerov. "We are happy to contribute to this research as it is important to develop universal metrics to access city performances all around the world."
The Moscow case study follows prior smart city case studies of Dubai and Singapore. These have made valuable smart cities experiences and knowledge available to other cities around the world. This reporting also solicits feedback that helps cities to refine their smart city strategies.
U4SSC has developed a 'Collection methodology for the Key Performance Indicators for Smart Sustainable Cities' to guide cities in their collection of core data and information necessary to assess their progress in becoming a Smart Sustainable City. It is supported by 16 United Nations bodies, including ITU, and is open to the participation of all stakeholders interested in driving smart city innovation.
The collaboration encouraged by U4SSC has led more than 50 cities to measure their smart city strategies using the U4SSC's KPIs for Smart Sustainable Cities, which are based on the ITU international standard, ITU Y.4903/L.1603 "Key Performance Indicators for Smart Sustainable Cities to assess the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals".