By Oldrich Vlasák MEP - 18th November 2011
More than ever, the traditional drivers of economic growth are giving way to a knowledge-based economy. Cities are the focal points for that transformation
Oldrich Vlasák MEP
Smarter cities provide the opportunity for real investment of European funds, argues Oldrich Vlasák.
More than ever, the traditional drivers of economic growth are giving way to a knowledge-based economy. Cities are the focal points for that transformation.
However, our cities increasingly face new, ever more complicated and interrelated challenges. Urban populations are rapidly ageing and their demands on social and healthcare are increasing.
Possibilities of cities to promote start-ups and business culture are currently limited by excessive bureaucracy. Inner cities are overcrowded with passenger vehicles and city centres suffer from traffic jams, environmental damages, increased noise and related impacts on health.
Affected by climate change, some urban areas are facing the issues of water shortage or frequent floods. Cities’ ability to solve all these issues are severely limited by their budgets which became even more constrained due to the financial and economic crisis. Is there any way forward?
The possibilities for ICT deployment in urban areas are plentiful. Cities of all sizes are introducing new policies, better regulations and market tools using ICT.
Improvements in urban administration and services can have a dramatic impact on the daily lives of citizens and businesses. Public safety systems and better urban policing will make people safer and telecare will make seniors safer in their homes. Environmentally-friendly urban transport can make the environment healthier.
People can spend less time in traffic jams. Smarter grids would allow for saving on energy, water and other utility bills. People can explore historical heritage with navigation systems and virtual monument applications.
In the EU, we have to realise that cities are the core of economic, social and territorial cohesion. We need to target strategic investments at the smart cities agenda as it provides an opportunity for development and revitalisation of local communities.
EU involvement in the field of cohesion policy in urban areas has been weak so far. Mainstreaming of the urban community initiative has led to a stronger focus on sectors hindering an integrated approach.
Opportunities to delegate operations to urban authorities have not been used. The potential of the Jessica instrument is not widely understood and utilised by cities.
The future cohesion policy must pay more attention to cities in order to help them to become more instrumented, interconnected and intelligent.
There is a need of a strengthened legal framework for the urban dimension in cohesion policy in the next programming period. Such a framework should encompass a stronger emphasis on integrated planning, simplified delivery systems, better and more frequent use of global grants.
In the draft cohesion and structural policy legal framework that the commission published, there are many inspiring proposals concerning the urban dimension. This is also thanks to the special interest European regional policy commissioner Johannes Hahn devoted to this topic.
I would like to reiterate the proposal of the commission for a clear focus on sustainable urban development with at least five per cent of the ERDF resources allocated for “integrated actions” by each member state.
European cities are instrumental in achieving union objectives. I have visited a lot of prosperous cities, including the city of Singapore, to see on the ground how technologies can change life in urban areas.
We must ensure coordinated and effective deployment of intelligent systems in the EU. Smarter development of urban areas should form part of all development policies and funding mechanisms as it is crucial to see the urban dimension within the wider context of European governance.
In this way the next programming period will be more oriented to real investment than to mere spending.
