Boosting our capacity: 2017 Seminar on Planning and Construction of Smart City for Developing Countries
The Government of Guyana continues to ensure that members of the Public Service are given the opportunity to expand their skills and knowledge through adequate training. Over the past months, several staff of the National Data Management Authority (eGovernment Programme) seized the opportunity to develop and strengthen their ICT and related skills in the form of ICT-based training courses/seminars sponsored by the government of the People’s Republic of China.
Most recently, Ms. Utica Alves, Mr. Rosco Greene and Ms. Keane Harmon participated in the 2017 Seminar on Planning and Construction of Smart City for Developing Countries. The five week seminar was held in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China and lasted from August 14 to September 12, 2017. The seminar aimed at providing insight on issues, identifying the contextual influences and discussing the possible approaches for formulating and implementing ICT for Smart Cities in developing countries.
A Smart City Approach is one solution that promotes innovation and competitiveness of cities, as well as citizen engagement, while ensuring that the cities, as the core engine of growth, meet the needs of present and future generations in economic, social and environmental aspects and boosting shared prosperity among all social classes.
This seminar was co-hosted by the Wuhan Research Institute of Posts and Telecommunications and Fiber Home Technologies and sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China. The programme also saw participation from approximately 90 participants came from different countries in Africa, Latin & South Americas and the Caribbean.
Over the course of the programme participants were treated to classroom-type lectures in addition to practical exercises and tours of the Fiber Home factory which allowed the participants to practice new techniques such as splicing fiber optic cables. The social programme involved several trips including two out of province visits to Kiafeng and Xi’an Cities during which friendly tour guides told of the rich history of several historical places within these cities. These tours doubled as the perfect opportunity for participants to get acquainted in a much more relaxed setting, while partaking in a wide array of delicious local cuisine.
